SPARTANBURG, S.C. --- The Tusculum University men's and women's cross country teams participated in the NCAA Division II Southeast Region meet on Saturday at the Milliken Research Park.
The Tusculum men finished 11th out of 23 teams with 326 points, led by a 42nd-place finish from senior Alex Perez, while the Pioneer women were 13th out of 22 teams with 329 points as sophomore Emily Coddington placed 28th overall.
MEN'S RECAP
Perez was the top finisher for the Pioneers, crossing the line in 42nd place in 32:55.5 over the 10-kilometer course. Sophomore Ray Richardson took 46th place with a time of 33:06.0, followed by senior Caleb Archer in 72nd place at 34:18.9.
Four freshmen rounded out the finishers for Tusculum, led by Bryson Livesay who was 86th overall in 34:41.3. Irving Medina was the fifth finisher for the Pioneers and 95th overall at 35:01.4, with Graham Aitken in 97th place at 35:06.3. Gideon Dowling was the final Tusculum runner, taking 105th in a field of 161 finishers with a time of 35:25.2.
Wingate had all seven of its runners place in the top 12 and won the team region title with 33 points. Queens (73 points) and Catawba (104 points) took second and third place and will advance along with Wingate to the Division II National Championship in two weeks. Augusta (105 points) was fourth, with Anderson (124 points) in fifth place.
Individually, Queens sophomore Jan Lukas Becker followed up his win in the South Atlantic Conference Championship with a regional title, crossing the line in 30:18.5 to beat out UNC Pembroke junior Joshua Chepkesir by 4 1/2 seconds. Freshman Scott Nutter of Wingate was third in 30:41.1.
WOMEN'S RECAP
Coddington cut more than a minute and a half off her time on the same course from mid-September, running 22:35.6 to place 28th overall. Freshman Nicole Griffith was 68th overall in 24:03.8, with freshman Celine McNally taking 71st place in 24:08.6, more than two minutes better than her time on Sept. 18.
Graduate student Javiera Ortiz finished 75th overall for the Pioneers in 24:14.9, and sophomore Judy Chellah took 92nd place in 25:05.3 as the Pioneers' fifth finisher. Junior Erin Bruce was 102nd overall in a field of 155 runners with a time of 25:25.2.
The SAC had the top four finishers in the field of 22 teams, as Queens placed five runners in the top 10 and had 25 points. Wingate was second with 43 points, with Anderson in third place at 118 points to earn the third and final NCAA national automatic qualifier. Lenoir-Rhyne and Flagler finished tied with 128 points, but the Bears won the tiebreaker to claim fourth place.
Wingate sophomore Lara Orrock backed up her SAC Championship run by claiming the region title with a time of 20:21.0, more than 16 seconds ahead of runner-up Fatima Alanis of Queens.
NCAA Division II Southeast Regional
at Spartanburg, S.C.
MEN
Team: 1. Wingate 33; 2. Queens 73; 3. Catawba 104; 4. Augusta 105; 5. Anderson 124; 11. Tusculum 326.
Tusculum finishers: 42. Alex Perez, 32:55.5; 46. Ray Richardson, 33:06.0; 72. Caleb Archer, 34:18.9; 86. Bryson Livesay, 34:41.3; 95. Irving Medina, 35:01.4; 97. Graham Aitken, 35:06.3; 105. Gideon Dowling, 35:25.2.
WOMEN
Team: 1. Queens 25; 2. Wingate 43; 3. Anderson 118; 4. Lenoir-Rhyne 128; 5. Flagler 128; 13. Tusculum 329.
Tusculum finishers: 28. Emily Coddington, 22:35.6; 68. Nicole Griffith, 24:03.8; 71. Celine McNally, 24:08.6; 75. Javiera Ortiz, 24:14.9; 92. Judy Chellah, 25:05.3; 102. Erin Bruce, 25:25.2.
