AUGUSTA, Ga. - The University of South Carolina Aiken women's
cross country team was chosen to finish seventh in the Peach Belt
Conference in a poll of the league's head coaches released
today.
For the third straight year, the Columbus State women's cross
country team was dubbed as the preseason favorite. The Lady Cougars
gathered seven of a possible nine votes to lead the PBC Women's
Cross Country preseason poll.
Columbus State finished with 93 points in the preseason poll,
three ahead of second-place Augusta State. GCSU was third with
North Georgia coming in fourth. Clayton State (fifth) and UNC
Pembroke (sixth) were chosen to finish right in front of the
Pacers, while league newcomers Montevallo and Flagler were tabbed
to finish in eighth and ninth, respectively. Francis Marion (10th)
and Georgia Southwestern (11th) round out the poll.
PBC Cross Country will have a different look in 2009 with new
members Flagler College and the University of Montevallo. Flagler
will bring both their men's and women's teams, while Montevallo
sponsors only women's cross country. Armstrong Atlantic State will
also revive their men's program for the 2009 season.
Last season during the regular season, USC Aiken competed in
nine meets against 98 teams, which included many Division I
programs. USC Aiken finished second at the NCAA Division I
Presbyterian College Blue Hose Invitational as a team.
They concluded the year by making their second ever trip to the
NCAA Division II Southeast Regional where they finished 16th. The
finish improved the Pacers' standing by three places from the
previous year.??????
The Pacer Women's Cross Country program was particularly strong
in the classroom in the 2008 season as the team was named to the
NCAA Division II National Cross Country Coaches Association
All-Academic Team. Teams needed to have a 3.0 or better grade point
average, and also compete at the NCAA Regional Tournament level to
qualify for the award.??????USC Aiken was one of 99 Division II
women's cross country programs on the prestigious list. The Pacers
maintained a team average of 3.350 in 2008.
The 2009 USC Aiken cross country schedule features one home
event and eight meets in total. The Pacers will run on their brand
new top-of-the-line home course, Pacer Path, during their home
event dubbed the Pacer Relays on Saturday, Oct. 17.??????
"The 2009 season is going to be an exciting and demanding season
for our ladies," noted USC Aiken women's cross country coach Larry
Milner. "We will be running some new meets and hosting the Pacer
Relays. We are really looking forward to running on Pacer Path, our
brand new home course.
"The conference meet distance is changing from 5k to 6k so we
will be running several 6k meets in preparation for conference. The
increased distance will be demanding, but I am confident that the
Lady Pacers are up to the challenge."
2009 Peach Belt Conference
Women's Cross Country Coaches
Poll
Team
1. Columbus State
2. Augusta State
3. GCSU
4. North Georgia
5. Clayton State
6. UNC Pembroke
7. USC Aiken
8. Montevallo
9. Flagler
10. Francis Marion
11. Ga. Southwestern
