AMHERST, N.Y. - The Daemen College women's triathlon team will enter its second season of existence in 2016-17, and head coach Jon Metz released the fall portion of his team's 2016-17 schedule today.

"I am looking forward to this year as we continue to build a solid foundation which will allow our program to grow," said Metz.  "We recognize the importance of instilling a strong culture which takes pride in creating a legacy of its own, one in which we can all be proud."

The Wildcats will open at the Women's Collegiate Triathlon Central Qualifier in Naperville, Ill. on Labor Day, September 5.  Although the event serves as a regional qualifier where the top three five-woman teams, as well as a minimum of the top two individual women from those events, automatically earn a spot for the Women's Collegiate Triathlon National Championship on November 5, Daemen is already an automatic qualifier based on the program's status as a recipient of the Emerging Sport For Women Grant from USA Triathlon.

For the second straight year, Metz's team will partake in the Finger Lakes Triathlon held in Canandaigua, N.Y. on September 11.  Wildcat tri-athletes Ashley Cheff (Niagara Falls, N.Y./Niagara Falls) and Anna Lyons (Webster, N.Y./Webster Thomas) came in first and second, respectively, among female participants at this event last fall.  While Lyons has been lost to graduation, Cheff returns as a graduate student for the 2016-17 season.

A new event on the docket is the Deer Creek Fall Challenge in Mt. Sterling, Ohio on September 25.  Metz and his tri-athletes will make the 370-mile trek to The Buckeye State for what will be their final tune-up for the national championship event.  The event takes place at Deer Creek State Park located about 20 miles southwest of Columbus, Ohio.

The Collegiate Triathlon National Championship on November 5 takes place in New Orleans, La.  Cheff was the Wildcats' highest finisher in the event last season, coming in 49th overall out of 71 competitors.

The Daemen women's triathlon team will continue its 2016-17 season next spring.  The team's spring schedule will be announced at a later date.

The sport of triathlon, which combines swimming, biking and running into a race-style event, has been termed an Emerging Sport For Women by the NCAA in January of 2014, establishing a 10-year window for the formation of 40 intercollegiate programs.  At present, according to USA Triathlon which oversees intercollegiate competitions, Daemen is one of 13 schools in the country to sponsor a varsity triathlon program for women.

For continuing coverage of the Daemen women's triathlon team, follow @DaemenAthletics and @DaemenTriathlon on Twitter.