Division I championships previews

Division I Men's Cross Country Championships

Dates and sites: Regional qualifying at nine sites will be November 15. The championships will be November 24 at Byrnes Park/Irv Warren Memorial Golf Course in Waterloo, Iowa (hosted by Northern Iowa).

Field: A total of 255 competitors will qualify or be selected.

Selection date: Thirty-one teams and 38 individuals will qualify at regional meets or be selected at large November 17.

2002 team champion: Stanford.

2002 individual champion: Jorge Torres (Colorado).

Top team contenders: Stanford, Wisconsin, Northern Arizona, Colorado, Iona.

Championships notes: All five Stanford scorers finished in the top 10 in their race at the Pre-Nationals in Waterloo October 18, led by Ryan Hall, who finished just two seconds behind Brigham Young's Kipi Kangogo ... 2002 runner-up Wisconsin was impressive in a late-September victory at the Roy Griak Invitational and currently appears to be Stanford's toughest challenger ... Colorado edged Northern Arizona in their head-to-head showdown at the Pre-Nationals, which also featured a victory by the Buffs' Dathan Ritzenhein over Arizona individual contender Robert Cheseret ... Iona's surprising runner-up finish behind Stanford at the Pre-Nats established the Gaels (who previously have never placed higher than ninth nationally) as a dark-horse contender for the title. Top individual contenders: Kipi Kangogo (Brigham Young), Robert Cheseret (Arizona), Dathan Ritzenhein (Colorado), Grant Robison (Stanford), Richard Kiplagat (Iona), Alistair Cross (Arkansas).

Division I Women's Cross Country Championships

Dates and sites: Regional qualifying at nine sites will be November 15. The championships will be November 24 at Byrnes Park/Irv Warren Memorial Golf Course in Waterloo, Iowa (hosted by Northern Iowa).

Field: A total of 255 competitors will qualify or be selected.

Selection date: Thirty-one teams and 38 individuals will qualify at regional meets or be selected at large November 17.

2002 team champion: Brigham Young.

2002 individual champion: Shalane Flanagan (North Carolina).

Top team contenders: Stanford, Brigham Young, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Arizona State.

Championships notes: Although the teams ran in separate races at the Pre-Nationals October 18 in Waterloo, Stanford established itself as a slight favorite over defending champion Brigham Young with an outstanding team performance in which Alicia Craig and Sara Bei crossed the finish line side-by-side for a one-two finish. The Cardinal easily outpointed runner-up North Carolina State in their race, although the Wolfpack ran without leader Kristin Price ... Brigham Young won its flight at the Pre-Nationals, overcoming a strong challenge from North Carolina that was spurred by the day's top individual performance, from defending NCAA champ Shalane Flanagan ... A young Arizona State squad has emerged as a dark-horse challenger approaching the championships, led by sophomore Amy Hastings. Top individual contenders: Shalane Flanagan (North Carolina), Alicia Craig (Stanford), Michaela Mannova (Brigham Young), Vicki Gill (Florida State), Kristin Price (North Carolina State).

Division I Field Hockey Championship

Dates and sites: The first and second rounds will be played November 15 and 16 on the campus of a participating institution. The semifinals and final will be November 21 and 23 at Massachusetts.

Field: 16 teams.

Selection date: November 11.

2002 champion: Wake Forest.

Top contenders: Wake Forest, Duke, Maryland, North Carolina and Michigan occupied the top five slots in the November 4 National Field Hockey Coaches Association poll.

Championship notes: Duke tied a school record for wins in a season with 16 and also matched a school record for consecutive victories by reeling off eight in a row since October 5 ... As of November 3, defending national champion Wake Forest led Division I in winning percentage, scoring defense and margin of victory ... North Carolina's Kelsey Keeran and Rachel Dawson are the Tar Heels' leading scorers with 18 goals each. Keeran and Dawson also are tied for eighth nationally ... Maryland's only two losses in 19 contests this season were two-goal defeats against top-ranked Wake Forest and second-ranked Duke.

Division I Men's Soccer Championship

Dates and sites: Preliminary-round games will be at campus sites. First-round games will be November 21 or 22; second-round games will be November 26; third-round games will be November 29 or 30; and quarterfinal games will be December 5, 6 or 7. The Men's College Cup will be December 12 and 14 at Columbus Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio, hosted by Ohio State.

Field: Forty-eight teams, 23 selected through automatic qualification and 25 selected at large.

Selection date: November 17.

2002 champion: UCLA.

Top contenders: UCLA, Maryland, Wake Forest, St. John's (New York) and Notre Dame were the rankings leaders in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America November 3 poll.

Championship notes: UCLA and Maryland sported 15-1 records through November 3, with the defending champion Bruins losing only to the Terps back in early September and Maryland suffering its blemish against North Carolina. Senior Matt Taylor leads UCLA in scoring with 13 goals in 15 games. Taylor tallied five goals and two assists in last year's NCAA tournament ... Old Dominion had been unbeaten until Halloween when Colonial Athletic Association rival James Madison issued the Monarchs a 3-2 defeat.

Division I Women's Soccer Championship

Dates and sites: Preliminary-round games will be at campus sites. First- and second-round games will be November 14 and 16; third-round games will be November 21, 22 or 23; and quarterfinal games will be November 28, 29 or 30. The Women's College Cup will be December 5 and 7 at State Capital Soccer Park in Cary, North Carolina, hosted by North Carolina State University and the Capital Area Soccer League.

Field: Sixty-four teams, 29 of which earn automatic qualification.

Selection date: November 10.

2002 champion: Portland.

Top contenders: North Carolina, UCLA, Notre Dame, Santa Clara and Colorado were the rankings leaders in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America November 3 poll.

Championship notes: North Carolina was the only unbeaten team through November 3. The Tar Heels have surrendered just six goals this year, two by UCLA in a 5-2 North Carolina win. Lindsay Tarpley leads the Tar Heels with 18 goals and 11 assists. She scored North Carolina's lone goal in the Tar Heels' 2-1 semifinal loss to Santa Clara last year ... Notre Dame was unbeaten until Michigan upset the Fighting Irish, 3-2, October 29. Michigan entered the game 6-6-6 after starting the season 0-4-2 ... Though North Carolina has not won the title since 2000, the Tar Heels still own the championship with 16 titles in 21 years. No other program has won more than once.