University of South Carolina Upstate Athletics
UNC Charlotte Invitational
Spartans Return to the Course for Charlotte Invite
9/28/2013 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
Spartanburg, S.C. – After taking the last two weekends off from competition, the USC Upstate cross country teams will be back in action this weekend when they make the short drive up I-85 to participate in the Charlotte Invitational Saturday morning.
Upstate returns to the course after the men's team won the Eye Opener meet held at the nearby Milliken Research Park in Spartanburg, while the women's team took second. Men's runner Ross Oden claimed the individual championship in the men's race. The Spartans will look to build on the successes in the Eye Opener as they build toward the A-Sun Championships next month.
"I'm really pleased with where we are at right now and I think we will see some great racing this weekend," said Carson Blackwelder, associate head coach at Upstate. "We are looking to test our fitness and toughness this weekend. We have had a couple great weeks of training with good, solid workouts. I've seen our team's overall fitness improve and I believe we are ready to see some great racing this weekend."
The Charlotte Invitational will be run on the course at McAlpine Park. The course is relatively flat and consists of dirt and small gravel which lends itself to producing fast times. The meet will be the first time the Upstate women's team will compete in a 6k this season, having run the 5k in the Covered Bridge Open and Eye Opener meets. The men's race will be the traditional 8k distance.
A large field will gather for the running of the Charlotte Invitational. There will be 29 men's teams, including 12 Division I teams competing in the 8k race. Other Division I teams joining Upstate in the meet are Charlotte, Marshall, Miami (Fla.), Mississippi State, North Carolina A&T, North Florida, Northern Kentucky, Radford, Tennessee Tech, UNC Greensboro and VMI.
The women's field will be even larger with 34 teams competing in the 6k. There are 14 Division I teams competing in the meet. Joining Upstate among the Division I schools are Charlotte, Davidson, Florida State, Marshall, Miami (Fla.), Mississippi State, North Carolina A&T, North Florida, Northern Kentucky, Radford, Tennessee Tech, UNC Greensboro and VMI.
"This is our first real test of racing in a large and very strong field," said Blackwelder. "This will be a great experience for our freshmen who have not run in a race of this quality. The tactics are a little different in this race and this will be a good learning experience for them prior to the A-Sun and regional meets."
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