Mount Olive Projected to Win the 2016 Women's Cross Country Championship
HIGH POINT, N.C. – The University of Mount Olive women’s cross country team has been voted the heavy favorite to win the 2016 Conference Carolinas Women's Cross Country Championship, the conference announced today. The Trojans picked up 10 first-place votes and 100 total points from conference coaches.
Mount Olive, who finished sixth at the NCAA DII Southeast Regional in 2015, enter 2016 looking to repeat as Conference Carolinas champions after winning its first-ever Conference Carolinas Women's Cross Country Championship title in 2015.
Limestone College compiled 87 points to earn second in the 2016 preseason poll. The Saints finished second in the conference championship last season with 79 total team points.
Belmont Abbey College earned 72 points from conference coaches, including one first-place vote. The Crusaders turned in a third-place finish at the 2015 Conference Carolinas Women's Cross Country Championship with a total of 110 points.
North Greenville University tallied 69 points for a fourth in the preseason poll, followed by King University in fifth with 59 points.
The Crusaders finished fourth in the Conference Carolinas Championship last season with 124 points and the Tornado finished fifth with 131 points.
Barton College was picked sixth in the preseason poll with 55 points after finishing seventh in the 2015 Conference Carolinas Championship with 147 points.
Pfeiffer University, who finished sixth in 2015, was selected seventh in the preseason poll with 42 points, followed by Southern Wesleyan University in eighth in the preseason poll with 41 points.
Closing out the women’s preseason poll is Converse College in ninth with 37 points, Lees-McRae College in 10th with 25 points and Erskine College in 11th with 17 points.
The Valkyries finished the 2015 Conference Carolinas Championship in eighth with 165 points, while the Bobcats finished with 214 points in ninth and the Fleet with 249 points in 10th.
2016 Women's Cross Country Preseason Poll
| School (first-place votes) |
Total |
| 1. Mount Olive (10) |
100 |
| 2. Limestone |
87 |
| 3. Belmont Abbey (1) |
72 |
| 4. North Greenville |
69 |
| 5. King |
59 |
| 6. Barton |
55 |
| 7. Pfeiffer |
42 |
| 8. Southern Wesleyan |
41 |
| 9. Converse |
37 |
| 10. Lees-McRae |
25 |
| 11. Erskine |
17 |
2016 Conference Carolinas Women's Cross Country Runners to Watch:
Runners (Year):
Heather Cuddington (Sr.) - Barton
Sharon Kiptoo (Jr.) - Barton
Abby Butler (Sr.) - Erskine
Mikayla Gregory (Fr.) - Erskine
Rachel McGill (Jr.) - Erskine
Kayce Byrnside (So.) - King
Maggie Edwards (Jr.) - King
Sarah Minchey (So.) - King
Allyson Malone (So.) - Limestone
Sarah Rutto (So.) - Limestone
Bailee Henry (Sr.) - Mount Olive
Kelsey Valentine (Sr.) - Mount Olive
Cassidy Hooper (So.) - Pfeiffer
Kylie Spencer (Jr.) - Pfeiffer
Hanan Balawi (Fr.) - Southern Wesleyan
Alana Grant (Jr.) - Southern Wesleyan
Michelle Last (Jr.) - Southern Wesleyan
Conference Carolinas is a NCAA Division II athletics conference made up of 12 teams from Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. These institutions consist of: Barton College, Belmont Abbey College, Converse College, Emmanuel College, Erskine College, King University, Lees-McRae College, Limestone College, University of Mount Olive, North Greenville University, Pfeiffer University, and Southern Wesleyan University. Emmanuel College is currently completing the NCAA Membership Process and will be fully competing in league championships in the near future.