LA JOLLA, Calif. — UC San Diego cross country head coach Nate Garcia '00 announced the team's 2026 schedule today, which features four regular season meets ahead of Big West and NCAA postseason racing.
 
The 2026 season also marks UC San Diego's final year in The Big West. The Tritons will move to the West Coast Conference in 2027.
 
"We are very excited for the upcoming season and cannot wait to get started," Garcia said. "Our schedule is going to give our Tritons the opportunity to test themselves against some of the best teams in The Big West, the NCAA West Region and the country. All four of our regular season meets will prepare the team for The Big West and NCAA Championships at the end of the year."
 
The Tritons will stay close to home to start the season on Sept. 3 when they race in San Diego State's Aztec Coastal Classic for the second-straight year. That meet will be at SDSU Mission Valley River Park outside of Snapdragon Stadium.
 
Future WCC foe Saint Mary's will then be the hosts for the first of two meets for the Tritons outside of Southern California. After visiting the Gaels on Sept. 18, the squad will head to Terre Haute, Indiana, for the Nike XC Town Twilight on Oct. 2. Terre Haute is also the site of this year's NCAA Championships.
 
UC San Diego will return to California for its final regular season meet on Oct. 17 as fellow Big West squad UC Riverside hosts the Highlander Invitational. The Triton women won the 2025 edition of that event.
 
UC Riverside is also the location of this year's Big West Championships, which will be on Oct. 31. Last season's conference championships saw the Tritons earn a third-place finish on the women's side and a sixth-place finish on the men's side. Sylvana Northrop won the women's individual title to capture the program's first individual conference championship since 2005.
 
NCAA postseason action begins on Nov. 13 with the West Regional Championships. Sacramento State will repeat as hosts for that event. Individuals and teams who qualify will then advance to the NCAA Championships on Nov. 21.
 
2026 marks Garcia's 20th year as head coach and 25th at UC San Diego. Assistant coach Meriah Earle is also returning for her fifth season in La Jolla. The team's roster features 34 scholar-athletes across the two teams, highlighted by 25 returners.
 
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program has begun a new era as a member of The Big West in NCAA Division I. The 24-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 39 have garnered prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 90 percent, the highest rate among public institutions in NCAA Division I or II. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.