GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- The Tusculum University men's and women's cross country teams will compete for the first time in nearly two years when the Pioneers open their 2021 season on Friday in the Tusculum Open.
The meet, which features the Pioneers along with local opponents Carson-Newman, Lincoln Memorial, Walters State and Milligan, will be held at the Holston Home Cross Country Course. The women's race will begin at 6:45 PM followed by the men's race at 7:15 PM.
The Pioneers will compete in four regular-season meets prior to the South Atlantic Conference Championship, which will be held October 23 in Charlotte. The NCAA Southeast Regional will be November 6 in Spartanburg, South Carolina with the Division II Championships in Tampa, Florida on November 20.
Head coach Cory Pratt begins his eighth season as head coach of a Tusculum squad that is eager to return to competition after sitting out the 2019-20 campaign due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
MEN'S PREVIEW
The Tusculum men finished sixth at the 2019 SAC Championship, and Pratt believes that the ability is there for his team to improve on that finish at this year's conference meet.
"Our maturity level will be what determines the outcome for us," said Pratt. "In a season of ups and downs, if we can handle both of those with maturity then this group will be able to leave a mark."
Seniors Alex Perez (Aviles, Spain) and Carson Walls (Gray, Tenn.) are the most experienced runners on the roster. Perez has competed in a total of 11 events over his first two seasons.
Perez was 33rd in the 2019 SAC Championship and placed just outside the top 60 at the NCAA Southeast Regional. He owns a pair of top-10 finishes in the steeplechase at the SAC Outdoor championships, and has a career-best finish of 12th at the Tusculum Open in 2019.
Walls has run 13 races in two years, taking 56th in the SAC and 102nd in the region during the 2019 postseason, along with a 17th-place finish at the Bobcat Invitational in 2019. Walls also competed in the SAC and NCAA regional meets in 2018, a season that saw him earn a best finish of 21st at the Tusculum Open. Walls has also competed in the steeplechase at the SAC Championship, finishing 11th this spring.
Junior Caleb Archer (Bluff City, Tenn.) and sophomore Ray Richardson (Johnson City, Tenn.) will be making their cross country debuts for the Pioneers this fall. Archer has a career-best finish of ninth in the 5,000 meters and took 21st in the event at the SAC Championship. Richardson participated in indoor track last winter and had fifth and 10th-place finishes in the 5000 meters at VMI.
Junior Antonio Aparicio (Valencia, Spain) ran for the Pioneers in 2019 and had 20th-place finish both in the Tusculum Open and the Bobcat Invitational. Aparicio has been solid in track and field for Tusculum, taking second in the 800 meters at Western Carolina and eighth at the SAC Championship this spring, while taking fifth in the 800 at the 2020 SAC Indoor Championship.
"I'm really expecting this group to take a step forward this year," said Pratt. "We've been on the cusp of breaking through in 2019 and 2018, but came up short of our goals. So I'm looking for them to be focused and finish the job later this fall when it matters."
Six freshmen are part of the Pioneer roster this fall, led by Bryson Livesay (Jonesborough, Tenn.) who had the fourth-best 5K time in the region last fall of 16:36, just shy of his PR. Evan Bruce (Jonesborough, Tenn.) was a state champion in the 4x800 relay and is an All-Conference honoree, while Graham Aitken (Raleigh, N.C.) has also won state gold in the 4x800 relay and has a 16:34 PR in cross country.
Irving Medina (Greeneville, Tenn.) competed for Chuckey-Doak High School and finished fourth in the state as a senior, and high school teammates Gideon Dowling (Jonesborough, Tenn.) and David Buckley (Telford, Tenn.) join fellow David Crockett grad Livesay on the Pioneer roster this fall.
"It's been a blast being able to get back to work this preseason," Pratt added. "This time last year, we had just found out there would be no fall season. These first few weeks are so important as far as getting folks settled into how we want things done."
WOMEN'S PREVIEW
The Tusculum women are also coming off a sixth-place finish at the 2019 SAC Championship, but with just six runners on the roster, depth will be a huge factor in the success of the squad.
"Our growth throughout the year is going to be critical," Pratt said. "The biggest thing we are lacking is experience at this level, so I think us getting a few races under our belts will be a great learning experience and I expect they will get some lessons for championship season."
Junior Erin Bruce (Jonesborough, Tenn.) is the lone member of the Pioneer roster to have competed collegiately, earning a 51st-place finish at the 2019 SAC Championship and 93rd overall at the NCAA Southeast Region meet.
Sophomores Judy Chellah (Johnson City, Tenn.) and Emily Coddington (Acosta, Pa.) will look to build upon their success in track and field during their freshman seasons. Chellah had three top-five finishes in the 800 meters last season, and completed a 5:39.60 mile during the indoor campaign. Coddington took sixth in the steeplechase and ninth in the 1500 meters at last spring's SAC Outdoor Championship, and had race wins in the 800 meters indoors at VMI and the steeplechase at Montreat.
Freshman Nicole Griffith (Jonesborough, Tenn.) holds the school 5K record in cross country at Daniel Boone High School and was on a 4x800 relay that finished third at the state meet. Freshman Celine McNally (Surgoinsville, Tenn.) was team MVP in cross country at Volunteer High School, and has run 20:59 in the 5000 meters. Graduate student Javiera Ortiz (Llolleo, Chile) joins the program this fall after competing four years on the Tusculum women's tennis team, during which she went 11-8 in singles and 9-6 in doubles.
"I've noticed so far this group is physically and mentally tough. They like to work," said Pratt. "If that can become a character trait of this team, they will improve a great deal from week one to the end of the season. We have talent, but are green. So these first couple of weeks have been invaluable to work through some of the learning that has to take place."
