WILLIAMSBURG, Va. - William & Mary Cross Country announced a six-race slate for both the men and women in 2021 on Monday.
The Tribe opens the season by hosting the William & Mary Cross Country Invitational, which is running for the 61st year this fall. The event will take place on Friday evening, Sept. 10, at the Dunbar Farms course at Eastern State Hospital in Williamsburg.
A week later, W&M is back in action on Friday, Sept. 17, in Charlottesville at the Panorama Farms Invitational. The meet usually includes a number of top contenders from throughout the South, Southeast, and Mid-Atlantic regions.
The Tribe opens the month of October as it heads to the Paul Short Run at Lehigh in Bethlehem, Pa., on Friday, Oct. 1. The Green and Gold takes part in the event for the third time since 2012. The men placed ninth among 41 teams last time in 2018, while the women came in 25th. W&M closes out the pre-championship season back in Charlottesville at the Virginia XC23 Invitational on Friday, Oct. 15.
Championship racing begins on Saturday, Oct. 30, with the Colonial Athletic Association Championships. This year, the meet will be hosted by Northeastern at the Reggie Lewis Track & Athletic Center in Boston. The Tribe has long dominated the CAA in cross country with the men having won 26 league titles and the women claiming 23 crowns.
The Southeast Region Championships are set for Friday, Nov. 12, in Lexington, Ky. The top two teams for both the men and women earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Championships, with another 13 at-large bids up for grabs nationally, based on results from throughout the season. The top four athletes not on a qualifying team will also earn an automatic spot at the national meet, as will two more athletes chosen at-large nationally.
The NCAA Championships will cap off the season on Saturday, Nov. 20, hosted in Tallahassee, Fla. The W&M men last reached the national meet in 2010, while the women made it as a team three-straight years from 2012-14 and had an individual qualify in 2015 and 2016.
