VALPARAISO, Ind. - The IUPUI men's cross country team will compete in the 31st running of the Crusader Open on Friday night (Sept. 6) with the men's 6K race scheduled for 5:45 p.m. Central (6:45 Eastern). The Jaguars will compete against foes from Indiana State, Loyola, Notre Dame and host Valpo at Sunset Hill Farm County Park. 

The meet is being run for the 26th consecutive year and the site will host the 2019 MVC Championships later this season. 

Head coach Chuck Koeppen's team put up a strong effort in the season opening Butler Twilight on Aug. 30 at Northview Church, trailing only host Butler in a 35-point effort. Redshirt sophomore Alex Ratkovich led the way with a third-place finish in a time of 18:31.5 and Ben Savage was sixth at 18:39.6. 

True freshman Brennan Butche clocked a time of 18:51.9 to place eighth overall and Eric Hoffman was just behind him at 18:55.3. A second true freshman, Nate Kaiser, rounded out the Jaguars top five in a time of 19:13.3 and Dustin Starnes and Josh Everetts were just off the pace, both earning top-20 finishes. The Jags showcased depth with the quartet of Josh Campbell, Jarit Perkins, Lucas Rhed and Roman Jennings all finishing in succession between 19:30 and 19:42. 

"I thought the guys ran well in the first meet," said Valparaiso-native and Jaguars head coach Chuck Koeppen said. "It was about what we expected. We had some freshmen move up to varsity and really help us out. Two of our captains, Ratkovich and Savage, were up front there and Hoffman was in the mix too. We don't run two weekends in a row very often, but it'll be good for us to see some in-state teams like Indiana State, Notre Dame and Valpo this weekend. 

"We've got some guys from up that way, so I think they'll be excited to run a race close to home."

A full recap and results of Friday's action will be posted to IUPUIJags.com immediately afterwards.