FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, October 22, 2010
Contact: Robert Preston, Jr.,
912.260.4276
robert.preston@sgc.edu
SGC Cross Country Places 5th (Men), 8th (Women) at Oglethorpe Meet
The SGC cross country teams placed fifth (men) and sixth (women) at the
Oglethorpe Invitational on Saturday, Oct. 16 in Atlanta. The meet, held on
the campus of Oglethorpe University, was one of the largest and most
competitive meets of the year for the Tigers.
The meet featured fantastic weather but a difficult course. The route
covered more pavement than the Tigers have seen in a meet, and the sections
that went through the wooded areas of campus were rough and very narrow. The
runners who placed well were those who jumped to the front of the pack early
and held their positions through the woods. Despite the difficult course,
all five women set personal bests for the year, with Jennifer Cumbus turning
in the fastest women’s time in the history of the young SGC program. She
finished in 21st place with a 23:23. Minerva Arreguin wasn’t far behind,
finishing 27th with a 22:41. She was followed by Courtlyn Fussell (37th,
24:09), Sunshine Carter (39th, 24:27) and Shukia Jones (31:58). The average
time for the women’s team was over a minute faster than the previous meet at
25:08. It is also worth noting that the Lady Tigers were the only junior
college team in the race; all the others were four-year schools.
In the men’s race, sophomore Brandon Lundin jumped back to the front of the
SGC pack for the first time since Aug. 28, turning in a 30:38, good for a
17th place overall finish. Sam Caldwell (23rd, 31:13), Mark McLeod (33rd,
32:24), Daniel Chavez (34th, 32:25), Josh Holcombe (35th, 32:26) and John
Adams (49th, 34:36) rounded out the order of finish for the Tigers. This
meet was significant for us because it was the first time all year that each
of the Tiger broke the 35:00 barrier. SGC was one of three junior college
teams in the men’s race; the Tigers finished second among the JUCO schools.
“This meet was another important learning experience for our runners. We saw
that we can compete with some of the larger schools in our state. At the
same time, we also saw what it’s going to take for us to become one of the
elite collegiate cross country teams in Georgia. As this group of runners
continues to mature and learns how to race, they are only going to get
better — both as a team and as individual competitors,” comments SGC head
coach Robert Preston Jr.
SGC travels to Albany for the conference finals on Saturday, Oct. 30.
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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.
