University of Tennessee Athletics
XC CENTRAL: South Region Championships
November 13, 2014 | Track & Field
Tennessee: 51-34 (11-9 SEC)
Last Time Out: The Tennessee men are coming off a seventh place finish at the SEC Championships two weeks ago -- a race in which it finished ahead of South Region rivals Mississippi State, Florida, Georgia, and Vanderbilt. The Vols were propelled by senior Austin Whitelaw's 11th place finish, coming in with a career-best 8K time of 24:46.39 to earn All-SEC second team honors. Also finishing inside the top 40 were sophomore Kyle Walter and junior Jack Little. Walter placed 23rd at 25:09.35 while Little was 33rd at 25:25.07. It was the second consecutive season that the UT men have finished seventh at the SECs.
About This Event: Hosted by Florida State University, the men's 10K race at the 2014 NCAA South Region Championships begins at 10 a.m. ET following the women's 6K event at 9 a.m. The top two teams at the conclusion of Friday's race qualify automatically for the NCAA Championships, as do the top four individuals inside the top 25 not representing one of the two automatically qualifying teams. The race will be contested at the Apalachee Regional Park -- a cross country specific course that features a predominant surface of grass and crushed shell. Last year, the UT men finished fifth in the team standings. Austin Whitelaw, Jack Little, and J.R. Creekmore are each making their return to the Regional from a year ago. Whitelaw finished 22nd at the 2013 Regional to earn All-Region honors, followed by Little's 89th place finish. Georgia are the defending Regional champions while Florida was last year's runner-up.
Other Teams Competing: Tennessee is one of 27 programs competing at the 2014 NCAA South Region Championships -- a field that includes 21st ranked Florida State. Ole Miss also received votes in the last USTFCCCA Coaches Poll. View a complete list of the competing teams here.
Tennessee: 33-29 (3-16 SEC)
Last Time Out: The Tennessee women's cross country team makes its Regional appearance following an 11th place finish at the SEC Championships on Oct. 31. Junior Chelsea Blaase earned medalist honors for the fifth consecutive race, this time placing third in the women's 6K with a new career record of 19:32.37. That effort earned her first team All-SEC honors. Fellow junior Alexis Panisse turned in a top 20 effort, coming in 18th and finishing in 20:42.55. Senior Emily Williams made her season debut at the Championships, rounding out UT's top three finishers with a time of 22:42.08.
About This Event: The women's 6K race kicks off the 2014 NCAA South Region Championships with a 9 a.m. ET start. Florida State University is this year's host and the race will be contested at the Apalachee Regional Park - a cross country specific venue with running surfaces consisting predominantly of grass and crushed shell. The top two teams from Friday's Regional advance automatically to the NCAA Championships next Saturday in Terre Haute, Indiana. Also, the top four individual runners not representing one of the automatic qualifying teams will also advance to nationals. As a team, the UT women came in ninth at the 2013 Regional, paced by All-Region finishes from Chelsea Blaase and Alexis Panisse. Blaase came in 10th place while Panisse finished in 22nd. Alongside Blaase and Panisse, Caroline Duer, Amirah Johnson, and Emily Williams will each make their return to the Regional event. Last year, Florida State and Vanderbilt finished atop the team standings.
Other Teams Competing: On the women's side, Tennessee is one of 31 teams competing at the South Regional. The field includes 13th ranked Florida State and 16th ranked Vanderbilt, as well as SEC foes Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi State, and Ole Miss. View a complete team list here.
Coach Sullivan on the NCAA South Region Championships: "We're looking forward to the chance to wrap up our competitive season on a high note and hopefully find a way to send some kids to nationals. We consider this stage of the season to be the qualifying round and we have a couple kids with great opportunities to move on in Chelsea Blaase and Austin Whitelaw. Chelsea has run very well all season long and Austin has really hit his stride over the last couple races. It will be a 10K for the men, so a little bit longer race against some good competition, but we're eager to compete and turn in a strong performance."
Players Mentioned
