Cullowhee, N.C. – Western Carolina cross country / track & field head coach Jesse Norman today announced a schedule change for his men's and women's squads to open the 2025 season. The Catamount cross country teams will now open their season in a head-to-head battle with the UNC Asheville Bulldogs in the aptly named "Duel in The Valley."
Still scheduled for Friday, Aug. 29, the mountain rivals face off at 5 p.m. for the women's 3K and at 5:45 p.m. for the men's 6K season-opening races. Both events will take place at Kituwah Mound in Cherokee, N.C., just 30 minutes outside of Cullowhee.
The Friday night opening showcase features a Catamount men's team tabbed second in the Southern Conference, battling with a UNC Asheville men's group picked third in the Big South. Both teams ended their respective conference championships in those positions last season. The Catamounts return two of their top finishes from last year's second-place team performance in Chase Thurber and Lawson Mecom. Asheville returns four of its conference championship runners, though top performer and individual runner-up Adam Hessler graduated.
On the women's side, the Catamounts return all of their scoring runners from the 2024 Southern Conference Championships, with Katherine Hopkins and Peyton Skoglund leading the quintet. The Bulldogs women's team was selected to finish fourth in the Big South and returned eight runners from last season.
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