GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- Members of the Tusculum
College cross country team will be competing at the 2011 NCAA
Division II Southeast Regional Championship, this Saturday morning
at McAlpine Park in Charlotte, N.C. The 6,000-meter women's race
will begin at 10 a.m., followed by the 10,000-meter men's
championship at 11 a.m.
Freshman David Cooper has had an outstanding rookie campaign for
the Pioneers. The Greeneville, Tenn. native has been TC's top
runner in all five meets this fall including his first place
performance at the Maryville Invitational. Cooper won with a time
of 27:47 for the 16th fastest 8K time in school history. The
Chuckey-Doak High School graduate also finished 11th at the
Guilford Cross Country Festival, 19th at the Carson-Newman
Challenge and 21st at last month's South Atlantic Conference
Championship. For his efforts, he was named to the SAC
All-Freshman Team.
Knoxville, Tenn. freshman Kekona Soon has moved up the scoring ladder for the Pioneers as he has accounted for three top 40 finishes, including his 14th place showing at the Maryville meet. The Halls High School product has been one of the team's most consistent runners as three of his four 8K times this fall have been within a second of each other (Lenoir-Rhyne Inv. - 30:29.5; Carson-Newman Challenge - 30:28.5; Maryville Inv. - 30:28). In his last meet, Soon finished 64th at the SAC Championship with a time of 31:07.9.
Sophomore Elijah Minter has competed in all five meets this fall. The Spring City, Tenn. product finished 32nd at Guilford and tallied a 42nd place showing at Maryville with a time of 36:31. He finished 75th at the SAC Meet with an 8K time of 33:52.
On the women's side, team captain Jenny Grant has once again proven to be Tusculum's most consistent competitor. She has finished in the top-30 on two occasions this fall, including a 17th place finish at the Maryville Invitational. Grant, a junior from Franklin, Tenn., finished 26th at the Guilford meet and followed with her best 5K time of the year at Lenoir-Rhyne at 23:13.3 to finish 49th. At the Carson-Newman Challenge in September, the 2010 Tusculum Most Valuable Runner finished 33rd with a time of 23:44.77. She was TC's top finisher at last month's SAC Championship, posting a 54th place finish with a time of 23:42.1. This will be Grant's second consecutive trip to the NCAA Regional meet.
Freshman Lakesa Hendrix has enjoyed a solid rookie campaign. The Hendersonville, Tenn. native emerged as Tusculum's top runner at the Maryville Invitational, where she finished 14th with a 6K time of 29:51. Hendrix, a graduate of Station Camp High School, has competed in all five events this fall, with her fastest 5K time coming at the Lenoir-Rhyne Invitational, with a time of 24:12.9. She finished 34th at Guilford, 39th at Carson-Newman and 66th at the SAC Championship.
Parrottsville, Tenn. freshman Ashley Gregg has run in all five meets this year and finished 31st at Maryville with a time of 33:55 (6K). The Cocke County High School graduate has also finished 37th at Guilford (26:14.36), 48th at the C-N Challenge (25:09.46) and 71st at the SAC Championship (25:13.2). Her fastest 5K competitive time has been 24:54.8 at the L-R Invitational.
The NCAA Division II National Championship will be held Nov. 19 in Spokane, Wash.
- NCAA -