MEMPHIS, Tenn. (9/2/16) – The Arkansas State cross country season begins Saturday as the Red Wolves will compete in the 14th annual Brooks Memphis Twilight hosted by Christian Brothers University at Mike Rose Soccer Complex.

“We are looking forward to competing at our first meet this weekend to see where our fitness level is at the beginning of the season and enjoy some competition,” said A-State cross country coach Kyle Chandler .

The Twilight will again be a featured meet for Flotrack.org. Flotrack will cover the entire event with highlight videos, interviews and more available at http://www.flotrack.org/event/253806-2016-brooks-memphis-twilight-xc-classic.

Featuring a total of 51 teams, the college races begin at 9:20 p.m. with the college women's 5k. The men's four-mile race follows at 10 p.m. The college races feature 11 NCAA Division I schools, including nationally-ranked teams from Alabama, Ole Miss and Mississippi State. The Brooks Memphis Twilight Classic started in 2003 with a field of just 230 runners, but it has quickly grown into one of the largest night-time cross country meets in America.

Both the A-State men's and women's teams enter the first week of the season ranked No. 14 in the USTFCCA South-Central Region preseason poll. In the Sun Belt Conference poll voted on by the league coaches, the Red Wolves were picked sixth in both the men's and women's poll.

“There are just under 40 teams in the South Central Region of Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas, and it is always nice to be recognized by peer institutions at the beginning of the season - that they feel both our men's and women's cross country teams are among the better teams. For the men, this is the first time they have been pre-season ranked, and for the women, this is the seventh consecutive year.”

Both teams are coming off top-15 finishes at the 2015 NCAA South Central Regional. The A-State men finished 12th while the women placed 14th.

“Our men's team should have several individuals looking to lead the team in different ways this season,” said Chandler. “We have three seniors – Rhett Raibley , Mark Talarico and Zach VanGundy – who will do a good job steadying the team. We have a solid group of sophomores and one freshman that will have a significant performance impact right away starting with Rickus Jacobs who has been All-Conference in track as well as Josh Kruse, Parker Sitton and new freshman Heinrich Herbst .”

“Our women's team is very young but they have already shown some great attitudes in training this early season,” added Chandler. “ Lindsey Mills is a senior that will steady this young group with her experience. Rebecca Eldien and Andrea Perez are two sophomores that gained valuable experience last year and look to help lead the team this fall. Additionally, we have two freshman, Elizabeth Gillette and Sammy Brainard , that have looked really well the first couple weeks that will have immediate impact on team scoring.”

Admission to the meet is free, while parking costs $5 per car or $30 for a bus or RV. Results from the meet will be posted on AStateRedWolves.com as soon as they are made available.