Men's and Women's Cross Country Announces 2019 Schedule

BOONE, N.C. -- Appalachian State head cross country coach Michael Curcio has announced the schedule for the upcoming men's and women's season.

The schedule features 10 meets, including two at the Don Kennedy Trails at State Farm Fields.

"We are excited about the schedule this season," said Curcio. "We have a mix of familiar courses and new courses. We get to host two meets this season and it's always great to run in Boone and at the Don Kennedy Trails."

The first two meets of the season for the Black and Gold will take place in Boone. On Aug. 30, the Mountaineers will open the 2019 season by hosting the Covered Bridge Open. A few weeks later on Sept. 21, App State will host the Mountain to Sea Open.

Following their first two home meets, the Mountaineers will compete in a pair of meets on Oct. 5. A group will compete at the Greater Louisville Classic in Louisville, Ky. and another group will compete at the USC Upstate Open in Spartanburg, S.C.

App State will then shift its focus to the Royals Challenge in Charlotte, N.C. on Oct. 11 and the HPU VertKlasse Open in Kernersville, N.C. on Oct. 18.

"We added the Greater Louisville Classic this season to get a feel for a larger field," added Curcio. "The Greater Louisville Classic will give us a good taste for running with a large group at the NCAA Southeast Regionals later in the year. We also added the Royals Challenge to the schedule. The course we will run is very familiar for many of our athletes from North Carolina."

The Mountaineers will then head to McDonough, Ga. for the Sun Belt Championships on Nov. 2. Last season, the women's program captured its second Sun Belt title in three years. The men's squad placed second after capturing the title in 2017.

App State will have one final tuneup at the Montreat Open on Nov. 8 before heading to the NCAA Southeast Regionals, hosted by Virginia on Nov. 15. 

The NCAA Championships are slated for Nov. 23 in Terre Haute, Ind.

"We are familiar with the championship courses we will compete on at the end of the season," added Curcio. "These courses are tough and we will need to prepare for those challenges."