Wingate Selected as Men's Cross Country Preseason Favorite
ROCK HILL, S.C. (theSAC.com) – Wingate was voted as the favorite to win the 2024 South Atlantic Conference Men's Cross Country title, the league office announced today.
The Bulldogs, who won the 2023 NCAA Division II National Championship, received 12 first-place votes and 144 points in the poll for the second consecutive season.
Catawba garnered the final first-place vote and came in at No. 2 in the poll with 124 points. Anderson finished third with 121 points and Lenoir-Rhyne as fourth with 115 points.
Lincoln Memorial earned 95 points to finish fifth while Carson-Newman trailed narrowly behind with 93 points which was good for sixth. Emory & Henry slotted in at No. 7 with 76 points, just ahead of Tusculum at number eight.
Mars Hill, Newberry, Limestone, UVA Wise and Coker round out the poll.
In addition to the preseason coaches' poll, the SAC also released its 2024 Cross Country Runners to Watch list. Below is the full list of runners to watch by team during the 2024 season.
The 2024 SAC Cross Country Championships will take place October 26th at the Farm in Newberry, S.C.
2024 SAC Men's Cross Country Preseason Poll
|
Rank |
School (First Place Votes) |
Score |
|
1. |
Wingate (12) |
144 |
|
2. |
Catawba (1) |
124 |
|
3. |
Anderson |
121 |
|
4. |
Lenoir-Rhyne |
115 |
|
5. |
Lincoln Memorial |
95 |
|
6. |
Carson-Newman |
93 |
|
7. |
Emory & Henry |
76 |
|
8. |
Tusculum |
70 |
|
9. |
Mars Hill |
51 |
|
t-10. |
Newberry |
42 |
|
t-10. |
Limestone |
42 |
|
12. |
UVA Wise |
29 |
|
13. |
Coker |
12 |
2024 SAC Cross Country Runners to Watch
Anderson
Men: Elliot Dotson, Spain Vaughn
Women: Kennedy Roush, Lucy Schmitt
Carson-Newman
Men: Colten Lee, Bryson Burkett
Women: Jenna Pitman, Peyton Couch
Catawba
Men: Oussama Ajala and Ian Pierce
Women: Madi Clay and Natalie Almond
Coker
Men: Josh Zeigler, Cody Stewart
Women: Olivia Durham, Diamond Bailey
Emory & Henry
Men: Kaleb Elswick, Matthew Klapak, Marcus Sosa
Women: Delaney Eller. Kennedy Harris, Tess Somervell
Lenoir-Rhyne
Men: Jacob Parkinson, Lewis Budgen
Women: Sabrina Fleig, Carolin Fuehren
Limestone
Lincoln Memorial
Men: Marig Englebrecht, Simon Fillers
Women: Grace Rose, Katie Smock
Mars Hill
Men: Braxton Cummings
Women: Sophie Ratcliff
Newberry
Men: Tyler Shumate, Jonah Wendland, Wyatt Strickland
Women: Sage Bowen
Tusculum
Men: Jerry Ricker
Women: Sofia Cuesta Fuoss
UVA Wise
Men: Jonah Adams, Chad Douglas, Avery Wells
Women: Lydia Slemp, Alexsis Porter, Jayden Sisk
Wingate
Men: Soheil Boufrizi, Hamza Chahid, Titouan Le Grix
Women: Laila Abouzaid, Ona Alonso, Sira Bo, Mollie Scott