THE FLATS – The Georgia Tech men’s and women’s cross-country program announced its 2021 schedule of competition on Wednesday. The four-meet regular season begins Sept. 3 as the Jackets compete in the Kennesaw State Opener, which starts at 8:30 a.m. at Noonday Park in Kennesaw, Ga.
Following the season opener, the Jackets will head to Minnesota Sept. 24 for the Roy Griak Invitational, hosted by the University of Minnesota, and compete in the Asics Alexander Invitational Oct. 2 in Fairburn, Ga. Tech will conclude the regular season on Oct. 15 in University Park, Pa., for the Penn State National Open.
The ACC Championships for both men and women will be held on Oct. 29 at South Bend, Ind., hosted by Notre Dame. The NCAA South Regional is scheduled for Nov. 12 in Huntsville, Ala., and the NCAA Championships are set for Nov. 20 in Tallahassee, Fla.
“We’re always excited about a new season and a new schedule. Opportunities to line up and compete are always special,” said cross country head coach Alan Drosky. “Our 2021 schedule will provide outstanding competition. Traveling to Minnesota and Penn State gives us a chance to line up against some strong programs from around the country. Opening up at Kennesaw State allows us to compete a lot of our roster against some rival schools and see where we’re at coming off of summer training. All in all, we believe it’s a balanced schedule of travel and racing that also lets us get in the training to prepare for the championships later on.”
Tech’s women are coming off the best season in team history, finishing second as the ACC Championship and 20th at the NCAA Championship behind three All-ACC runners in senior Nicole Fegans (Douglasville, Ga.) and juniors Mary Kathryn Knott (Duluth, Ga.) and Liz Galarza (Cumming, Ga.). Junior James Cragin (Lawrencville, Ga.), an NCAA All-South Region performer, returns to lead the men.
“With the women coming off an extraordinary season, the challenge is to continue to compete at the national level,” Drosky added. “We have a solid nucleus returning from last year and have a deep and talented roster to fill in for those who graduated. The men’s season is a little about redemption. After a really good regular season, we stumbled when the championships came around. I know they are anxious to return to the course this fall and put a complete season together.”
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