ETSU men place fifth at USC Upstate Eye Opener

SPARTANBURG, S.C. (Sept. 1, 2023) – Led by sophomore Xian Campbell (Chattanooga, Tenn.), the ETSU men's cross country team opened the season by running in the USC Upstate Eye Opener on Friday at the Milliken Arboretum. 

Completing the 8K course in a total time of 2:11.13, the Blue & Gold recorded a fifth-place finish among the eighteen total teams.  

Campbell paced the Bucs as he placed 21st overall among the field of o170 total competitors with a personal best time of 25:20.7. Nate Hillis (Knoxville, Tenn.) crossed the line next for the Buccaneers, placing 38th overall with a time of 26:07.4. Freshman Luke Young (Cary, N.C.) finished third for the Blue and Gold in his collegiate debut, placing 42nd with a time of 26:13.1. 

"I was pleased with the overall effort of both teams," said George Watts ETSU Director of Cross Country/Track & Field. "You never know how that first race is going to feel, especially in cross country. Our goals for the races were to run relaxed and enjoy the experience. I was especially pleased with the returnees who improved anywhere from 30 seconds to almost two minutes from last year's race. That is great progress. I was pleased with efforts from our freshmen, and there's plenty of time and room for improvement this season. It's tough to transition from high school to college racing, especially with the men as they go from 5k to the 8k distance.  

"I thought Kiera and Rebekah on the women's team and Xian on the men's side showed great early season form, and fitness as they set the standard for the others to follow as we move forward.  Ansley and Alex are possibly the most-improved on the women's side and Mason had his best effort as a Buc. We held some people out of this meet, but we should be closer to 100% for the Virginia Tech meet."

Liberty took the team title with a total time of 2:03.01, scoring 25 points. Furman and Clemson would occupy the next two spots finishing with times of 2:04.00 and 2:05.38. 

Tristan Merchant, from Liberty, captured the individual title as he crossed the line at 24:20.0. 

The Bucs are back in competition on Friday, Sept. 15 when ETSU travels to Blacksburg for the Virginia Tech Alumni Invitational. Race time is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. 

For more information on Buccaneer men's cross country, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the men's cross country tab.