The Seattle University cross country team is making final preparations for its annual home meet, as the Emerald City Open takes place this Saturday, Oct. 18, at Lower Woodland Park, located just five miles north of the Seattle U campus.
The women’s six-kilometer race is scheduled to start at 10:30 a.m., followed by the men’s eight-kilometer event at 11:15 a.m. and the alumni/family two-kilometer fun run at 12 noon. All three races will take place over a 2000-meter loop, with the women making three laps, the men four laps, and one lap encompassing the fun run.
Seattle U welcomes the University of Washington, Oregon State University, and Seattle Pacific University to this year’s Emerald City Open. In addition, runners from local clubs such as Club Northwest and the Seattle Running Club traditionally join the collegiate runners in the open events.
The forecast calls for almost ideal running conditions for the competitors, with partly cloudy skies and temperatures in the mid to high 50s. The course may be wet from rain that is forecast to come Friday night.
For the Redhawks, Saturday’s race begins the qualification process for the Western Athletic Conference Championships, held in Edinburg, Texas, Saturday morning, Nov. 1. The top five Seattle U finishers at the Emerald City Open will become part of the travel squad for the WAC Championships and will not have to compete at next week’s Beaver Classic. The rest of the team will travel to Corvallis, Ore., next Friday, with the chance to earn one of the final four spots on the team that will represent Seattle U at the conference meet.
The Seattle U men’s and women’s teams are each coming off victories at the Viking Cross Country Classic two weeks ago, as is senior Sophie Curatilo (Honolulu, Hawaii). Curatilo leads a strong Redhawk female contingent that is expected to push each other to earn the qualifying spots as well as perform against two Pac-12 opponents. Gus Arroyo (Portland, Ore.) has been the top finisher for the Seattle U men throughout the season, as the Redhawk males will continue to gain valuable experience as they head towards championship season.
Saturday’s event is the second annual Pink Meet for Seattle U, as the Redhawk cross country program helps raise awareness about the need for breast cancer research. Pink will be a prevalent color for Seattle U as the cross country team joins other Redhawk squads in recognizing National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
Spectators are welcome to cheer on their favorite runners, as admission is free to watch the Emerald City Open. There is a parking lot located on North 50th Street near Aurora Avenue North. Results will be posted on GoSeattleU.com sometime during the afternoon after they have been verified.