LIVE RESULTS
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (September 5, 2019)- The Northern Arizona cross country program will be opening up its 2019 season in Flagstaff on Saturday, Sept. 7 at the 39th Annual George Kyte Classic. NAU's only home meet of the 2019 campaign will be held at Buffalo Park with the men's 4.5 mile race starting at approximately 1:30 P.M. (MST), while the Lumberjack women's 2.6 mile race is slated to begin at 2:30 P.M. (MST).
The men's team is looking for its eighth-straight team win at the meet, while the women's side will be looking to defend their top finishes from 2017 and 2018.Â
A group of local non-NCAA Division I schools will be competing against the 'Jacks including Arizona Christian and Pima. A Japanese team from Tokai University in Tokyo will also be racing.
The Lumberjack men enter 2019 as the top ranked team in the country according to the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Coaches' Poll. NAU's women were selected as the sixth best team in the Mountain Region, with the men taking first for the 22nd consecutive week.
Both teams were selected as the preseason favorite by the Big Sky Conference.
The men's squad is coming off of its third straight NCAA Division I championship season. The 'Jacks took first at the national meet in Madison, Wisc., on November 17th of last year. NAU scored a total of 83 points as a team to take the top spot.Â
In 2019 NAU will see two of its best distance runners in program history with the departures of Tyler Day and Matthew Baxter. While Day still has eligibility for the indoor and outdoor track seasons in 2020, 2018 was the Arizona native's last year of competing in cross country with NAU. Baxter now runs for the professional Hoka One One team.
While the duo will be missed, Director of Cross Country and Track & Field Michael Smith and company made sure to reload with one of the deepest rosters the team has ever had. In 2019 Lumberjack fans can expect to see runners Brodey Hasty, Mitchell Small and Theo Quax make their cross country debuts in the Blue & Gold.
NAU returns four of its seven runners from the 2019 championship race. Luis Grijalva, Blaise Ferro and Geordie Beamish each earned All-American honors in Madison in 2018.Â
The'Jacks will see the return of both Miranda Myers and Mikayla Malaspina on the women's end of things this fall after redshirting in 2018. Villanova transfer Taryn O'Neill is also expected to make a huge impact on the 'Jacks roster. The depth of the 2019 crew also features a stacked junior class.
You can follow @NAUTrackFieldXC on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook to follow any and all news related to the NAU XC team.
The meet is named for the late Dr. George Kyte, Professor Emeritus of history at Northern Arizona. Dr. Kyte was a longtime supporter of Lumberjack Athletics, with a particular interest in the track & field and cross country programs at NAU. The event was ran with Dr. Kyte in attendance until his passing in 2004.
