FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern 2011 cross country schedule has been released, as announced by head coach Byian Hagopian on Wednesday. The schedule features five regular season meets that head into the Sunshine State Conference, South Regional and NCAA National Championships.

“We are trying some new things with the schedule this season,” said Hagopian. “We are working in some new meets at the University of South Florida and Stetson in order to maintain a competitive schedule just as we’ve had in the past. We have good teams, ones that can give Tampa and Florida Southern a run for their money. I feel that both teams have a great shot at qualifying for Nationals this season.”

Both the men and women are looking to capitalize on strong 2010 seasons. On the women’s side, the Sharks had a landmark year in which they finished a program-best fourth in the region. Alexandria Palm (So., Winnebago, Ill.) and Peri Bowman (So., Virginia Beach, Fla.) return after earning All-South Region honors as freshman. The men will also return an experienced squad led by Kevin Meagher (Jr., Mansfield, Mass.) and Chris Jacob (Sr., Naples, Fla.) who helped lead the men’s side to their first appearance at Nationals in 2009.

The schedule begins on Sept. 2 with a meet at the University of Tampa. The Spartans are the top dog in the SSC on the women’s side as they have won eight out of the last nine conference championships. Their men finished second in the conference in 2010.

One week later on Sept. 9, the Sharks will head back to Tampa, Fla. to compete in the University of South Florida Invitational. There they will face top-level Division I talent, but more importantly the men will get their first glimpse of Florida Southern’s team. The Mocs are the premier SSC men’s cross country team as they have won 14 straight SSC titles.

The Sharks will take a weekend off before heading to Gainesville, Fla. on Sept. 24 for the Mountain Dew Invitational. This University of Florida hosted meet will be new to most Shark runners. NSU last competed in this meet in 2009, when Agustin Rey, Brendan Chwalek and Krystal Porter were NSU’s only top-50 finishers.

NSU will kick off October with the Disney Classic in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. on Oct. 8. The Sharks have a rich history of performing well at this event. Jacob and Ivan Almanza (Jr., Hollywood, Fla.) both ran well at Disney last season, setting then career-best times. Jacob has broken his career-best time in his last three 8K races including the Disney Classic. Palm also set the school record in the 5K at the Disney Classic, posting an 18:27.5.

On Oct. 14-15 the Sharks will compete in DeLand, Fla. in a meet hosted by Stetson University. It will be the last meet before the postseason.

On Oct. 22, the Sharks will host the Sunshine State Conference Championship on Oct. 22 at a site to be named. NSU will get a chance to take down the SSC’s traditional powers in their own backyard.

The Sharks will make their third trip to Tampa on Nov. 5 as the Spartans host the NCAA South Regional Championships. The Sharks will have to finish third overall on both the men’s and women’s sides in order to send both teams to Nationals. The NCAA National Championship will be hosted by the Great Northwest Athletic Conference in Spokane, Wash. on Nov. 19. The men have been represented at Nationals for two years straight while the women are seeking their first National Championship appearance.

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