Date Posted: 10/24/2007

MACON, Ga. – On Saturday, the Atlantic Sun Conference will hold its first championship of the 2007-08 academic year, the Men’s Cross Country Championship. Lipscomb serves as the host and the race will be contested at the Vaughn’s Creek Cross Country Course. The Vaughn’s Creek Cross Country Course has previously been the site for the 2004 Atlantic Sun Championship and the 1999 SEC Championship

Belmont enters Saturday’s meet as the favorite to win its sixth consecutive title. The men and have been ranked No. 1 in every coaches’ poll, including the final poll, released today. The Bruins return four of its top five runners from the 2006 meet, including individual champ Colin Magut.

For the second consecutive men’s poll, ETSU garnered three first-place votes and enter the Championship and the No. 2 team in the poll. The Buccaneers have been led by ETSU sophomore Kenneth Rotich. He picked up three Runner of the Week awards, winning in three consecutive weeks on which his team competed. Rottich owns the fastest 8K time of the fall season when he ran a 24:32 at the Greater Louisville Classic, edging out Magut for the fastest time by less than two seconds.

Kennesaw State held steady in the No. 3 position following a runner-up finish at the JSU Foothills Invitational on October 13. Sophomore Peikko Solla took forth at the meet. He has led the Owls’ in four of their meets. He won the Runner of the Week award for his performance at the Disney World Cross Country Classic early in October.

UNF, Campbell and Gardner-Webb have been jostling the No. 4, No. 5 and No. 6 position throughout the season. Since the preseason poll, the three have been separated by no more than five points. In the final poll, UNF and Gardner-Webb tied for the fourth spot with Campbell just behind. Senior Lucas McAneney will once again lead the Bulldogs. The two-time All-Atlantic Sun runner won the inaugural Runner of the Week this fall and his fastest 8K time of the year ranks just outside of the top ten.

The poll concludes with Lipscomb and Mercer in the seventh and eight spots. Newcomers Florida Gulf Coast and USC Upstate occupy the ninth and 10th positions with Stetson and Jacksonville rounding out the poll.

The Atlantic Sun Conference is a 12-member league committed to Building Winners for Life, with a focus on academic and athletic integrity and a balance between the two for the student-athlete, and maintaining a high level of sportsmanship. Headquartered in Macon, Ga., the A-Sun encompasses six of the top eight media markets in the Southeast. The A-Sun consists of some of the most dynamic private and public institutions in the region: Belmont University, Campbell University, East Tennessee State University, Florida Gulf Coast University, Gardner-Webb University, Jacksonville University, Kennesaw State University, Lipscomb University, Mercer University, University of North Florida, University of South Carolina Upstate and Stetson University.

Related Links:
 • Men's Cross Country Championship