XC CENTRAL: Auburn Invitational

Friday, September 7

Auburn, AL

University of Tennessee

Pre-SEC Meet

KNOXVILLE, TN - 2018.08.31 - Tennessee vs. Louisville Cardinals

Photo by: Maury Neipris/Tennessee Athletics

September 06, 2018 | Track & Field

AUBURN, Ala. — The Tennessee cross country team hits the road for the first time Friday morning for the Auburn Invitational at the Indian Pines Golf Course.

The men's 6K race starts at 9:30 a.m. Eastern (8:30 a.m. Central), followed by the women's 4K at 10 a.m. (9 a.m.).

The meet provides the Vols an opportunity to experience the SEC champion course; Auburn hosts the conference races Oct. 26. The Vols will also be racing this weekend against SEC competition: Auburn, Alabama, Ole Miss and Vanderbilt.

"We're excited to go to Auburn because this is going to be an early-season opportunity for us to get a chance to get on the SEC course and see some of the SEC competition," director of track and field/cross country Beth Alford-Sullivan said. "That's always the fun part and the motivating factor for these guys and gals. They get fired up to run against the SEC. I don't have a lot of expectation of the outcome. It's the process, and this is really the beginning process of the true season."

FULL SQUAD: The Vols will are slated to run nearly their complete lineups at Auburn, which means the season debuts for top returners Zach Long and Wesley Robinson for the men and Megan Murray for the women. Long set two school records during the track season this spring and is a returning USTFCCCA All-South Region winner. Murray also earned all-region accolades while anchoring the top of the Lady Vol lineup.

Alford-Sullivan: "You'll see our front-runners, our MVPs from the last few years: Megan Murray for the women and Zach Long for the men. You'll see us at relatively full squad. We'll get in there, compete hard, and let the chips fall where they may."

LAST WEEK: Tennessee opened the season against Louisville last week at Cherokee Farm. Freshmen led the way for the Vols in both races. Freshmen Katie Thronson and Sydney Seymour were UT's top scorers in the women's three mile, taking second and fifth respectively. Karl Thiessen paced the Vols in the men's four mile, finishing third overall. The races came down to the wire in the team scoring, but Louisville was victorious in both events, winning the women's three-mile race 26-29 and the men's four-mile event 26-31.