Dogs XC Teams Start Season At Stan Sims Opener

Friday, September 1

Acworth, Ga.

University of Georgia

Stan Sims Cross Country Open

August 31, 2023 | Cross Country

ATHENS, Ga. --- The Georgia cross country teams will make the 75-mile trip to the Allatoona Creek Park in Acworth, Ga., to compete in the Stan Sims Opener to start the season on Friday.

This will mark the first time that Kennesaw State has played host to a meet on this course.  The Bulldogs' opener will also be the first meet for new cross country coach Tom Chorny.  Chorny was hired in July after serving as the Director of Track & Field and Cross Country at Miami University (Ohio) since 2015.  He was a three-time All-American during his collegiate running days at Indiana.

Chorny inherits a combined 20 runners who have competed in cross for Georgia in the past and is traveling five of 10 scorers from last year's opener.

When Do The Starting Guns Fire: After a pair of high school races, the Georgia men will start the meet with their 5k race at 6:30 p.m. while the Lady Bulldogs will race in their 5k competition at 7 p.m.

Who Is The Competition: In addition to Georgia and KSU, the field for the Bulldogs' opener includes Georgia Tech, Emory, Brewton-Parker and Georgia State.

Weather: Temperatures will be in the upper 70s with cloudy conditions in Acworth on Friday evening.

Live Results: http://gado.gs/at1

Chorny's Thoughts: "The beginning of this year has gone better than I expected, especially when considering the coaching transition," said Chorny.  "Over the last two weeks, it has become apparent that our teams did their work over the summer and are ready for some big breakthroughs.  We will use this race as a little tester to see if we can hammer out a solid 5K and then get right back to training.  I think we are about to accomplish some great things by the end of the season, and it all starts in the opener."

What Dogs Are Competing: Georgia is expecting to have 29 runners competing in its opener.  On the women's side, seniors Charlotte Augenstein, Sophia Baker, Gracie O'Neal, sophomores Lily Cincola, Nina Ouellette, Simone Rojas, Lorel Golden, Caitlin Schroeder, Katherine Law and freshmen Bella Brick, Ella Kepple, Bella Cammarota and Isabelle Gaharan will represent the Red and Black.

Senior Chase Condra, juniors Cole Heron, Zack Truitt, K.C. Heron, Zachary Roe, sophomores Ethan Nordman, Max Howie and freshmen Andrew Balogh, Logan Dingman, John Jessup, Luke Kalarickal, Ryan Olree, Luke Churchwell, Sumner Kirsch, Kushan Patel and Conner Rutherford will take the course for the Bulldog men.

Career Debut: Fifteen Georgia runners will be officially suiting up in the red and black in the fall for the first time.  Brick, Kepple, Ouellette, Cammarota and Gaharan will be making their career cross debut for the Lady Bulldogs while Balogh, Dingman, Jessup, Kalarickal, Olree, Truitt, Churchwell, Kirsch, Patel and Rutherford will be the newest members to race for the Bulldog men.

What Happened In The 2022 Opener: Georgia opened its 2022 campaign by taking fourth on both sides in 5k races at the Charlotte Opener.  While Sara Bailey's 12^th-place finish led the Lady Bulldogs, Wesley John's 21^st-place finish topped his teammates on the men's side.

Joining Bailey as scorers in the women's race were Rojas (15^th), Augenstein (22^nd), Law (26^th) and Ellie Hall (30^th).  Cooper Bocko (26^th), who will sit this meet out, K.C. Heron (28^th), John-Isaac Autry (35^th) and Nordman (43^rd) made up the top five finishers for the men.

What's Up Next: There will be no home meet this season for the Bulldogs.  UGA is slated to travel to Columbia, S.C., for its second meet of the year (Gamecock Challenge) on Sept. 15.  South Carolina will also be playing host to this year's Southeastern Conference Championships on Oct. 27.  Georgia's final two regular season competitions will be at the Paul Short Run (Bethlehem, Pa.) on Sept. 30 and the Crimson Classic (Tuscaloosa, Ala.) on Oct. 13.

Following the SEC Championships, Georgia will make the trip to Gainesville, Fla., for the NCAA South Regional on Nov. 10.  Those who qualify will continue their season at the NCAA Championships, which Virginia will play host to in Charlottesville, Va., on Nov. 19.

Keeping Up With The Dogs: Updates from Georgia's track and field and cross country teams can always be found on Twitter/Instagram (UGATrack).  Please visit georgiadogs.com for any other information regarding the Bulldogs.