Mullican's Double Dip

Statesboro, Ga. - At 10:45 a.m. on Saturday, October 29th, junior Lindsay Mullican will compete at the 2011 Southern Conference Cross Country Championships in Charleston, S.C. as a member of the Georgia Southern Cross Country team. Less than three hours after she completes her race, Mullican will suit up for the Eagles' Swimming and Diving team and compete that same day in a quad meet at the Stern Center in Charleston.

Participating in two collegiate sport events on the same day is a culmination of dedication and hard work for Mullican that started long before she arrived in Statesboro.  At Manheim Township High School in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, she was a four-year letterwinner in swimming, cross country and track & field. She was a state qualifier in each sport all four years and a state finalist in swimming her junior and senior seasons.

Although Mullican was recruited by Georgia Southern strictly for swimming, Head Coach Nate Kellogg knew Lindsay was an accomplished runner in high school and he witnessed first-hand the distance she was able to put on her swimming teammates during team running drills.

"We run as a team a couple of times a week and she would just smoke everybody," said Kellogg.

After two years of swimming for the Eagles, Mullican began to think about running again.

"She mentioned to me a few time last year that she would be interested in joining our cross country and track teams, if she could make an impact on the team," said Kellogg.

Her running times from high school indicated that she could compete as a distance runner at the Division I level. First-year Head Coach Marlo Mincey welcomed Lindsay with open arms and is very appreciative of what she brings to her young team.

"Lindsay works extremely hard and wants to do well," said Mincey. "She brings a great attitude to every practice and is such a positive person. She loves to compete and puts in the work to get better-and she's always smiling." 

Mullican is smiling now as she prepares for both events on the 29th and she can't wait to compete on the running trails and in the water that day in Charleston. Her swimming teammates will be on the trails Saturday morning to cheer her on and her family is flying in from Pennsylvania to attend both competitions.

"I was really excited about the opportunity to run competitively again," said Mullican. "Competing in two sports in college is one of those things that you wished you could do, but not many people get an opportunity to actually do it. I feel honored that they wanted me on the cross country and track & field teams and fortunate that I'm able to do both. To run in the conference championships and then swim for our school on the same day-I'm excited to get out there and compete."

Category: Cross Country

Published on Friday, 28 October 2011 21:16