2012 SEC Women’s Cross Country Coach of the Year Paul Spangler met with the media Monday for a weekly media opportunity as the Gators prepare to head to Tallahassee, Fla., for the 2012 NCAA South Region Championship Nov. 9 at Apalachee Regional Park. 

2012 NCAA SOUTH REGION CHAMPIONSHIP CENTRAL

2012 NCAA South Region Championship Preview

This week, Florida will hit the road to Tallahassee for the 2012 NCAA South Region Cross Country Championship, where the top two team finishers will automatically qualify for the 2012 NCAA Championship in Louisville, Ky., Nov. 17. Teams and individuals from squads outside the top two at the nine NCAA Regional sites across the country could still qualify for NCAAs with several at-large bids, which will be announced by the NCAA Sunday. The NCAA South Regional will be held on Friday, Nov. 9, at Apalachee Regional Park in Tallahassee, Fla., with FSU as the host institution. The races are scheduled for 8:30 a.m. (Women’s 6k) and 9:15 a.m. (Men’s 10k). The South Region field will include representatives from 38 women’s teams (29 full squads, plus 21 individuals) and 33 men’s teams (28 full, 11 individuals), with nearly 200 runners in each race. Florida’s men, jumping from an 8K to a 10K at Regionals, will be looking for a second-consecutive NCAA Championship berth after finishing second at the 2011 NCAA South Regional in Tuscaloosa, while the USTFCCCA No. 14-ranked women will be looking to qualify as a team for the sixth time in the last seven years after having three individual representatives at NCAAs last season after a third place Regional finish.

Louisville will play host to the 2012 NCAA Championships Nov. 17. For the first time since World War II, The NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships will be held on a Saturday instead of a Monday - and for just the second time in a BIG EAST Conference City. With the new date formula prescribing the national meet be held on Saturday before Thanksgiving, and by virtue of the calendar having the earliest possible Thanksgiving this year, the meet will be the earliest in Division I history.

Last Time Out: SEC Championship

Last time out at SECs, UF’s women claimed the program’s sixth all-time SEC Championship - the third in the last four years, while the men finished fifth at SECs, their 16th straight top-five SEC finish. Florida’s six titles on the women’s side are the second-most for a SEC women’s squad. Seven UF runners ran lifetime bests and seven turned in top-25 finishes, led by Florence Ngetich (2nd) and Mark Parrish (7th), at the 2012 league meet Oct. 26 in Nashville. UF assistant track and cross country coach Paul Spangler was named the 2012 SEC Women’s Cross Country Coach of the Year, while seven Gator runners were named All-SEC selections.

Check back to www.GatorZone.com/crosscountry as the week goes on for Regional previews and information. Be sure to follow the Gators on Twitter @GatorZoneXCntry and @GZTrackField and onFacebook.