The Emory University men's and women's cross country teams will make their 2011 season debut when they take part in the 31st annual Sewanee Invitational on Saturday (Sept. 3).  The women's 6K competition begins at 10:00 a.m. while the men's 8k race is slated to start at 11:00 a.m.  The Invitational will be held at the Sewanee Golf Course.

Along with Emory, some of the other teams scheduled to compete include Centre, Oglethorpe, Southwestern, Mississippi State, Huntingdon, Rhodes, Tennessee Tech, Maryville, North Alabama and host Sewanee.

In last year's Invitational, both Eagle teams turned in stellar efforts with the men's side tying for first place with Rhodes College while the women's squad topped the 10-team field.    Stephen Ellwood paced the men's effort by crossing the finish line in sixth place out of 104 runners with a time of 27:15 while Tess Gallegos topped the women's 104-runner field with a performance of 22:15. 

Heading into the weekend, the Emory women's squad is ranked 24^th in the nation among Division III teams and No. 1 in the South/Southeast Region in the latest USTFCCCA Poll.  The men are ranked fourth in the region.