FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Under the direction of 11th-year head coach Bryan Hagopian, the Nova Southeastern track and field squads are preparing to kick off a nine-meet 2019 schedule on Feb. 23 in Miramar, Fla. at the NSU Invitational, the program announced Friday.
 
"By competing in high-power meets, we're getting our student-athletes ready to go, ready to compete and hit the marks to go to conference and nationals," Hagopian said of a new balance to the schedule. "Going to meets where we're not pushed as much provides less chances to push our limits and perform to the best of our ability."
 
Opening the season, the Sharks will hold the NSU Invitational at City of Miramar's Ansin Sports Complex, starting at 9:00 a.m. on Feb. 23. Just 17 days later, the Sharks will host their second meet of the year, again at Ansin, with the Shark Invitational scheduled to begin at 3:00 p.m. on March 12.
 
"We tried to do something different this year with such a large group of freshman athletes, we felt it was good to break them in by having back-to-back meets at home before we head to bigger meets," Hagopian said. "With so many making their transition from high school to college, we feel this setup will be best for the student-athletes' development."
 
The following weekend brings the first of four major meets at NCAA Division I competition, as the Sharks travel south to Coral Gables for the two-day Hurricane Invitational at Cobb Stadium on March 15-16. Then it's a two-day competition in Tampa for the Bulls Invitational, March 23-24 at the USF Track & Field Stadium. The Sharks will close the month in Daytona Beach at the Embry-Riddle Spikes Classic, March 29-30.
 
The Sharks open April with another big push against higher-division competition, returning to Coral Gables for the Hurricane Alumni Invitational on April 12-13, stretching for the final top marks ahead of the Peach Belt Conference Championships, held at Embry-Riddle, April 18-20. The Sharks last won the Peach Belt Championship on the women's side in 2017.
 
NSU will take on two additional meets in hopes to garner more postseason entries, heading to Gainesville for the elite Tom Jones Memorial on April 27 at Percy Beard Track, followed by a May 11th trip beyond the Sunshine State for the Mount Olive Final Qualifier at UMO's McDonald Sport Complex in North Carolina.
 
The ultimate target at season's end is the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships, hosted by Texas A&M-Kingsville on the newly-resurfaced track at Pepsi Field at Javelina Stadium, May 23-25. Senior Eric Moate placed 17th in the 200m at last year's championships and looks to make his return to close out his career. Now-alumna Amira Bendriff earned 11th in the triple jump last year and is assisting the NSU horizontal jumpers as a member of the coaching staff.

For up-to-date coverage throughout the season, visit NSUSharks.com or follow the Sharks baseball team on Twitter and Instagram at @NSU_XCTF.