Musketeers Travel to National Catholic Invitational

CINCINNATI – Xavier cross country continues its season at the National Catholic Invitational on Friday, Sept. 14. The meet is being hosted by Notre Dame with the first race beginning at 3:30 p.m.

The Musketeers are sending two squads to South Bend, Ind., on Friday. Xavier will also send a women's team to the Commodore Classic in Nashville, Tenn., on Saturday, Sept. 15.

NATIONAL CATHOLIC INVITATIONAL

Date: Friday, Sept. 14 | 3:30 p.m.
Location: South Bend, Ind. | Burke Golf Course
Race Distances: Women's 5K, Men's 8K
Live Results: bit.ly/2MtjTeZ

MEET SCHEDULE
3:30 p.m. - Open Division Women - 5K
3:30 p.m. - Open Division Men - 8K
4:15 p.m. - Women's Championship Race - 5K
5 p.m. - Men's Championship Race - 8K
6 p.m. - Awards Ceremony

PARTICIPATING TEAMS
Bellarmine, Calumet-St. Joseph, Canisius, Cardinal Stritch, Creighton, Dayton, DePaul, Detroit Mercy, Franciscan (Ohio), Georgian Court, Holy Cross, John Carroll, Lewis, Loras, Marian (Ind.), Notre Dame, Quincy, Saint Louis, Seton Hall, Siena, Siena Heights (M), St. Anselm, St. Francis (Ind.), St. Mary (Kansas), St. Mary's (California), St. Mary's (F; Indiana), St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Xavier, Walsh, Xavier

REGIONAL RANKING

• The Xavier women's cross country team was ranked 12th in the USTFCCCA Great Lakes Regional poll on Monday. The Musketeers were ranked 14th in the preseason poll.

NOTABLES

• 2018 marks the 39th annual National Catholic Invitational hosted by Notre Dame.

• Xavier last competed at the National Catholic Invitational in 2016 with the women placing sixth and the men taking eighth, respectively.

• The Xavier women most recently competed at the Queen City Invitational on Sept. 1, placing third out of 10 teams. The Musketeers were paced by Anna Kostarellis who placed third in the 5K race. Her time of 17:47.80 ranks ninth in program history.

• Jenna Clayworth also posted a top-10 finish on the women's side as the sophomore placed sixth at the Queen City Invitational. She posted a time of 17:56.80 in the 5K race.

• The Xavier men placed third at the Queen City Invitational, placing ahead of Cincinnati for the first time since 2012 at the annual meet. The Musketeers also defeated Ohio State for the first time in program history.

• Grayson Jenkins led the men's team at the Queen City Invitational, placing 10th overall. The senior posted a time of 15:39.60 in the 5K race.

QUOTING COACH STICKLEY

MEN'S PREVIEW
"The Men's Championship race is something I am extremely excited to watch. After coming off of a great opener at Queen City, the guys have had a fire lit under them and are hungry to race. This is our first 8K of the season, and I believe this could be a little of a shock for our freshmen, but overall as a team we should finish as one of the top and give us even more momentum for the rest of the season. "

WOMEN'S PREVIEW
" We do not have our full squad competing this weekend, but our women that are competing are ready to race at the University of Notre Dame! Robyn Blackwell has had such a positive attitude and shown great strength within her workouts and will be a great leader for our women's group competing. I am looking forward to seeing our women race and hopefully coming home with a few personal bests."

UP NEXT

• Xavier returns to action at both the Louisville Classic and the Paul Short Run on Saturday, Sept. 29.

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