Lokedi set to chase history at NCAA Championships

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Kansas junior Sharon Lokedi is set to compete in the 2017 NCAA Cross Country Championships in Louisville, Kentucky on November 18. Lokedi will look to become the first three-time All-American in Kansas cross country history when she toes the line against the nation’s best at 9:45 a.m. CST on Saturday at E.P. “Tom” Sawyer State Park.
 
Lokedi qualified for the 2017 championships by finishing as runner-up at the NCAA Midwest Regional in Ames, Iowa on October 10, marking the third top-three finish at regionals in her career. Prior to her second-place performance at regionals, Lokedi won her second Big 12 Championship in as many years at Old Settlers Park in Round Rock, Texas on October 28, becoming just the fourth female in conference history to win multiple individual titles and the first Kansas women’s runner to do so.
 
Saturday’s championship race won’t be the first at Sawyer Park for Lokedi this year, as the Eldoret, Kenya native opened her season there at the Pre-National Invitational on October 14. In her season opener, Lokedi placed eighth in the 6K seeded race.

“Sharon is a terrific competitor and person,” assistant coach Michael Whittlesey said. “She continues to show an elite level of competitiveness and results for the rest of our program to work towards. Her motivation, work ethic, and competitiveness puts her in position every race to have a successful outcome. Her success and team-first mentality continues to help motivate our program.” 

At the 2016 NCAA Cross Country Championships, Lokedi earned her second All-America honor with a fifth-place finish, which proved to be the best finish by a Kansas runner in over 50 years, where she clocked a personal-best 6K time of 19:52.2. By becoming a two-time All-American, she joined a short list of Kansas legends that were also two-time All-Americans. Bob Karnes (1947, 1948), Herb Semper (1950, 1951), Al Frame (1954, 1955), Jerry McNeal (1956, 1957), Billy Mills (1958, 1959) and Colby Wissel (2006, 2007) were the only Jayhawks to become two-time All-Americans prior to Lokedi’s historic run in 2016.

 
Lokedi’s chase for her third All-America honor will be available to stream through FloTrack, with a paid subscription. Live results will be available through NCAA.com, courtesy of Record Timing.
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