ATHENS—The 2004 season’s biggest and best field of competitors awaits the Ohio men’s and women’s cross country teams this weekend, as the Bobcats travel to Terre Haute, Ind., to compete in the NCAA Pre-Nationals on Saturday.

The event is a precursor to November’s NCAA Championships, which also will be held in Terre Haute and hosted by Indiana State. The Bobcat men and women are just two of 87 squads slated to compete in this fall’s Pre-Nationals. Both the men’s and women’s teams will be split into one of three divisions, blue, white or open.

On the women’s side, half of the nation’s top-30 ranked squads will compete. No. 1 Stanford and No. 3 Michigan are among the competitors.

The Bobcat women are coming off a 13th-place finish at the All-Ohio Championships last weekend. Ohio was led by freshman Carime Reinhart (Bascom), who took third and recorded a time of 18:26.6 on the 5K track.

For the second straight week, Reinhart was the top freshman finisher in the field. Also, she crossed the finish line ahead of all other Mid-American Conference runners. For her efforts, Reinhart was recognized by the conference on Tuesday with her first career MAC Runner of the Week award.

In the men’s division, the competition is just as tough. The field includes 24 of the top-30 ranked teams in the country, including three of the top five. No. 2 Stanford, No. 4 Iona and No. 5 Michigan are among the strong field vying for a top finish this weekend.

The Ohio men were limited to just five runners crossing the finish line last weekend at the All-Ohio Championships, yet still claimed fourth place in the event. The Bobcats were just seven points behind the third-place finisher, Kent State.

Ohio was led by senior Jason Linton (Vincent), who continues his impressive 2004 campaign. Just a couple weeks after grabbing an individual title at the Ohio Invitational, Linton nabbed fourth at the All-Ohio to pace the Bobcats. Recording a time of 25:58.7, Linton—like Reinhart—defeated all other MAC competitors in the race.

Linton was also recognized by the conference this week, as he too claimed MAC Runner of the Week honors, completing a sweep for head coach Clay Calkins’ Ohio cross country program.

With the MAC Championships looming on the horizon, the Bobcats will get a peak at a portion of the conference this weekend. Six MAC schools—Ball State, Kent State, Miami, Northern Illinois, Ohio and Toledo—are slated to appear at the Pre-Nationals. Familiar in-state foes Cincinnati and Ohio State will also take the trip to Terre Haute alongside the Bobcats.

The NCAA Pre-Nationals will be held at the LaVern Gibson Championship Course at the Wabash Valley Family Sports Center. The first of six races begins at 11 a.m. CT and carries throughout the afternoon. The Ohio women will begin at 1:30 CT, while the Bobcat men will follow at 2:05 CT.