ROCK HILL, S.C. --- The Tusculum University men's and women's indoor track & field teams have been picked for finishes in the South Atlantic Conference preseason coaches poll, released by the conference office on Thursday.

The Tusculum men are chosen to finish seventh in the preseason poll, while the Pioneer women were slotted in eighth place in the poll. The South Atlantic Conference did not hold a conference championship meet during the 2020-21 season due to COVID-19 concerns.

Tusculum will open its 2021-22 indoor season on Saturday at Appalachian State, the first of seven weekends of competition ahead of the SAC Championship meet, which will be held February 26-27 in Winston-Salem, N.C.

MEN'S POLL
Queens and Wingate shared the top spot in the preseason coaches poll with six first-place votes and 127 points apiece, with Carson-Newman in third with 107 points. Limestone (98 points) was fourth, followed by Lenoir-Rhyne (90) and Catawba (86). The Pioneers were seventh with 74 points, with Coker and Anderson tied for eighth with 57 points apiece. Newberry (45 points) is 10th, with Mars Hill (29) and Lincoln Memorial (27) rounding out the survey.

Athletes to watch for the Pioneers include senior sprinter Widchard Guervil and freshman jumper Joshua Stephens. Guervil is a four-time SAC medalist who holds school indoor records in both the 60 meters (6.67 seconds) and 200 meters (21.29 seconds). The Fort Myers, Florida native has all of the top 10 fastest times in school history in the 60 meters and has eight of the top 10 best times in the 200 meters. Stephens, from Seminole, Florida, finished 10th at the FHSAA Class 4A Championship in the triple jump at 43 feet, 11 1/4 inches (13.39 meters). His career best mark in the triple jump was set at the Region 1 Championship at 44 feet, 8 3/4 inches (13.63 meters).

WOMEN'S POLL
Queens grabbed eight first-place votes and 129 points to sit atop the preseason poll, with Wingate earning the other four first-place votes and 125 points for second place. Lenoir-Rhyne is third with 111 points, followed by Anderson (100) in fourth and Limestone (94) in fifth. Catawba is sixth in the preseason poll with 75 points, trailed by Coker in seventh (73) and the Pioneers in eighth (62). Carson-Newman is ninth with 59 points, with Lincoln Memorial (40), Newberry (32) and Mars Hill (24) wrapping up the survey.

Athletes to watch for the Pioneers are graduate sprinter Kenisha Stubbs and senior jumper Destini Wilson. Stubbs holds the school indoor record in the 60 hurdles at 9.16 seconds and was a SAC gold medalist in the 4x400 relay in the 2020 conference indoor championship. The Nassau, Bahamas native has the six fastest times in the 60 hurdles in program history. Wilson owns school records in the high jump (5 feet, 1 3/4 inches), long jump (17 feet, 9 1/2 inches) and pentathlon (2,685 points), and the Boynton Beach, Florida native has the top four marks in program history in both the high and long jumps.

2021-22 SAC INDOOR TRACK & FIELD PRESEASON POLLS

MEN

WOMEN