TOLEDO, OH - University of Toledo Director of Track and Field & Cross Country Kevin Hadsell announced the Rockets' 2010 men's and women's cross country schedule today.  The teams will compete in a challenging schedule, beginning the season with a dual meet at Bowling Green.

"I am very excited about our schedule.  I think that we are setting our goals high and this schedule is going to push us," said Hadsell.  "We are in a position for our women to be one of the best teams in the country, and this enables us to prove that and get us ready to challenge for another MAC title."

The women's team is looking to build on their MAC Runner-up finish in 2009. The men continue to progress and look to also improve on their seventh-place finish of a year ago.  Both teams only lost one of their top-seven runners to graduation and also look to move up in the regional and national rankings.  The women were ranked as high as 32^nd in the NCAA Division I poll and finished the year sixth in the Great Lakes Region, the highest in the MAC.  The men finished the year ranked No. 18 in the Great Lakes Region (fifth in the MAC).

Both teams will open with the eighth-annual Bowling Green Dual on Friday, Sept. 3.  In 2009, the Rockets swept the Falcons as the women recorded a perfect score running only their freshmen and sophomores (15-40).  The men downed the Falcons decisively 19-40 taking their fourth-straight dual meet from Bowling Green.

From there, the Rockets will head to Minneapolis, MN on Saturday, Sept. 25 for the 25^th Annual Roy Griak Invitational.  The Rockets last participated in the event in 2008, with the women finishing 17^th and the men finishing 22^nd.  Toledo has been to the Roy Griak seven times, with their highest finish being sixth in 2002, when they were ranked No. 24 in the nation.

Hadsell will split his squads the following weekend, Oct. 2, with the women sending their top-7 runners to the Missouri State Greater Springfield Sports Commission Richard Clark Invitational.  The Rockets are one of the featured teams at the event and will take on a national-caliber field that includes last year's No. 4 ranked Texas Tech.  It will be Toledo's first-ever trip to Missouri State. 

The rest of the women and the men's team will compete at the All-Ohio Championship on Friday, Oct. 1 at Cedarville University.  The Rockets last raced at the All-Ohio Championship in 2008, where the women finished 12^th (of 44) and the men finished 17^th (of 42).  The highest-ever finishes for the Rockets includes the women's All-Ohio Championship title of 2002, with the men finishing fifth in that same season.

On Oct. 16, both the men's and women's teams will travel to Terre Haute for the Pre-NCAA Invitational, hosted by Indiana State University.  The Rocket women have participated in the Pre-NCAA Invitational six times in the last nine years, including a 16^th-place finish last season.  The best-ever finish for the Rocket women at the Pre-NCAA's is their MAC-record finish of 12^th in 2002.  The men are coming off their first-ever appearance at Pre-NCAA's in 2009 when they finished 29^th out of 34 teams.

The Rockets will send their "B" Team runners to the Eastern Michigan Open in Dexter, MI on Oct. 22.  This is a non-scored event and is the last meet of the regular season before the Rockets head to the championship portion of the schedule.

On Oct. 30, the Rockets will head to Kalamazoo, MI for the Mid-American Conference Championships.  The women's team will be looking to improve on their MAC Runner-up finish from a year ago.  The men will be looking to improve on their seventh place finish in 2009.  The women will be searching for their third MAC Championship title in the last 10 years.  Over the last nine years, the women's cross country team has a MAC-leading five top-two finishes at the MAC Championships.  The men's team is looking to set their all-time best performance by finishing ahead of their program-best finish of sixth in 2003.

On Friday, Nov. 6, the Rockets will host their only cross country home meet of the year, the second annual Toledo Rocket Open at Ottawa Park Golf Course.  This non-scored event was attended in 2009 by Michigan, Eastern Michigan, Bowling Green and Toledo.

The men's and women's teams will then head to Rochester, MI for the NCAA Great Lakes Regional Championship, hosted by Oakland University, on Nov. 14.  Both teams are coming off impressive performances in 2009.  The women finished sixth (first in the MAC) and just missed being selected to the NCAA Championships.  Only 60 points separated the top-six teams and the Rockets finished only 40-points behind Michigan State for the fifth and final spot to the NCAA's.  Toledo's women have finished in the Top-10 in this meet seven of the last 10 years, more than any other MAC program.  Their highest-ever finish is fourth in 2001, the highest finish by a MAC school since 1994.

The NCAA Championships will be hosted by Indiana State University on Monday, Nov. 23.  The women's team has had at least one qualifier for the meet in six of the last 10 years, more than any other MAC or Ohio Division I institution.

2010 Toledo Rockets Cross Country Schedule

Fri.	Sept. 3	at Bowling Green Dual	Bowling Green, OH	5:00 p.m.
Sat.	Sept. 25	at 25th Annual Roy Griak Invitational	Minneapolis, MN	11:00 a.m.
Fri.	Oct. 1	at All-Ohio Championships	Cedarville, OH	2:00 p.m.
Sat.	Oct. 2	at Missouri State Invitational (W)	Springfield, MO	10:00 a.m.
Sat.	Oct. 16	at Pre-NCAA Invitational	Terra Haute, IN	10:00 a.m.
Fri.	Oct. 22	at Eastern Michigan Open	Ypsilanti, MI	4:00 p.m.
Sat.	Oct. 30	at MAC Championships	Kalamazoo, MI	11:00 a.m.
Fri.	Nov. 5	2nd ANNUAL TOLEDO ROCKET OPEN	HOME	5:00 p.m.
Sat.	Nov. 13	at NCAA Regional Championships	Rochester, MI	10:00 a.m.
Mon.	Nov. 22	at NCAA Championships	Terra Haute, IN	10:00 a.m.

Contact: Zack Butterfield
Email: Zack.Butterfield@utoledo.edu