Cross Country Begins 2010 Season at Gamecock Invitational
8/30/2010 4:07:00 AM | Track & Field/XC
STATEBORO, Ga. - The Georgia Southern Cross Country team begins its 2010 season with a trip to Hilton Field at Fort Jackson, S.C., for the Gamecock Invitational on Friday, September 3. The Eagles will send a full squad to the 5K meet which is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. The race consists of three loops around the course. Georgia Southern finished fourth in last year's meet with host South Carolina taking the team win.
"We have opened our season at the Gamecock Invitational for the past six years and I believe the meet is becoming more and more competitive each year," said Eagle Cross Country Coach Natalie Smith. "This meet is one that we look forward to so that we are able to gauge where we are as a team."
Coach Smith and the Eagles, anticipating a new start in 2010 and with nearly three weeks of training in the preseason, are ready to compete.
"We have been training now for two and half weeks together and I believe that this team is a very positive, dedicated and competitive group," Smith commented.
Senior co-captain Kassi Lee (Elberton, Ga.), junior co-captain Brittani Martin (Alpharetta, Ga.) and junior Azura Robillard (Apopka, Ga.) return as the experienced upperclassmen on the squad. Sophomores Sara Curry (Lawrenceville, Ga.) and Heather McAlister (Cartersville, Ga.) are ready to contribute after finishing the track season with their personal best times in the 5K.
Lee owns one of Georgia Southern's top-10 times in the 5K with a 19:49.53 time in the SoCon Championships and Robillard paced the Eagles with the top individual finish at the Gamecock Invitational last year (30th-20:33.12). Martin was just three seconds and one place behind Robillard with returner Amanda Tennyson (Grayson, Ga.) and McAlister posting top-40 times.
"With sophomore Sara Curry leading the way for us, I believe that the future is much brighter for the GSU Cross Country team," Smith said. "Brittani and Heather had strong track performances this past spring and we are looking for those same strides to continue during this cross country season. We have one lone senior this year in Kassi Lee and we are looking to her experience on and off the course to help build this team this year."
The Eagles travel next to the Clemson Invitational on Friday, September 17th as the Tigers are playing host to their first meet in several years. The Clemson Invitational will be run at Musser Farms, a peach orchard and fruit tree research center near the Clemson campus. On Friday, October 1st, Georgia Southern will race in the Charlotte Invitational and compete against more than 40 collegiate teams.
Running on the first Saturday of the season, the cross country team heads to the Augusta State Jaguar Invitational for the meet on October 9th. The race, traditionally featuring several ranked opponents, will be held for the fourth year at Blachard Woods in Evans, Ga. The Eagles head back out of state to the USC Upstate Invitational for an October 16th race. Georgia Southern will have a week off competition to prepare for the Southern Conference Championships Saturday, October 30th at Appalachian State University.
Results from the Gamecock Invitational will be posted on GeorgiaSouthernEagles.com/crosscountry and available at twitter.com/gsscores and facebook.com/gsathletics.
