Feb. 21, 2014
NOTRE DAME, Ind. — Nearly 50 schools from across the country will be sending athletes from their men’s and women’s track and field teams to South Bend this weekend for the Alex Wilson Invitational. The meet begins tomorrow morning at 10:30 in the Loftus Sports Center.
The meet is the last opportunity for the Irish to compete before they head to Clemson, S.C. for their first ever ACC Championships next weekend. Head coach Joe Piane says the Alex Wilson Invitational is an opportunity to prepare for that, but it is also about looking beyond conference competition.
“The meet gives some people the opportunity to get qualified for the ACCs or to get a better seed time for the ACCs, but really, the genesis of the meet is not to get qualified for your conference meet, but to try to get someone qualified for the national championship,” Piane explains. “We have opportunities in both distance medleys and the men’s mile run.”
Last year at the event, the Notre Dame women’s distance medley relay team lowered the school record and saw several national qualifiers in its competition.
The meet is named after former Notre Dame head coach Alex Wilson, who was also a middle distance track stay for the Irish, earning All-America honors from 1930-32.
Because Notre Dame does not host any home meets for the outdoor track season, the Alex Wilson Invitational will be the last home event for the senior athletes on the Irish squads. Piane says it may be their last home meet, but no one is thinking of it as the end just yet.
“They know they have a whole outdoor season to go,” he laughs.
Fans can follow the action with our live results and find results after the meet on UND.com.
–Lauren Chval, Media Relations Assistant
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