This weekend might feel like deja vu for the Kansas cross country team. The squad is travelling back to Stillwater, Okla., after competing in the Oklahoma State Jamboree in October — but this time around, it’s a new meet with a new agenda.

The team will compete in the NCAA Midwest Regional on Saturday. It’s the final meet on the team’s schedule and its goal for the weekend is to end the season on a positive note.

This time around things are different than the squad’s last trip to Stillwater. The men’s team will have to run a 10K race, as opposed to the 8K distance the team ran last meet.

“It is an added challenge,” freshman Donny Wasinger said. “It’s a wake-up call. You’re in college now. The bar has been raised.”

Wasinger, who has been one of the top finishers for the team, has been the front runner in the past two meets for the Jayhawks. Wasinger said his goal for this weekend’s meet was to finish in the top 40.

Sophomore Nick Caprario, who had previous experience running a 10K at last year’s regional, said the idea was to run smart.

“It’s a long race and if you’re burnt out on the first 5K, you’re done for the rest of the race,” he said.

The women’s race will be a 6K distance. The women feel confident going into the meet, especially because they’ve had experience running the OSU cross country course this season.

“It helps to know how the course is set up and how many hills there are,” sophomore Amanda Miller said.

Wasinger believed that it’s an advantage for the whole team.

“Some guys that had good races can come back and race well again, while other guys who had bad races can come back and get a second chance to have a shot at giving the course a beatdown,” he said.

The regional meet will feature more than 30 teams for both men’s and women’s competitions from the Midwest, including Big 12 teams Nebraska, Kansas State and Oklahoma State.

The Jayhawks are currently ranked No. 10 in the Midwest region and want to show that the team should have been placed higher.

“It’s the last chance to show how strong of a team we are and how well we work together,” sophomore Alison Knoll said.

Junior Bret Imgrund said the team planned on thinking of strategy for the meet.

“We definitely want to run in packs, keep the smallest gap as possible and try to finish with the lowest score,” he said.

The women’s 6K will start at 11 a.m., followed by the men’s 10K at 11:45 a.m.

— — Edited by Rachel Burchfield