GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- The Tusculum University men's and women's cross country teams will open their 2022 seasons on Friday, September 2 at the Eye Opener Meet, hosted by USC Upstate at the Roger Milliken Center in Spartanburg, South Carolina.
Head coach Robert T. Williams took over the program at the start of August and has put together a roster of 11 men and eight women to tackle the 2022 season. Williams dipped into the Pioneer track and field program to fill out the rosters of both teams, with just four men's runners and three women's runners having previous collegiate cross country experience.
"Although we are rebuilding, we are laying a strong foundation for the future," said Williams, who has been an assistant with the Pioneer cross country and track and field programs before being elevated to head coach during the summer. "We anticipate the current runners and freshmen to make great strides this season as we move forward."
MEN'S PREVIEW
Senior Antonio Aparicio (Valencia, Spain) finished 78th at the SAC Championship in 2021 and has three top-20 finishes in 10 career races. Junior Ray Richardson (Johnson City, Tenn.) was 39th at the SAC Championship and 46th overall at the NCAA Southeast Regional, after winning the Senators Invitational during the season.
Sophomore Evan Bruce (Jonesborough, Tenn.) turned in a 77th-place finish at the SAC Championship last fall and had a season-best finish of seventh place at the Senators Invitational. Sophomore Bryson Livesay (Jonesborough, Tenn.) was 48th at the SAC Championship and 86th at the NCAA Southeast Regional, and had an eighth-place finish at the Senators Invitational.
Newcomers for the Pioneers include sophomores Xavion Bogus, Stephen Brewer and Zedrick Williams, along with freshmen Ethyn Council, DeWayne Morris, Jori Ray and Jerry Ricker.
Bogus (Knoxville, Tenn.) joins the team after running middle distance for the Pioneers during last year's track season. Bogus had a best time in the 800 of 2:04.10 at the Lee Last Chance Meet and ran 2:54.62 in the 1000 meters at the Flat Is Fast Invitational during the indoor season.
Brewer (Winston-Salem, N.C.) also ran indoor and outdoor track last year as a freshman, and medaled twice at the SAC Championship in the 4x400 meters, winning gold at the indoor meet and silver at the outdoor championship. Brewer also had a fifth-place finish in the 400 meters at the SAC Indoor Championship.
Williams (Sanford, Fla.) comes to Tusculum after running in four meets at Seminole State last fall, including a 36th-place finish at the FCSAA Region 8 Meet in 31:15.6.
Council (Church Hill, Tenn.) was twice All-Region and All-Conference and a two-time team MVP at Volunteer High School, where he placed 27th at the state championship in 2021. Morris (Knoxville, Tenn.) holds the school record in cross country and finished 31st in the state last fall at Austin-East High School, while Ray (Greeneville, Tenn.) has a cross country PR of 18:20 and competed at the state championship as a junior for South Greene High School. Ricker (Kingsport, Tenn.) ran for Dobyns-Bennett High School which also qualified for states last season.
WOMEN'S PREVIEW
Senior Erin Bruce (Jonesborough, Tenn.) was 58th at the SAC Championship last fall with a time of 25:43.1, and finished 102nd overall at the NCAA Southeast Regional. Bruce, who was 51st in the SAC Championship as a freshman in 2019, had a season-best finish of sixth at the Senators Invitational.
Junior Emily Coddington (Acosta, Pa.) turned in a 28th-place finish at the SAC Championship and was also 28th in the NCAA Southeast Region meet. She had a fourth-place finish at the Senators Invitational and took 28th overall at the Queen City Invite. Junior Judy Chellah (Johnson City, Tenn.) had a 59th-place finish at the SAC Championship and placed 92nd overall at the NCAA Southeast Regional, and had a fifth-place finish for the Pioneers at the Senators Invitational.
Joining the program after competing for the Tusculum track program are seniors Aliyah Adderley (Nassau, Bahamas), Destiny Lottie (Des Moines, Iowa) and Faith Robinette (Rockwood, Tenn.). Adderley has been a sprinter for three years with the Pioneers, while Lottie competed in both the 200 and 400 meters in her first year at Tusculum last season. Robinette, also in her second year with the Pioneers, was a hurdler and thrower for Tusculum during the 2022 track campaign.
Another first-year program member is senior Rory Church (Kennesaw, Ga.), who is a three-year member of the Tusculum women's tennis team, while freshman Inmaculada Delgado (Seville, Spain) is the lone freshman on the 2022 roster.
SCHEDULE
Tusculum will compete at the Eye Opener in Spartanburg, S.C. on Friday, Sept. 2 and will follow with a trip to Morristown for the Walters State Invite on Saturday, Sept. 10. The Pioneers will finish September at Milligan for the Eli Cramer Invitational on Friday, Sept. 30.
In October, the Pioneers will run at the Royals Challenge in Charlotte, N.C. on Friday, Oct. 7 and at the VertCross Invitational in Kernersville, N.C. on Friday, Oct. 14. The SAC Championship will be held at Salisbury, N.C. on Saturday, Nov. 5 and the NCAA Southeast Region will be in Charlotte on Saturday, Nov. 19.
The NCAA Division II Championship will be conducted in University Place, Wash. on Saturday, Dec. 3.
