Men's Track Tabbed Third in Preseason Coaches Poll

ROCK HILL, S.C. (TheSAC.com) – Defending South Atlantic Conference Champion Queens has been picked to win the 2016 South Atlantic Conference Men's Outdoor Track & Field Championship as voted by the League's head coaches, the League announced today.  The Bulldogs picked up five top votes and received 54 points from the panel.

Queens won the 2015 South Atlantic Conference Men's Outdoor Track & Field title by 17 points as the Bulldogs turned in a score of 178 points.

Wingate finished second in the poll with 47 points.  The Bulldogs placed second in last year's SAC Championship as it picked up 161 points.  Carson-Newman and Mars Hill finished tied for third in the voting with 41 points to round out the top four.  The Eagles collected two first-place votes in the poll and finished fourth overall a season ago as it notched 96 points at the 2015 SAC Track & Field Championship.  Mars Hill placed third at the SAC Championships a year ago as it collected 100 team points.

Lenoir-Rhyne came in fifth in the voting with 35 points.  Anderson was voted sixth with 27 points, while Coker landed at the No. 7 slot with 17 points.  Lincoln Memorial placed eighth in the poll with 13 points and Brevard finished up the poll at No. 9 as it picked up 5 points.

The 2016 South Atlantic Conference Track and Field season is underway.  Below is a look at top athletes from each member institution.

Anderson

Sprints - Chris Burton - 2nd place in the 200m and 100m at the 2015 SAC Championship.

Distance - Mason Hazel - NCAA Provisional Qualifiers Mile and 5000m Field.

Field - Brelyn Barclay - School record holder High Jump (1.96m).

Brevard

Sprints – N/A

Distance – Hassan Kiprono, 5000M - Placed 32nd at Charlotte 49ers Classic.

Field – N/A

Carson-Newman

Sprints – Kevin Snead- Finished 10th in the 2016 NCAA Track & Field Indoor Championships in the men's 60m dash. Made it as high as fourth in the nation over the course of the 2016 season. C-N's current record holder for the sprint with a 6.77 second time. 2016 All-Southeast Region selection for indoor track and field.

Distance – Lachlan Dickie: A 2015 All-Southeast selection (cross country) following a 34:16.4 second time in the 10K regional sector (17th-place).

Field - Tanner Stepp: A three-time Southeast Region selectee. C-N's record holder in the men's high jump at 2.14m (indoor) and 2.10m (outdoor). Coming off a sixth-place showing at the 2016 NCAA Track & Field Indoor Championships. A three-time USTFCCCA All-American (two-time indoor, one outdoor). 

Coker

Sprints - Malik Tarbell -100m/200m -  Eight top-10 finishes (2016), Placed third in 200m (23.29) at Winston-Salem D2 Invite.

Distance - Jacob Chebii - 10K /5K – Four top-10 finishes (2016), won 2015 Wingate Invitational 5000m, placed third in mile at Winston-Salem D2 Invite.

Field – N/A

Lenoir-Rhyne

Sprints – Kevin Baxter, 110mh - Two-time NCAA Division II All-American (2014-15), 2014 South Atlantic Conference Champion, provisional qualifier this year to nationals, school record-holder (13.95).

Distance – N/A

Field –Latham York, Hammer - All-Southeast Region, school-record holder (153'6"), 1st place – 2016 PowerSox Invitational.

Lincoln Memorial

Sprints – N/A

Distance – N/A

Field – N/A

Mars Hill

Sprints – Jeremy Hughes – Finished 8th @ Berry College Victor Icebreaker Duels in the 100 meters at 11.23.

Distance – Justin Gragg finished 1st at Coastal Carolina Invitational in the 5K at 14:51.02.

Field – N/A

Queens

Sprints – Johannes Peter, Hurdles , Set personal records of 14.68 in the 110H and 55.13 in the 400H...Finished second in the 110 meter hurdles at SAC Championships…Finished third in 400 meter hurdles at SAC Championships…Named to the USTFCCCA All-Region Team...Named to the USTFCCCA All-Academic Team.

Distance – Yannick Stubbe, 800m, 1500m, 5k, 3k, Set personal records of 1:50.72 in the 800m, 3:58.23 in the 1500m, 8:28.65 in 3000m and 15:02.38 in 5000m...Won 5000 meter SAC Championships…Finished second in 800 and 1500 meter runs at SAC Championships…Named to the USTFCCCA All-Region Team...Named SAC Track Athlete of the Year and SAC Freshman of the Year...Named to USTFCCCA All-Academic Team...Named Intercon Student Athlete of the Month.

Field - Bret Myers, pole vault - Earned USTFCCCA All-American honors with a sixth-place finish in the pole vault (5.00m, 16' 4.74") at the 2014 NCAA Division II Indoor Championships … Also placed first in the pole vault against Saginaw Valley State (5.00m, 16' 4.75"), and at the GVSU 5-Way (5.05m, 16' 6.75"), the GVSU Tune Up (5.06m, 16' 7.25"), and the 2014 GLIAC Indoor Championships (5.20m, 17' 0.75") … Earned USTFCCCA All-American honors with a second-place finish in the pole vault with a personal-best mark of 5.30m (17' 4.5") … Also placed first in the pole vault at the EIU Big Blue Classic (5.00m, 16' 6.75"), the WKU Hilltopper Relays (5.05m, 16' 8.75"), the Hillsdale Relays (5.10m, 16' 8.75"), the 2014 GLIAC Outdoor Championships (5.05m, 16' 6.75"), and the GVSU Last Chance Meet (5.00m, 16 4.75").

Wingate

Sprint: Jose Seiba - 400 meters - In 2015 SAC meet, placed fifth with a time of 49.79.

Distance: Nepolian Patel - 1500 meters - currently number one in the country in the 1500 meters as well as number one in the region and conference … 2016 NCAA Division II provisional qualifier.

Field: Isaiah Kyle - High jump - Indoor All-American, currently number one in the country in the men's high jump with a height of 2.15 meters … 2016 NCAA Division II provisional qualifier.

2016 Preseason Poll (First-Place Votes) - Points

1. Queens (5)                             54
2. Wingate                                 47
3. Carson-Newman (2)           41

Mars Hill                               41

5.     Lenoir-Rhyne                       35

6.     Anderson                               27

7.     Coker                                     17

8.     Lincoln Memorial                13

9.     Brevard                                 5