Men's Schedule | Women's Schedule

FAIRBANKS, Alaska – Six meets highlight the 2018 men's and women's cross country running schedule, which was announced by fourth-year head coach Nick Crawford on Friday.

This upcoming season, both the Alaska Nanooks men's and women's cross country running programs will compete in four regular season meets and are guaranteed at least two in the postseason. The Nooks will get several opportunities to scout their fellow Great Northwest Athletic Conference opponents, as nearly every meet will pit the Nooks against at least one GNAC school.

"We will be returning to some familiar race venues and meets for the GNAC Championships, the Saint Martin's Invitational and the Western Washington Classic," Crawford said on Friday. "We are also adding two new meets for the team this year with one hosted by UAA in Anchorage and the Emerald City Open in Seattle."

The Nooks will kick-off the 2018 season by heading 365 miles south to participate in the Skinny Raven Classic, hosted by in-state rival Alaska Anchorage on Saturday, Sept. 8.

"I'm especially excited about the opportunity to compete with UAA in-state, as it's something we've talked about doing in the past but it just hasn't worked out schedule-wise," Crawford continued. "So many of our alumni and current student-athletes live in Anchorage, so this will feel like a home competition, despite being 350 miles away."

Two weeks later, Alaska will head to Lacey, Washington to compete in the 2018 Ken Garland Invitational, hosted by Saint Martin's University on Saturday, Sept. 22. The women will race in a 5k race, while the men will compete in an 8k.

On Saturday, Oct. 6, the Nanooks will compete in the Emerald City Open, hosted by Seattle University and Club Northwest in Seattle, Washington. The women will race a 6k, while the men will run an 8k at the Lower Woodland Park trails.

Later that month, Alaska will run in the 45th annual Western Washington University Classic on Saturday, Oct. 20 at the Sudden Valley Golf Course in Bellingham, Washington. The WWU Classic will feature a 6k race for the women before a 10k race for the men.

On Saturday, Nov. 3, the Alaska Nanooks men's and women's cross country running teams will compete for a conference title at the GNAC Championships, hosted by Western Oregon University in Monmouth, Oregon.

Two weeks later, Alaska will look to make a statement at the NCAA West Regional Championships, hosted by Montana State Billings University on Saturday, Nov. 3 in Billings, Montana.

"This year's cross country running schedule changed around quite a bit as the result of the NCAA Championships being delayed by two weeks, which occurs every four years when Division II sports have a "Fall Festival" year," Crawford continued. "The shift resulted in most of the other races on our calendar also being delayed by two weeks, which created some opportunities and some challenges."

"The challenge is that with the NCAA Regional race being pushed back into mid-November, it will be difficult to train for it given our snowy conditions at that time of the year," Crawford concluded. "However, with a longer schedule, we now have the opportunity to set up competition that allows for good training and peaking by the time the GNAC Championships rolls around."

For more information on the Alaska Nanooks men's and women's cross country running teams, follow @AlaskaNanooksXC on Twitter or like the Alaska Nanooks XC team page on Facebook.

*Please note, schedules are subject to change