Team finished the 2012 campaign ranked seventh in the region

NEW ORLEANS (Aug. 27, 2013) – The ETSU men’s cross country team has been selected as the ninth-ranked team in the South Region preseason poll, the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) announced Monday.

After finishing last season ranked seventh in the NCAA Division I South Region, the Buccaneers begin the 2013 campaign in the top-10 in the region once again.

Returning in 2013, from a team that also notched a runner-up finish at the Atlantic Sun Championships last season, are seven team members including four of its top-five runners.

Highlighted among the returnees is Filip Jalovy (Modrice, Czech Republic) who was voted by the league’s coaches as the A-Sun Men’s Preseason Runner of the Year. Jalovy earned first-team all-conference honors last season with a third-place and personal-best time of 24:48.2 at the 2012 A-Sun Championships and was joined on the all-league teams by fellow returnee Adam Chase (Kingsport, Tenn.) who garnered second-team accolades.

The Bucs have also recently been picked to capture the A-Sun Championship in 2013 after finishing second in 2012, the league office announced last week.

Three fellow A-Sun schools join ETSU in the top-15 in the South Region with Lipscomb selected 10^th, Kennesaw State tabbed 14^th and Mercer pegged 15^th. The Florida Gators are selected first following a No. 3 regional finish last season.

The Buccaneers are set to begin the 2013 season on Saturday, Sept. 14, at the Vanderbilt Invitational in Nashville.

For more information on ETSU cross country leading up to the season opener, please visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the cross country links.

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