SAN FRANCISCO – The Pacific men's and women's cross country programs will run together for the first time ever at the USF Invitational, marking the beginning of the inaugural season for the men's team on Friday at Golden Gate Park.

The Tigers will start their 39th all-time cross country season on the women's side while the men's squad will debut its inaugural season under the leadership and guidance of first-year head coach Isaac Wood and his staff.

"This first race is an exciting milestone for us with the debut of the men's team and the next chapter for our women's program," Wood said. "We are approaching the race as a strong workout with an emphasis on closing well, so I'm eager to see how we compete in the latter stages. More than anything, I want to see us working together, supporting one another, and setting the tone for the season. It will be good to get that first one under our belt and keep building from here."

The women's 6,000m race and the men's 8,000m race signify the first of six events the Tigers will partake in during the regular season. Pacific is running in an event hosted by the Dons for the first time since the women ran in the USF Invitational on Sept 1, 2018.

On the women's side, the Tigers will look for notable performances from key returners in junior Valeria Espinoza, graduate student Sophia Livingston and senior Emily Wernli. All three participated in at least five meets from a season ago with 6,000m times under the 25-minute mark.

The men will suit up for the first time with 13 different runners making their debuts as Tigers. Junior Jack Weber is one of the many who looks to make an immediate impact this season. Weber placed 55th at the Bob Timmons Classic with a time of 21:15.7 during the 2024 season with Kansas. Half of this year's squad will make their collegiate cross country debuts.

The course is primarily flat, consisting of a 2000m loop composed of grass and dirt with a gradual decent from the start to the 600m mark and a gradual uphill elevation change from 1200m mark to the 1800m mark.

The women's race is scheduled for a 2 p.m. start time and the men's race follows with a scheduled 3 p.m. start time.

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