WINGATE, N.C. --- The Tusculum College cross country teams will be competing this Saturday at the 2010 Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Championship on the campus of Wingate University in Wingate, N.C. The men's championship starts at 9 a.m., followed by the women's championship at 10:15 a.m.

Tusculum senior Simon Holzapfel is the defending champion of the men's meet, winning last year's title with an 8,000-meter time of 25:53 in Newton, N.C. Holzapfel (Nuremberg, Germany) has claimed first place honors in all five races he has competed in this season, giving him a school-record 15 for his stellar career. A win on Saturday would make him the third runner in SAC history to win consecutive league titles (Craig Eckstein, Mars Hill - 2003, 2004; Jayce Watson, Wingate - 2007, 2008).

He owns the top eleven 8K times in school history and 14 of the best 20. In his last meet, he established a school-record time of 25:10.3 at the Lenoir-Rhyne Invitational on Oct. 23, earning him SAC Runner of the Week honors for a fourth time this year and eighth of his career.

Freshman Ryan Badertscher has accounted for four top 30 finishes, including two in the top 20. His best outing came at the Maryville Invitational, where he posted a fourth-place finish with a time of 30:19. Sophomore Stephen Kinunda has also tallied four top 30 performances. The Nairobi, Kenya native finished 14th at Maryville, while posting his best 8K time of the year at the Bulldog Stampede at Wingate at 30:42 to finish 21st.

Senior Ben Hale (Morristown, Tenn.) will be competing in his fourth final SAC Championship this weekend. Hale accounted for a 17th place finish at Maryville, while placing 33rd at the Bulldog Stampede with a season-best time of 32:09. At last year's SAC Championship, Hale finished 48th.

Juniors Chad Shelton (Greeneville, Tenn.) and Nathan Carver (Clarksville, Tenn.) are running in their first SAC Championships this Saturday. Each posted personal best times in their last outings at Lenoir-Rhyne. Carver posted a time of 33:14.5, while Shelton came in at 33:42.0. Greeneville, Tenn. senior Jason Seaton, who ran in the first four meets of the season, will miss Saturday's race due to injury.

In the women's meet, Tusculum freshman Ana Sigmon has enjoyed a solid rookie campaign with the Pioneers, competing in four meets while tallying three top 25 finishes. She finished ninth at the Maryville Invitational and 19th at the Bulldog Stampede, which is hosted on the same course as this year's SAC Championship. Sigmon, who also competes on the Tusculum women's soccer team, posted a season-best 5K time of 24:18 at the Wingate meet.

Senior Jessica Figler is the only Tusculum runner to have competed in a SAC Championship event. The Merritt Island, Fla. product finished 49th at last year's conference championship. This weekend will be her 14th career run. In 2010, Figler has finished in the top 30 in each of her races, including a 25th place finish at the Stampede at the Shoals, while her season best time of 25:01 came at the Bulldog Stampede.

Franklin, Tenn. sophomore Jenny Grant has accounted for a fine first season at TC in her five meets. Grant posted her best 5K time two weeks ago at the L-R Invitational with a time of 22:26.7. She preceded that effort with an 11th place showing at Maryville, following a time of 24:39 at the Bulldog Stampede, where she finished 24th.

Sophomore Kim Brown (Scarborough, Ontario, Canada), who is also competing on the Tusculum women's soccer squad, has run in four meets this year, including three top 30 showings, including 25th place finish at the Bulldog Stampede (24:39). Freshman Ashley Andrukonis (Greeneville, Tenn.) recorded five appearances this season, including a season-best time of 24:19.9 at Lenoir-Rhyne and an 18th place performance at Maryville.

The Mars Hill College men are the defending champions and are ranked fifth in the Southeast Region by the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. The Lions have won the conference championship for 13 consecutive years. Lenoir-Rhyne is ranked ninth in the Southeast Region.

The L-R women are the two-time defending champions and are led by junior Kate Griewisch, the defending SAC and Southeast Region Runner of the Year. This season, Griewisch has been the SAC Runner of the Week four times.

The 2010 Food Lion SAC Men's and Women's Cross Country Championships will determine the 2010 All-Conference and All-Freshman Teams.

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