ROCHESTER, N.Y. – RIT junior Derick Koen received an at-large invitation to the NCAA Division III Men's Cross Country Championships, announced Sunday. 
 
The Victor, N.Y.-native earned the invite after placing 14th overall in a field of 170 runners at Saturday's NCAA Division III Niagara Region Championships.
 
Koen earned the bid by being one of the first seven student-athletes in the regional race who were not part of a qualifying team.  A total of 70 individuals, in addition to 32 teams, from across the nation received bids to run in the national championship next Saturday (Nov. 23) at LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course at the Wabash Valley Family Sports Center in Terre Haute, Ind.

This is Koen's second trip to the national championship after having earned an at-large bid last season. The junior placed 197th out of 294 runners with a time of 26:02.4.  
 
The men's race is scheduled for a 12:00 p.m. start. Check back later this week for links to follow Koen live during the race.