Complete SAC release
 
Rock Hill, S.C.----The Wingate University women's cross country team is picked to win the 2022 South Atlantic Conference championship race, league officials announce today. The Bulldogs open the 2022 season Saturday, Sept. 3, traveling to Salisbury for the Catawba Fleet Feet Invitational.
 
The defending SAC champions, Wingate received 12 of 13 first-place votes and tallied 144 points in voting by the league's head coaches. The Navy Blue and Vegas Gold-clad Bulldogs had a season to remember in 2021, as Wingate won the SAC title, finished second in the Southeast Region and placed a program-best fifth at the NCAA national championship meet.
 
"We are honored to start the 2022 season ranked No. 1 in the SAC preseason poll," Wingate head cross country coach Pol Domenech says. "This is a very exciting year for the women, as we have had some changes in our line-up. We are looking forward to continue to develop this team. We will put in all the necessary work to continue to be a team who will contend at the conference, regional and national level."

In addition to the preseason poll announcement, the South Atlantic Conference honored student-athletes from each school as Runners to Watch. Wingate's honorees are:
 
Tatjana Mense, senior
Gemma Rebollo, sophomore
Mollie Scott, junior
 
What They Are Saying
Wingate University senior Tatjana Mense
 
"This year, our goal is to continue last year's upward trend and reach for a trophy at the national championships. One of the biggest strengths of this team is our amazing team culture and atmosphere. While running together, we push each other every single day to give our best and to achieve something great. It is something that makes us stand out and our preseason is about building this culture, letting the new teammates become part of it. All this makes us stronger as individuals and personally I hope it puts me, and my teammates as well, in a good position to fight for one of the All-American spots at the end of the season."
 
Wingate University
 
Founded in 1896, Wingate University is a laboratory of difference-making that serves more than 3,400 students in North Carolina. Wingate offers 38 undergraduate majors as well as seven master's and four doctoral degrees. The University is home to the Cannon College of Arts and Sciences; the Levine College of Health Sciences; the Byrum School of Business; the Thayer School of Education and the School of Sport Sciences. 

Wingate is a leader in healthcare education, and nearly one in five Wingate undergraduate students is preparing to be a pharmacist, physician assistant, physical therapist, occupational therapist or nurse. Student-athletes on Wingate's 25 teams compete in NCAA Division II and have brought home the SAC Echols Athletic Excellence Award for 14 years straight. The University's motto is "Faith, Knowledge, Service." View current news and videos at www.wingate.edu.