HAMPTON, Ga. - The 2019 Sun Belt Conference Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Championships, hosted by Georgia State University, will take place this Saturday, Nov. 2, at Nash Farm in Hampton, Ga. The women's race will begin at 10:02 a.m. CT, followed by the men at 11:02 a.m. CT.
Both championships will be broadcast live on ESPN+ and can be viewed at the following link: https://sunbelt.me/34mAxq0
UTA heads into the men's championship as the favorite. The Mavericks' men’s squad, who claimed the 2018 Sun Belt Men’s Cross Country Championship, their fourth overall cross country title, returns five of their top seven finishers from last season. Justin Domangue leads the squad and returns for his senior season after finishing fourth at last year's championship.
UTA has not finished lower than third as a team at the Sun Belt Cross Country Championships since 2013.
Appalachian State is predicted to finish second in both the men's and women's races. Dakota Mendenhall paved the way for the Mountaineers as a freshman last season, finishing ninth in the men's race in 2018. Six of App's seven runners finished in the top 30 last year.
Coastal Carolina's Nadeel Wildschutt, the back-to-back men's individual champion, will look to become the first three-time champion since the 1994, 1995 and 1996 seasons.
On the women's side – Appalachian State will look to repeat as team champions. The Mountaineers will be led by sophomore Izzy Evely and junior Samantha Kolor. The pair are App's top two returning scorers from 2018.
If the Mountaineers claim this year's women's title it would mark the first time since 2010 and 2011 a team has won back-to-back women's team titles.
Texas State will look to win their second title in the last three years after finishing in second place in 2018. Leslie Romero returns for the Bobcats and will look to claim back-to-back cross country individual titles.
The Bobcats lost two runners who finished in the top-10 a year ago but return Sydney Cole and Abby Steinhauser, who placed in the top-20 for Texas State.
Top 7 Women’s Cross Country Runners to Watch
Izzy Evely, Appalachian State
Samantha Kolor, Appalachian State
Pauline Meyer, Arkansas State
Lisha Van Onselen, Coastal Carolina
Andonet Cheruiyot, South Alabama
Sydney Cole, Texas State
Leslie Romero, Texas State
Women’s Cross Country Predicted Order of Finish
1. Texas State
2. Appalachian State
3. Arkansas State
4. Georgia State
5. South Alabama
6. Coastal Carolina
7. Troy
8. UTA
9. Georgia Southern
10. Little Rock
11. Louisiana
12. ULM
Top 7 Men’s Cross Country Runners to Watch
Gable Dershem, Appalachian State
Dakota Mendenhall, Appalachian State
Adriaan Wildschutt, Coastal Carolina
Nadeel Wildschutt, Coastal Carolina
Warno Potgieter, South Alabama
Justin Domangue, UTA
Jared Lautenslager, UTA
Men’s Cross Country Predicted Order of Finish
1. UTA
2. Appalachian State
3. Coastal Carolina
4. South Alabama
5. Texas State
6. Troy
7. Louisiana
8. Arkansas State
9. Little Rock
10. ULM