GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- Tusculum College cross country head coach Cory Pratt has announced his 2016 cross country schedule.  The Pioneers will be competing in five regular-season races and culminating with the South Atlantic Conference Championship in October. (2016 Schedule)
 
Tusculum will open the season on Saturday, Sept. 3 with the Hyder-McMahill Invitational held in Black Mountain, North Carolina.  The Pioneers competed in this event two years ago where the TC men posted a third place showing, while the women finished seventh. 

The Pioneers will host the Tusculum Open on Friday, Sept. 9 at Holston Homes in Greeneville.

TC will be at the UNC Asheville Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 17 before venturing to Kentucky for the Greater Louisville Classic on Saturday, Oct. 1 at Tom Sawyer State Park, which has hosted the NCAA National Championship on several occasions.  This will be TC's first trip to the UNC Asheville event, while the Pioneers return to the Greater Louisville Classic for the first time since 2014.

Tusculum will wrap up the regular season on Friday, Oct. 7 as they compete at the Royals Cross Country Challenge in Charlotte at McAlpine Creek Park.  At last year's meet, the Pioneer men finished 15th of the 25 teams competing, while the women's placed 23rd.

The SAC Championship will be held Saturday, Oct. 22 at the Sandhills Research Center in Columbia, South Carolina.  This will be the first time the league championship has been held in Columbia and only the second time in the Palmetto State (2008 being the last).  The TC women finished 10th at last year's championship and the men were 11th.

The NCAA Division II Southeast Regional will be conducted on Nov. 12 in Montevallo, Alabama.  The DII National Championship will be on Nov. 19 in Saint Leo, Florida.