University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Bulldogs Cross Country Picked 4th & 7th in Big South Poll
08.15.2007 | Track and Field
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Liberty University's men's and women's cross country squads have been chosen first in the Big South Conference's annual preseason poll, as voted by the League's Head Cross Country Coaches and Sports Information Directors and announced today by the Conference office.
In the women's poll, UNC Asheville was a preseason pick to finish in fourth place. On the men's side, the Bulldogs are picked to come in seventh place.
First-year UNC Asheville Coach Jesse Norman thought the polls came about just as he thought.
"Even though it's my first year at UNC Asheville, I am familiar with the league and know how good Liberty's program is year in and year out," stated Norman. "We hope to finish a little higher than where we are predicted but we'll just have to wait and see how the year comes out."
UNC Asheville will host the 2007 Big South Conference men's and women's cross country meet on Saturday, Oct. 27th at Hendersonville's Jackson Park.
"We're excited about hosting the Big South Conference meet," commented Norman. "It should be a great day for our program. I appreciate the hard work that has already been done by our staff at UNC Asheville to prepare for the meet."
UNC Asheville hosts a Big South Preview Meet on Saturday, Sept. 15th at Jackson Park to allow league members to prepare for the conference meet.
The Bulldog women's team will be led by seniors' Ingrid Allstaedt and Emily Mase. Mase earned all-conference honors last year in cross country. On the men's side, seniors' Taylor Little and Joel Quirk will lead the Asheville harriers. Both Mase and Quirk made the Big South All-Academic team for three different sports last year.
Liberty, which features senior All-American and three-time Big South individual champion Josh McDougal, was a unanimous pick for the top spot garnering 128 points and finishing ahead of second-place Coastal Carolina with 111 points. High Point was third with 95 points, followed by Winthrop (68), VMI (65) and Radford (55). UNC Asheville (36) and Charleston Southern (18) round out the men's poll.
Liberty was picked to repeat on the women's side, receiving 13 first-place votes and 125 out of a possible 128 points. The Lady Flames, which posted five finishers in the top 10 of last year's meet, finished ahead of Coastal with 125 points. The Lady Chanticleers, led by All-American Julia Viellehner, picked up three first-place votes and 115 points. High Point was predicted third with 95 points, ahead of fourth-place UNC Asheville, which tallied 70 points. Winthrop was voted fifth with 67 points, followed by Radford (54), VMI (33) and Charleston Southern (17).
