UPCOMING RACE – The University of Kentucky cross country teams head to South Bend, Ind. for the Notre Dame Invitational, Fri., Sept. 30. The race will mark the 50th running of the Notre Dame Invitational, contested annually at the Burke Memorial Golf Course. The women will take to the course for a 5K trek at 4:15 p.m., while the men follow at 5 p.m. with a five-mile run.

TOUGH FIELD – The men?s race will feature six top-30 ranked teams out of the 25-team field. Of those include, No. 1 Wisconsin and host No. 6 Notre Dame. Representing the SEC will be Alabama, Florida, Kentucky and Mississippi State. On the women?s side, eight top-30 ranked squads will race Friday, including No. 3 Notre Dame and No. 5 Michigan. Representing the SEC for the women will be Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky and Mississippi State.

HISTORY – On the men’s side, Notre Dame and Stanford have alternated as champions the past five years, with the Cardinal entering this weekend as defending champs. The Irish have won three of the past four women’s races, although Stanford won the title in 2004. The Notre Dame Invitational is one of the nations oldest and largest intercollegiate cross country meets. It was started in 1956 by legendary former Irish head coach (and Canadian Track Hall of Famer) Alex Wilson and has been run continuously ever since. The men’s races originally began as four-mile events before being extended to five miles in 1968, and women’s races began in 1987. The Cats will be appearing at the Notre Dame invite for the first time since 1999.