INDIANAPOLIS – Matyas Csiki-Fejer will continue and conclude his Suffolk men's cross country career at the 2021 NCAA Division III Championships as the senior qualified for the national event as an at-large athlete.
In order to be eligible to participate in the championships, teams and individuals had to qualify in their respective NCAA regional competitions that was held this weekend.
Thirty-two team were selected to participate in the championships. The top seven-person team automatically qualified from each of the 10 regions with 22 squad selected via at-large bids. Additionally, 70 individuals, the first seven student-athletes from the 10 regions who are not a part of a qualifying team, were chosen to participate on the championship course as well.
Csiki-Fejer earned his ticket through the individual at-large following his fourth-place finish at the 2021 NCAA DIII East Regionals Saturday, Nov. 13 at Franklin Park. The Manchester, Missouri stayed with the top runners in the region throughout the entire 8k run and came through the finisher's chute in 25:41 to take fourth in the 236 -competitor field.
The fourth-place performance is not only the best for Suffolk's senior captain, but the highest finish by any Ram – male or female – at the regional race. It also marks the first time a Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) student-athlete placed within the top-5 at an NCAA Regional event and he was the only male runner from the league to place inside the top 50.
Csiki-Fejer, who became the first Suffolk male runner and youngest Ram, either male or female, to reach the NCAA Championships as a sophomore in 2019, will make his second trip this season. He is second student-athlete in blue-and-gold to compete at multiple NCAA Cross Country Championships, joining Emily Manfra, who made back-to-back appearances in 2018 and 2019, respectively. He is the sixth CCC student-athlete to compete at NCAAs, first since Jake Hickey of the University of New England did so in 2019.
The All-New England honoree has a quick turnaround to prep for the national championship run, which is set for this Saturday, Nov. 20 in Louisville, Kentucky. Spalding University the Lousiville Sports Commission will serve as hosts at E.P. "Tom" Sawyer State Park. The men's race will begin at 12 a.m., after the women's event at 11 a.m. A live webstream of the championships will occur on NCAA.com