FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, August 31, 2010

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

SGC Men, Women Take Second Place at Darton

The South Georgia Tigers cross country team made a bold statement Saturday morning at the Darton Invitational in Albany, taking second place in both the men’s and women’s division while placing three runners in the top 10 in each category.

The 2010 season is the second official year the men have fielded a team and the first year the Lady Tigers have had a full squad. The two teams have been training very hard for nearly three weeks through the dreadful South Georgia summer in preparation for the start of the season. The Darton meet featured a flat and fast course, and Saturday dawned with overcast skies and relatively cool weather.

The women took to the course first and made the most of the favorable conditions. From the start of the race, SGC’s Jennifer Cumbus, a freshman from Berrien County, weaved her way to the front of the pack and cruised into the second place position. Behind her, fellow Lady Tigers Minerva Arreguin of Avon Park, Fla. and Courtlyn Fussell of Douglas set steady paces as well. For the first two miles, Cumbus was in solid position and looked as though she might hang on for a second place finish. Over the final mile, however, she faded a bit and dropped back fourth place. She crossed the finish line in 22:38, fourth overall. Arreguin (24:23, ninth overall) and Fussell (25:28, 10th overall) maintained a steady pace and finished inside the top 10. Sunshine Carter of Baxley and Shukia Jones of Ware County also ran solid races and helped push the Lady Tigers into second place overall.

The men’s race began soon after the women finished. The Tigers have several runners capable of getting near the pointy end of the field and posting some very good times. For several of the runners, the Darton meet was the first time they had raced anything over five kilometers (the men run eight kilometers; about five miles). The first meet of the year would be a learning experience for the freshman-laden SGC squad. The Tigers’ top two runners, sophomore transfer Brandon Lundin of Jacksonville, Fla. and freshman Samuel Caldwell of Bremen, established themselves at the front of the pack. Meanwhile, Daniel Chavez and Mark McLeod, both freshmen from Fitzgerald, sat in the pack not far off of the pace. Lundin felt strong and tried to mix it up near the front; he held on for two sub-6:00 miles then began sliding back into the field. He settled in to a more manageable pace but remained in front of most of his competitors. Caldwell, fighting some added fatigue in his legs, was hanging around just a few seconds behind Lundin. As the race neared the finish, Lundin pushed the pace and crossed the line in sixth place overall with a time of 30:31. Caldwell came in eighth at 30:53. Chavez made up some ground on his teammate, finishing in ninth place with a 30:59. McLeod (13th), Joshua Holcombe of Atlanta (20th), Ashe Kelly of Pierce County (who also plays soccer, 22nd) and John Adams of Nicholls (28th) rounded out the finish for SGC.

The second place finish for each team was a strong start to the season and puts the Tigers in excellent position for the rest of the season. “I was very pleased with the way our runners competed today. Our first meet was a learning experience for almost the entire team. Now they see what it takes to compete at the highest levels of our conference. The men especially are beginning to see the importance of proper pacing and race strategy. We didn’t plan to peak for this race – we just trained right through it. Being able to finish in second without tapering shows that the kids are buying into the training and support what we are doing. We’re going to get faster as the season progresses. I have tremendous confidence in this group of athletes to improve and compete with the fastest runners they will race against,” says Robert Preston Jr., head SGC cross country coach.

The Tigers will race in the Brooks Labor Day 5K in Valdosta on Monday. On Saturday, Sept. 11, they will travel to Americus for the Georgia Southwestern Remembrance Run, SGC’s second meet of the season.

# # # # 

About South Georgia College

South Georgia College (www.sgc.edu) was founded in 1906 and is an accredited 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. With over 20 majors and transfer opportunities, South Georgia College provides the finest education possible to the citizens of its service area.