TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (seminoles.com) — The (RV/19) Florida State cross country teams will be hosting the FSU XC Open on Friday morning at Apalachee Regional Park.
The men’s 8k will start at 7:40 a.m., followed by the women’s 6k at 8:10 a.m. The meet is open to the public and admission is free.
Both the men’s and women’s teams are looking for a continued strong start to the season, this time on home soil.
“This will be a good early test to see where we are,” FSU head coach Bob Braman said. “This is a meet where we can get some data,”
“On the women’s side, we’ve got the defending national champion in BYU so there will be some challenges there. On the men’s side, Southern Utah, they were ninth at the NCAA Championships in March and they’re going to be good. Furman, who finished in the top 20 the past two years is coming too. This meet is going to be top heavy.”
The women’s team enters this race ranked No. 19 nationally in the USTFCCCA poll and the men’s team will be headlined by NCAA Division I Cross Country Men’s Athlete of the Week, Adriaan Wildschutt. Both Wildschutt and Lauren Ryan are coming off ACC Cross Country Performer of the Week honors following their victories at the Covered Bridge Open.
The Meet
The men’s 8k race will showcase runners from 25 schools:
- Auburn
- Alabama Huntsville
- Central Georgia Tech
- Charleston Southern
- Clemson
- Eastern Michigan
- Flagler
- Florida Atlantic
- FGCU
- Florida International
- Florida Southern
- RV Florida State
- Florida Tech
- No. 20 Furman
- Lee
- Miami
- North Florida
- Northwestern
- Palm Beach Atlantic
- South Florida
- No. 25 Southern Utah
- No. 5 Stanford
- Tampa
- West Florida
- Valdosta State
The women’s 6k race will feature runners from 28 teams, including the top-ranked and defending national champions, BYU.
- Alabama Huntsville
- Auburn
- No. 1 Brigham Young
- Central Georgia Tech
- Clemson
- Eastern Michigan
- Flagler
- Florida A&M
- Florida Atlantic
- FGCU
- Florida International
- Florida Southern
- No. 19 Florida State
- Florida Tech
- Furman
- Lee
- Miami
- North Florida
- Nova Southeastern
- Palm Beach Atlantic
- Pasco-Hernando State
- South Florida
- Southern Utah
- No. 3 Stanford
- Stetson
- Tampa
- Valdosta State
- West Florida
Live timing will be available for the meet.
The meet will be the first of three at the Apalachee Regional Park this season, as the Seminoles will welcome the nation’s best on Oct. 15 for the FSU Invite/Pre-National meet before hosting the 2021 NCAA Championships on Nov. 20.
“Both teams have all done well in different areas,” Braman said, “Indoor, cross country, outdoor; they’ve all really done great things. But I want is to come together in this cross country traditional fall season for both teams to just max it out at home and see how good they can be. Whatever it is, I really want that for these teams.”
The Last Time Out
On Sept.3, both teams swept the Covered Bridge Open in Boone, N.C. in FSU’s fourth consecutive appearance.
The men recorded a solid performance led by Wildschutt (24:48.53) followed by fifth place finisher Ahmed Muhumed (25:22.13). Returners Paul Stafford, Jacob Holmes, and Silas Griffith all finished in quick succession, in eighth, ninth and 10th place, to solidify a strong team win for the Noles, with a total of 36 points.
The women’s team had a convincing showing, as five Noles finished in the top 10, spearheaded by senior Lauren Ryan with a time of 17:05.35. Freshmen Caitlin Wilkey (17:32.36) and Rebecca Bergnes (17:42.57) began their FSU careers well alongside redshirt seniors Amanda Beach and Maudie Skyring as the team claimed the top prize.
For more information on Florida State cross country, follow Twitter @FSU_Track and Instagram @FSU_Track.
