SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. -- The USF Dons men's and women's cross country program and head coach Tim Riley are excited to unveil their 2022 fall schedule for the upcoming season. 

USF returns to the course this season following a strong fall season that saw the women's program finishing in fourth place at the WCC Championships, while the men's team came in eighth place as a unit. 

"We are excited to get our 2022 season going starting with a new twist on our home meet on September 3," Riley said. "For the first time in its 29 year history we are adding a mixed gender 4x2000m relay at the end of the traditional men's and women's races. This also might be the first NCAA Division I competition to feature this event! From there our first trip is with the men to Riverside where we will get on a fast course with a pretty deep field of competition. Notre Dame will be an early highlighted race as we head into October, with very good competition in our region. After Notre Dame it is all about getting ready for the WCC's, NCAA West Regionals and the NCAA Championships." 

The Dons will kick off their season in the City by the Bay for the 29th annual USF Invitational at Golden Gate Park the first Saturday in September. USF will welcome top programs from around the nation to one of the most picturesque parks in the nation. 

USF will then hit the road for two trips to finish out the month of September, as the men's team will head south to UC Riverside for the Riverside Invitational on September 17. The whole squad will then travel to the Midwest on September 30 for the Notre Dame Invitational in South Bend.

October sees the Dons staying home in the Golden State for two meets as they will head south for a WCC battle at the Bronco Invitational on October 15. USF will then head to the Pacific Northwest for the WCC Championships on October 30. 

Junior Ruby Smee is back in green and gold for the Dons this season looking to continue her historic career on the Hilltop. Last year Smee qualified for the Cross Country National Championships and finished in 34th place overall in the 6,000 meter run to be named an All-American. Also returning for the Dons is senior Eve Jensen and graduate student Zoe Wassell who pieced together strong season's for the Dons as each were honored as All-Region selections to go along with All-WCC Academic award winners. 

Smee's participation extended USF's streak to eight years of having at least one student-athlete participating in the Cross Country National Championships.

On the men's side, seniors Hiruy Alemseged and Caleb Haugland are back in action for USF following a strong fall season that saw both athletes put together strong campaigns and will now embrace leadership positions. Newcomers for the Dons include: freshman Daniel Abramowicz, graduate student Edward Buck and sophomore transfer student Marshall Buck, as each will look to provide immediate impact for the Dons. 

The full 2022 USF Dons cross country schedule can be viewed below: 
 

Date	Name	Host	Location
Saturday, Sept. 3	USF Invitational	USF	San Francisco, Calif.
Saturday, Sept. 17	Riverside Invitational	UC Riverside	Riverside, Calif.
Friday, Sept. 30	Notre Dame Invitational	Notre Dame	South Bend, Ind.
Friday, Oct. 7	SF State Invitational	San Francisco St.	San Francisco, Calif.
Saturday, Oct. 15	Bronco Invitational	Santa Clara	Sunnyvale, Calif.
Friday, Oct. 28	WCC Championships	WCC	Portland, Ore.
Friday, Nov. 11	NCAA West Regionals	NCAA	Seattle, Wash.
Saturday, Nov. 19	NCAA Championships	NCAA	Stillwater, Okla.

For more information on the USF men's and women's cross country programs, be sure to follow @donsxctf on Twitter, @donsxctf on Instagram and @donsxctf on Facebook.