CHARLOTTE, N.C. --- The Tusculum University men's and women's cross country teams competed at the South Atlantic Conference Championships Saturday morning at McAlpine Creek Park.

The Tusculum men finished seventh overall while the women finished in eighth place out of 13 schools which competed at the meet.

Both the Pioneer men and women will participate in the NCAA Division II Southeast Regional, which will be held Saturday, Nov. 6 in Spartanburg, S.C.

MEN'S RECAP
Senior Alex Perez was the top finisher for the Pioneer men, placing 23rd overall with a time of 25:18.7. Sophomore Ray Richardson finished 39th overall and completed the eight-kilometer course in 26:08.1. Junior Caleb Archer placed 44th overall in 26:34.8, with freshman Bryson Livesay in 48th place at 26:40.1.

Freshman Gideon Dowling was the fifth finisher for the Pioneers, crossing the line in 54th place at 26:51.9. Freshman Irving Medina was 63rd overall with a season-best time of 27:51.4, and freshman Graham Aitken took 65th place at 27:59.5.

Also running for the Pioneers were senior Carson Walls, who was 68th overall at 28:05.5; freshman Evan Bruce who ran 28:54.3 and took 77th place, and junior Antonio Aparicio who was 78th overall in 29:02.6.

Wingate placed seven runners in the top 10 and claimed the team championship with 24 points, followed by Queens (60 points). Catawba and Anderson tied for third with 87 points, but Catawba had the better fifth-place finisher and won the tiebreaker for placement. Lincoln Memorial was fifth with 129 points, with Lenoir-Rhyne in sixth (180) and Tusculum in seventh with 182 points.

The bottom half of the field consisted of Limestone in eighth with 247 points, Carson-Newman in ninth at 263 points, and Coker in 10th with 323 points. The rest of the finishers were Newberry in 11th (340 points), Mars Hill 12th with 340 points and UVA Wise in 13th with 390 points.

Individually, Jan Lukas Becker of Queens was the race winner as he covered the 8K course in 23:50.5, finishing 5.7 seconds ahead of Felix Nadeborn of Wingate. Bastian Mrochen of Wingate was third place in 23:59.6.

WOMEN'S RECAP
Sophomore Emily Coddington was the top finisher for the Tusculum women, placing 28th overall with a season-best six-kilometer time of 23:15.8. Freshman Nicole Griffith was 42nd overall in 24:18.7, with graduate student Javiera Ortiz ran 24:54.1 and was 47th overall. Freshman Celine McNally took 54th place at 25:28.7.

Junior Erin Bruce was the Pioneers' fifth finisher as she crossed the line in 57th place in 25:43.1, and sophomore Judy Chellah finished immediately behind her in 58th place with a time of 25:54.3.

Wingate captured the team championship with 27 points, putting five runners in the top eight including individual champion Lara Orrock, who ran 20:52.3 to win by 12.5 seconds. Queens finished second with 43 points, with Lenoir-Rhyne taking third with 96 points. Anderson (107 points) was fourth, followed by Catawba (151) in fifth, Lincoln Memorial (174) in sixth and Carson-Newman (180) in seventh place.

Tusculum was eighth with 202 points, trailed by Newberry (306) in ninth, UVA Wise (318) in tenth place and Limestone (329 points) in 11th. Coker was 12th with 338 points, and Mars Hill did not place due to having just four runners.

Wingate's Orrock beat Fatima Alanis of Queens to the line by 12.5 seconds, as Alanis ran the 6K in 21:04.8. Cherise Carreira of Queens was third in 21:12.4.

South Atlantic Conference Cross Country Championships
at Charlotte, N.C.
MEN
Team scores: 1. Wingate, 24; 2. Queens, 60; 3. Catawba, 87; 4. Anderson, 87; 5. Lincoln Memorial, 129; 6. Lenoir-Rhyne, 180; 7. Tusculum, 182; 8. Limestone, 247; 9. Carson-Newman, 263; 10. Coker, 323; 11. Newberry, 340; 12. Mars Hill, 340; 13. UVA Wise, 390.

Tusculum finishers: 23. Alex Perez, 25:18,7; 39. Ray Richardson, 26:08.1; 44. Caleb Archer, 26:34.8; 48. Bryson Livesay, 26:40.1; 54. Gideon Dowling, 26:51.9; 63. Irving Medina, 27:51.4; 65. Graham Aitken, 27:59.5; 68. Carson Walls, 28:05.5; 77. Evan Bruce, 28:54.3; 78. Antonio Aparicio, 29:02.6.

WOMEN
Team scores: 1. Wingate, 27; 2. Queens, 43; 3. Lenoir-Rhyne, 96; 4. Anderson, 107; 5. Catawba, 151; 6. Lincoln Memorial, 174; 7. Carson-Newman, 180; 8. Tusculum, 202; 9. Newberry, 306; 10. UVA Wise, 318; 11. Limestone, 329; 12. Coker, 337; 13. Mars Hill, DNF.

Tusculum finishers: 28. Emily Coddington, 23:15.8; 42. Nicole Griffith, 24:18.7; 47. Javiera Ortiz, 24:54.1; 54. Celine McNally, 25:28.7; 57. Erin Bruce, 25:43.1; 58. Judy Chellah, 25:54.3.