ANDERSON, S.C. - Anderson University head cross country coach Kevin Licht on Tuesday announced the Trojans' schedule for the upcoming 2015 season.
Licht enters his first year at the helm of the Anderson program with a combined 14 returning letterwinners on the men's and women's squads, as the Trojans will look to contend for a spot in the top echelon of the South Atlantic Conference.
"This year's schedule will allow our team to face some great competition and preview the regional championship course," said Licht. "We have a great group coming in and by being able to face the top competition in the region we'll be well prepared for the championship portion of the season."
The Trojans will be returning to familiar ground, as AU is slated to open the campaign at the Royals Twilight for the second straight year. Hosted by Queens University of Charlotte on Sept. 4., the event will again feature its' distinctive format of running under the lights in the evening at Charlotte's Freedom Park, with the meet scheduled for an 8 p.m. start.
Last season, Alex Dixon led the Trojans to second place in her collegiate debut by claiming third place in a time of 18:53.6, while Ben Boerma paced the men's squad with a time of 16:06.06 in the 5K event. The Greenville, S.C. native finished 10th on the Freedom Park Course, with the men's squad placing third overall.
AU stays in the Upstate eight days later for the Furman Cross
Country Classic, which is slated to be held on the Furman
University Golf Course. During its first two years, the Classic has
attracted high school teams to the event and featured the South
Carolina Intercollegiate Championships, the Southeast Independent
School Cross Country Championships, and "The Border Battle at
Furman," pitting schools from South Carolina versus teams from
North Carolina and Georgia.
Olivia Gardner finished 19th on a difficult 6K Furman course a year
ago in a time of 25:53.29, with Mason Hazel garnering 35th place in
a time of 27:39.05 on the Paladins' 8K route.
Following a two-week layoff, the Trojans will venture back to the Tar Heel State to compete at Wingate for the first time since the 2009 season. The Bulldog Stampede will give runners an opportunity to preview the course prior to the NCAA Southeast Regional, which will be hosted by Wingate in early November.
Anderson has competed in the Queen City at least twice in each of the last six seasons, including three times in both the 2012 and 2013 campaigns, and heads back to Charlotte on Friday, Oct. 9, for their second consecutive appearance, and fifth time in the last six seasons for the Royals Challenge, hosted by Queens.
Gardner paced the Trojans for the second straight outing a year ago at the Challenge, capturing fourth place after crossing the line in a time of 18:29.6.
The Trojan men's squad posted a 12th-place showing at the
Challenge last season, with rising junior Michael Burch leading
this year's returners with a time of 28:33.3 and an 87th-place
finish.
After finishing third and fifth, respectively, a year ago in the
women's and men's SAC Championships, the Trojans travel north to
Harrogate, Tenn., for the 2015 league championships on Oct.
24.
Haylee Love's second-best time of the season (19:15.33) paced the
Trojans at the 2014 SAC Championship, which was hosted by Catawba,
with the newcomer's performance earning the Lexington, S.C. native
SAC Freshman of the Year and Second-Team All-Conference honors.
Dixon claimed 10th place and also garnered Second-Team
All-Conference and All-Freshman Team accolades. Gardner also earned
Second-Team All-Conference accolades by finishing in 14th place,
while posting a time of 19:42.93.
Hazel posted a season-best 25:50.20 and finished ninth in his first appearance in the conference championships, earning a spot on both the SAC All-Freshman team and the Second-Team All-Conference squad. Hazel became the first Trojan runner to bring home SAC All-Freshman accolades since a trio of AU runners earned the honor in 2010.
Two weeks later, the Trojans will make an appearance in the NCAA Southeast Regionals, which will be hosted by Wingate.
Hazel was the first freshman to cross the finish line at the
2014 NCAA Division II Southeast Region Championships in Montevallo,
Ala., capturing 12th-place and pacing the Trojans with a time of
32:55.43, while claiming All-Region honors. Gardner earned
All-Region accolades after leading the women's squad with a
23rd-place finish in a time of 23:34.32.
