MELBOURNE, Fla. (Men’s and Women’s Track & Field) – Florida Tech will open the 2012 track and field season by participating in the Embry-Riddle Challenge on Saturday in Daytona Beach, Fla. It is one of eight meets scheduled for this spring.

“We have some good, competitive events this season,” head coach Pete Mazzone said. “It’s a really good schedule. As a program that’s only in its second year of existence, we need to compete against the best if we want to grow. That’s exactly what we are getting with this schedule.”

The Panthers will race against tough competition all season long. Along with competing in three meets at Embry-Riddle, they will race at Division I South Florida, Central Florida and Miami in March and April.

In the middle of March, they will take part in the Bulls Invitational, hosted by South Florida, at the USF Track & Field Stadium. The next day, Mazzone and new assistant Nick Dodson will lead the team to UCF’s Black & Gold Challenge at its track and field complex.

April starts off with a second trip to Tampa for the South Florida Collegiate on April 6. FIT will close out the regular season at the Hurricane Alumni Invitational on April 14 at Cobb Stadium.

The NCAA Division II South Regional will be hosted by Nova Southeastern on April 21 at the Ansin Sports Complex in Miramar, Fla.   
    
“We are a program with a lot of potential and one that is on the rise,” Mazzone added. “Every day we are adding pieces to the puzzle, but we have to walk before we run. We need to take it one event at a time in order to be successful in the long term. Our goal is to get the best results possible and evolve as a program, so that later on, when the team is complete, we can aim at a national title.”