FSU To Face Elite Competition At Notre Dame Invitational

This is the first points gathering meet for the Seminoles

Oct. 1, 2009

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - After weeks of preparation the Florida State cross country teams (Women-No. 3/ Men-No. 26) will kick off their regular season and first scored meet this weekend at the Notre Dame Invitational in South Bend, Ind. The Seminoles will face a total of 15 nationally-ranked opponents in the Blue Division of the meet. The races will be held on Notre Dame's Golf Course.

The women, who are ranked No. 3 in the nation, will hit the ground running at 4:15 p.m. for the 5K. The Seminoles are slated to face eight nationally-ranked opponents including No. 1 Washington, No. 6 Princeton, No. 12 Providence, No. 13 Arizona State and in-state rival No. 15 Florida.

At the 2008 meet, head coach Karen Harvey led her squad to a first-place finish with 88 points. The Seminoles swept the meet with two top 10 finishes and one additional `Nole in the top 15.

"The Notre Dame Invitational once again has attracted some of the best teams in the country; in particular the women's race is going to be super competitive," Coach Harvey said. "We are excited to take our squad into South Bend and put our best effort forward. It's still a bit early in the season, but a lot can be learned and gained from running against outstanding teams like Washington, Princeton, Arizona State, Providence, Florida and others. The ladies are excited to race, we'll rest a little bit and put our current fitness and pack to the test."

As for the men's squad, head coach Bob Braman will take his No. 26 nationally-ranked Seminoles to battle seven ranked programs including No. 11 Tulsa, No. 15 Providence and No. 20 Butler. The men's blue division will start the 8k race at 5:00 p.m.

At last season's meet FSU crushed the opposition by posting 81 points to earn first place. Former Seminole Luke Gunnran FSU's fastest 8K time in program history with a time of 23:35, while two other Seminoles placed in the top 15.

"We're excited to finally be into our regular season," Coach Braman said. "Notre Dame is a great opportunity to pick up some wins against ranked teams"

Follow the Seminoles throughout the weekend on twitter @fsu_xcountry and www.seminoles.com.