FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Contact:  Robert Preston, Jr.,
              912.260.4276
              robert.preston@sgc.edu

SGC cross country team participates at Albany State meet

After a year of planning, the first-ever South Georgia College cross country team laced up its collective shoes and participated in the Albany State Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 12. SGC finished sixth in the team competition, and placed four runners in the top 35. Only two junior colleges ran in the meet – SGC and Darton. The rest were all four year schools, including Albany State, Morehouse, Florida A&M, Tuskegee and Allen University.

In college competition, the men’s team must run 8K (five miles), while the women run 5K (3.1 miles). Saturday morning dawned nice and cool, but that quickly changed as the sun climbed directly overhead. By the time the men began running at 11:15, it was hot and muggy. The course, which featured several hills and very little shade, proved very challenging. Added to the difficulty was the fact that none of the men had ever raced anything longer than a 5K.

Daquan Jackson, a sophomore who participated last year when the team operated as a club sport, finished first among the SGC contingent and 20th overall. He posted a time of 32:47 (6:36 per mile). Coffee High alumni Oscar Alvarado (30th, 38:52) and Logan McCrea (31st, 39:02) came in next. They were followed by Angel Garet (33rd, 39:34), SGC soccer player Tyler Sherman (40th, 41:10) and Andrew Palmer (50th, 44:57).

The women ran their race after the men finished. By the time they started, it was nearly noon and had only gotten hotter. SGC’s lone female runner, Shemeka Brown from Stockbridge High School, battled the extreme heat to finish 25th with a time of 26:15 over five kilometers.

“The meet was a good experience for us. Our runners have been working very hard over the last month to get themselves in shape to compete with the rest of our conference. Saturday, they saw what they have to do to be competitive at the highest levels. It was a valuable learning experience, and we’ll only get better as the season progresses,” said SGC cross country coach Robert Preston Jr.

The cross country team is in action again on Saturday, Sept. 19 in Albany again, this time at the Darton Invitational.

Photo: Pictured are the SGC cross country team members who competed at the Albany State Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 12. Kneeling from left are Tyler Sherman, Shemeka Brown and Daquan Jackson. Standing from left are Andrew Palmer, Angel Garet, Oscar Alvarado and Logan McCrea.

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About South Georgia College

South Georgia College (www.sgc.edu) was founded in 1906 and is a two-year institution in the University System of Georgia. Located in Douglas, Ga., the college's environment gives students exceptional opportunities for interdisciplinary study and close collaboration with faculty.