GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- The Tusculum College men's and women's cross country teams will be competing this Saturday morning (Nov. 8) at the South Atlantic Conference championships in Salisbury, North Carolina. TC is one of 12 SAC institutions that will be running in the races.

Both races will be conducted at the Salisbury Community Park. The men's 8,000-meter event will begin at 9 a.m., followed by the women's 5,000-meter race at approximately 10:15 a.m. Catawba College is serving as the host school for the championships.

The Mars Hill University men will be looking to capture their 18th straight SAC title, while Wingate University is the defending champions on the women's side. The top seven finishers in each race will earn All-SAC First Team honors. The eighth through 14th individual finishers will earn All-SAC Second Team honors, while the 15th through 21st finishers will be named All-SAC Honorable Mention.

Second-year TC head coach Corey Pratt brings 13 letter-winners to this year's SAC Championship, including seven on the men's side and six on the women's team. The Pioneers got a feel for the championship course earlier this season at the Catawba Invitational held at the Salisbury Community Park.

Anchoring the men's team is two-time All-Southeast Region harrier David Cooper. The Greeneville, Tennessee senior finished eighth at last season's SAC Championship which earned him a spot on the All-SAC Second Team.

Cooper has been the Pioneers' top finisher in every meet this season, including a new career-best 8k time of 26:02.63 at the Greater Louisville Classic, which is fourth-fastest in school history. He has four top-five finishes this season, including a fourth place effort at the Catawba Invitational.

Freshman Jacob Cutshall, junior Lawson Burrow and senior Zachary Simpson have been primarily Tusculum's second, third and fourth runners this season. Cutshall posted a season-best 14th place finish in his collegiate debut at the Catawba Invitational. The Jonesborough, Tennessee native also recorded a season-best time of 28:22.87 at the Greater Louisville Classic, and has competed in all five meets this season.

Burrow, a junior from Greeneville, Tennessee, will be competing in his third SAC Championship after finishing 34th in last year's event. He enters the race with a pair of top-20 finishes this season including a 20th place effort at the Catawba Invitational. Burrow posted a new career-best 8,000-meter time of 27:38.47 at the Greater Louisville Classic and has a top finish of 18th at the Lenoir-Rhyne Invitational.

Simpson will be competing in his final SAC Championship on Saturday after finishing 46th last year. The Clinton, Tennessee senior has a season-best finish of 15th at the Catawba Invitational, and recorded a new career-best 8k time of 28:28.32 at the Greater Louisville Classic.

Sophomore Corey Ramsey and freshman Gray Deanda have competed in all five events for the Pioneers this season. Ramsey has a season-best finish of 25th at the Catawba Invitational while Deanda's top effort of the season came in the same event with a 27th place finish. Both harriers' top times of the season came at the Greater Louisville Classic with Ramsey turning in a time of 29:45.30 and Deanda a 30:24.11.

Freshman Erik Koskey has competed in the past three events for the Pioneers, and has a top finish of 37th at the Lenoir-Rhyne Invitational and a top time of 29:27.21 at the Greater Louisville Classic.

On the women's side, sophomore Samantha Vogt has been TC's top finisher in all five events this season. The Maryville, Tennessee native has a pair of top-10 finishes including a season-high 3rd place effort at the Catawba Invitational. Vogt has broken the 20-minute mark in 5,000-meter races on two occasions this season, including a new career-best 5K time of 19:24.60 at the Royals XC Challenge, which was the 12th fastest in school history.

Paige Bible, a junior from Greeneville, Tennessee, has been TC's second finisher in every race in 2014. She has a top finish of 36th in the Hyder-McMahill Invitational and a top time of 21:58.79 at the Greater Louisville Classic. Bible came home 67th at last year's SAC Championship.

Senior Ashley Gregg will be running in her final SAC Championship on Saturday. The Parrottsville, Tennessee native has been Tusculum's third finisher in every meet this season. Her top finish was 44th at the Catawba Invitational while her season-best time came at the Greater Louisville Classic after crossing the line in 22:57.96.

Junior Allison Hall has been TC's fourth finisher in every event this season. The Greeneville, Tennessee native posted a top time of 24:25.01 at the Greater Louisville Classic, and her top finish of the season was 54th at the Catawba Invitational. Saturday will be Hall's third SAC Championship as a Pioneer.

Freshman Alexis Berlin has competed in three events in her first season at Tusculum. Berlin's best finish of the season was 60th at the Hyder-McMahill Invitational where she recorded her top time of the season of 26:11.61.

Senior Amy Morford, who was a four-year letter-winner on the TC women's soccer team, made her cross country debut at the Lenoir-Rhyne Invitational two weeks ago and finished 49th. Freshman Sabrina Bradley, who is also a member of the Pioneer women's soccer team, also made her debut in that event and came home 59th.

Following Saturday's meet, a select number of runners will be competing at the NCAA II Southeast Regional on Saturday, Nov. 22 in Montevallo, Alabama.