By Journal Sports Staff

MARQUETTE — The Northern Michigan University women’s cross country team has already opened its season with the annual Wildcat Open that was held on campus last Friday.

Though it was just an intrasquad scrimmage and didn’t include competition against any outside runners, it did get the Wildcats’ season off to a start with a schedule that has them competing in four states with the aim of reaching the NCAA Division II Championships in Sacramento, California, on the last weekend before Thanksgiving.

The regular season begins in just about a week on Friday, Sept. 6, at the Phoenix Open hosted by Division I Wisconsin-Green Bay in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

Then probably NMU’s biggest meet, just by the size of the field, will be exactly two weeks later on Sept. 20 at the Roy Griak Invitational in St. Paul, Minnesota. That meet annually draws many ages and levels to the all-day event.

Northern competes for the second straight weekend on Saturday, Sept. 28, at the Lucian Rose Invitational hosted by Wisconsin-Parkside in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

With the first weekend of October off, the Wildcats jump into three straight weekends of competition, starting with the Lewis Crossover hosted by Lewis University in Romeoville, Illinois.

Then NMU stays in-state for the rest of that month, taking part in the Bay College Invitational in Escanaba on Oct. 18 and GLIAC Championship hosted by Ferris State in Big Rapids on Oct. 26.

With another week off, the Wildcats head back to Romeoville, Illinois, for the NCAA D-II Midwest Regional Championship on Saturday, Nov. 9, which they hope will earn them a berth two weeks later for the Division II national meet on the West Coast on Nov. 23.

Information compiled by Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee. His email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.