Cross Country Aims To Build On Historic 2017 Campaign

ATHENS, Ga. --- The Bulldog cross country teams have their sights set on another record-breaking campaign in 2018 after the distance corps had a historic campaign last year.

Going into his seventh year as the leader of the distance program at his alma mater, Patrick Cunniff is attempting to continue building on the momentum for his women's team and is combining a group of emerging returners with a talented newcomer corps on the men's half.

Cunniff guided the women's squad to a runner-up finish at the 2017 Southeastern Conference Championships held in Athens. The Lady Bulldogs returned to the course at the NCAA South Regional and finished in the top two to advance to their first NCAA Championships since 2012.

Once at Nationals, the Georgia women took 17^th and left with their best finish since 2006 (15^th). Individually, twins Samantha and Jessica Drop, who are both returning, led the charge with All-SEC First Team and All-Region performances during their team's second-place finishes. Samantha captured the team's first South Regional title since 2010 (Kristie Krueger) while Jessica was third. The Drops concluded their second season by becoming the first Lady Bulldogs to earn All-America honors in the same year.

Fast forward to the 2018 fall. UGA is again geared for a monumental campaign on the trails. On the women's side, all five of the scorers from last year's NCAAs – the Drops, junior Yanely Gomez and seniors Hailey Branch and Grace Tavani – return. Gomez scored in five meets last year, including an All-Region performance as the Georgia women qualified for Nationals. Branch was in the Lady Bulldogs' top five six different times last year and provides another leader for this year's unit. Finally, Tavani also scored six times in 2017 and her performances include a top-20 finish at SECs.

Along with a number of promising returners, the Georgia women welcomed nine true freshmen to campus, including local products Anna Marian Block (Athens Academy) and Nicole Pachuta (Oconee County) who won a combined 11 GHSA state cross country or track titles in their prep careers.

The Bulldog men are aiming to replace cross seniors Bryan Kamau, Austin Sprague, who was second across the line for Georgia in five meets last year behind Kamau, and fellow regular scorers Eric Westog and Jon Moses this year. Tallying 10 scoring spots between them in 2017, redshirt sophomore Michael Hans and juniors Tyler Jones and Jonathan Pelham will be the leading upperclassmen contingent representing the Bulldogs.

Also of note, senior Daniel Navarro returns after missing the 2017 cross season. He was a four-time scorer in 2016, including a 20^th-place finish in the postseason for All-Region honors.

The newcomers for the Georgia men promise to continue the resurgence of the program, including a solid foursome from in-state Milton High School. True freshmen Sam Bowers and Nicholas Yanek were both Nike NXN Nationals qualifiers and will look to continue that type of success at the collegiate level. Taylor Scarbrough transferring in from Western Kentucky is another standout in a very solid group who will be setting the foundation of big things in the near future.

Georgia opens its season at the Charlotte Opener in Concord, N.C., on Friday, Aug. 31. The Bulldogs return to the UGA Golf Course on Saturday, Sept. 8 to play host to the Bulldog Invitational, which is the team's only home meet of the year. Georgia has five regular season meets scheduled before the SEC Championships arrive in Auburn, Ala., on Friday, Oct. 26.

At the NCAA South Regional in Tallahassee, Fla., on Friday, Nov. 9, the Lady Bulldogs will be gunning to qualify for two straight NCAA meets while the Georgia men are in search of their first berth since 2013. The NCAA Championships are set for Saturday, Nov. 17 in Madison, Wisc.

Updates from Georgia's track and field and cross country teams can always be found on Twitter/Instagram (UGATrack) and Snapchat (ugatrack).

Cross Country Aims To Build On Historic 2017 Campaign

Players Mentioned

Anna Marian Block

Sam Bowers

Hailey Branch

Jessica Drop

Yanely Gomez

Michael Hans

Nicole John

Tyler Jones

Bryan Kamau

Daniel Navarro

Jonathan Pelham

Taylor Scarbrough

Austin Sprague

Grace Tavani

Eric Westog

Nicholas Yanek

University of Georgia Athletics