RICHMOND, Ky.- The University Club at Arlington will be the place to be this weekend as eight ASUN programs descend upon Richmond, Ky. for the 2026 ASUN Cross Country Championships. 

The women's race is first up Friday with the gun sounding at 10:30 a.m. The Eagles have high hopes after finishing the regular season strong with a third-place finish at the Nike Town Twilight before winning the Ed Holloway Classic to build momentum into the postseason. Alise Petrova has paced the Eagles from the start this season, leading them at each of their first three races of the season before sitting out their final run in preparations for the ASUN Championships. Freshman Rhyen Foley has also come into her own of late, posting her first top 10 finish of her career at the Nike Town Twilight before blowing the field away for her first individual title at the Ed Holloway Classic two weeks ago. Juliana Courville, Addison Torres, and Tess Shultz have all been consistent point scorers for the Eagles all season while freshmen Violet Lackey and Madison Janke have also been in the mix. 

The men's 8k will follow at 11:15 a.m. with several Eagles poised to be along with the lead pack. FGCU finished in the top three at all four meets during the regular season, chalking up runner-up finishes at both the Nike Town Twilight and the Ed Holloway Classic heading into the postseason. Depth has been the strength of this year's Eagles squad with three different runners crossing the line first for FGCU in their four races. Siyabonga Mokgothu is the Eagles top threat, finishing 12^th at the FSU Pre-Regional and turning in a third-place finish at the Nike Town Twilight. Innocent Ntwali notched a seventh-place finish in the Eagles opening race of the year and was just behind Mokgothu in fourth at Nike Town. Evan Casterline has also turned in a pair of top 10 performances the year, with an eighth-place finish in Jacksonville opening weekend while crossing the line seventh at the Nike Town Twilight. Victor Kemboi has scored in all three races he has run this season with a season best 13^th place finish in the FSU Pre-Regional while Andrew Wilcox and Jacob Leon have both figured into the scoring as well for the Blue and Green. 

"After a season of hard work and consistent training, I am incredibly thankful to have both teams healthy and ready for Friday's championship" FGCU head coach Argeo Cruz said. "We are hungry, motivated, and ready to push the limits on the course Friday. I can't wait to see them leave it all out there and compete for each other every step of the way."

Both Eagle teams expect to compete in the top half of the field in the event. If they are able to do that, they would be in contention for their best finish in program history at the championships, with the men putting together their best finish in 2015 & 2016 when they were third and the women also finishing third in 2014 & 2015. 

The races will be streamed on ESPN+. 

For more information on the Eagles, follow them on Instagram, X (Twitter) and Facebook, and visit FGCUathletics.com.