SALEM, Va. – Senior Kerri Dalton heads to the 2016 NCAA Cross Country Championship this Saturday in Louisville, Ky.

The Reigning Old Dominion Athletic Conference Champion finished sixth in the Southeast Regional meet last weekend in Rome, Ga. qualifying for the national meet.

Dalton is just third Maroons in program history to qualify for the NCAA Championships and the 15th to earn All-Southeast Regional honors.  Roanoke has ran a 6K style championship since 2002 and Dalton owns three of the fastest times ever recorded by Roanoke student-athlete.

With her sixth-place finish at regionals with a time of 22:41, Dalton became the first runner since 2000 to record a single-digit finish. Casey Smith finished sixth in 2000 and third in 1999 before she went on to earn two All-American honors in cross country and five in track & field. Smith also competed in the 2008 Olympic Trials.

Earlier this season, the Roanoke women's team placed second at the ODAC Championships for its best finish 2008. She crossed the finish line 14 seconds ahead of the second-place finisher at the conference championships with a time of 22:39. The Women recorded a seventh-place team finish at the Regional race for the best finish since 2009.

During her junior track and field campaign, Dalton was an ODAC Indoor Champion in the 5000 meter alongside a runner-up finish in the 3000 meter. During the conference Outdoor Championships, she claimed the 10,000 meter title.

In her rookie season, she led the team as the top runner in every cross country meet as she did this year in her final season as a Maroon.

"She has set the standard of excellence for our team members, setting the example of what it takes to be a competitive distance runner," said Cross Country Coach Finn Pincus. "When I think about the effort that she has put in with the many miles of running, she is definitely the most deserving distance runner to qualify."