RICHMOND, Ky. – Eastern Kentucky University freshman Ezekiel Rop will square off against the best runners in the nation at the NCAA Division-I Cross Country Championships on Saturday at the LaVern Gibson Championship Course in Terre Haute, Indiana.
 
The men's 10K race is set to go off at 12:15 p.m. ET.
 
Rop qualified for the national championship meet by finishing eighth at the NCAA Southeast Regional last Friday in Charlottesville, Virginia. He covered the 10K course at Panorama Farms in a time of 29:58.3.
 
The native of Eldoret, Kenya was one of 38 at-large individuals from around the country selected to compete at the NCAA Championships.
 
Rop was voted the OVC Male Cross Country Athlete of the Year on November 1. The next day, he won the OVC individual title with an 8K time of 24:35.4. His performance led the Colonels to their 14^th straight conference crown.
 
Rop is the 14^th Colonel all-time to qualify as an individual for the NCAA Men's Cross Country Championship and the first since Erick Rotich in 2016.
 
EKU has now had representation at the NCAA Cross Country Championships 15 of the last 16 years.
 
The top 40 finishers in Saturday's race will receive All-America honors.