NASHVILLE, Tenn. --- The Queens University of Charlotte men's and women's cross-country teams are preparing to compete in their second ASUN Cross Country Championships in Nashville, Tennessee on Saturday, October 28th. The women's race will get underway at 10:15 a.m. and the men's race will follow at 11:00 a.m.
"Our goal each year of the NCAA transition is to move up in the conference," said director of track and field and cross country
Jake Krolick. "Last year we were sixth on the women's side and eighth on the men's side so we're looking to build upon that. If we have some All-Conference performances then those are extra accolades that we hope to build on each year."
The men's cross-country team will be led by sophomore Tom Heal, who has consistently been the lead runner for Queens as he finished in the top 20 in 2-of-3 races he ran in this season. Heal had his season best at Pre-Nationals as he ran a 24:50.6 in the 8K. Freshman
Victor Tvistholm Jorgensen will also be a big factor for Queens. Jorgenson received ASUN Freshman of the Week Honors earlier this season after finishing second at the Queen City Invite Men's 8K.
"Our men's team has made a big step forward with a very strong recruiting class that will set our program up for the next four years. Despite being young, we already see development in sophomores Tom Heal and
Zak Freeland so if we can continue to see this, we are going to be pretty good in 1-2 years. For this weekend though, these guys will be as good or better than we have been all year and that's all I can ask of this group."
On the women's side, Freshman
Livia Wespe has made an immediate impact for the Royals as she was named ASUN Freshman of the Week after a great performance at the Queen City Invite. Senior
Sarah Watts will be a big leader for the Royals as she finished in the top 20 in two of the last three races.
"Our women's team will be missing some key pieces due to injury, but our girls have handled various adversities very well and they are looking to be at their best right now. I expect
Sarah Watts and
Livia Wespe to take a step forward and really establish themselves as contenders by executing similarly to the men's team in regards to running a team following race. I expect Emma, Anna, and Maisie to have their best races of the season while challenging our freshman to have big races for the team. This will be a good experience for this young group as we will be returning 8-of-10 of these girls next year."
The ASUN Championships will be held at Percy Warner Park in Nashville, Tennessee. The women will have the first race at 10:15 AM and the men will race at 11:00 AM.
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