Vols Return To Louisville For Pre-Nationals

Tennessee takes on the nation's best at Pre-Nationals on Saturday in Louisville

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- The Tennessee men's and women's cross country teams are back in action this week as the Vols return to Louisville on Saturday for Pre-Nationals at E.P. Tom Sawyer Park.
The University of Louisville and the Louisville Sports Commission will host the Pre-Nationals meet. The meet is a preview of the upcoming NCAA Cross Country National Championship held in Louisville on Nov. 21 at the same course, featuring several of the nation's top squads.

All-American Chelsea Blaase will run against the top talent in the women's 6K Red Race at 10:15 a.m. ET. The Tennessee men will race in the 8K Black Race at 10:45 a.m. ET and the rest of UT women will race in the women's 6K Black Race at 11:30 a.m. ET.

Blaase is coming off of a first-place finish in the Greater Louisville Classic 5K Blue Race on Oct. 3 at
E.P. Tom Sawyer Park.

"Chelsea is doing great stuff," Tennessee Director of Track & Field and Cross Country Beth Alford-Sullivan said. "Her training has been outstanding and she has taken all of the strides forward that she needs to put herself in position. She's been waiting for a great competition all season long and she will get that on Saturday. She was very comfortable on the 5K course and I believe she will be comfortable on the 6K course."

The young UT's women's team continued to make strides as freshmen Jessica Rizor (seventh) and Julia Rizor (23rd) posted top 25 finishes in last week's race.

Freshman Zach Long paced the UT men at in the 8K Gold Race the Greater Louisville Classic and earned SEC Men's Freshman Runner of the Week. He was the first UT men's runner to receive that award since Kyle Walter was honored on Sept. 18, 2012. Long, Walter and Jack Little were UT's top finishers and ran well as a group.

"I think what they're feeling is there's a good vibe on the men's team," Sullivan said. "They're comfortable with each other. They've come a long ways in the month and a half that we've been training together in understanding training and applying training productively. And that's a lot of keeping each other in check and doing things appropriately. I'm really proud of how they're managing that."

After Saturday's race, Tennessee next competes in the SEC Cross Country Championships on Oct. 30 in College Station, Texas.