Despite the obstacles in their path, Clemson’s cross country runners are on course to compete in the 2020 season. Head Coach Vicky Pounds is now in her second season at the helm of the program, which currently has two meets on its schedule for this fall. Cross country makes up the autumn portion of the track & field slate, with the indoor track & field season and outdoor track & field season coming in the winter and spring, respectively.
The 2020 cross country slate is heavily condensed due to COVID-19 restrictions, as several meets have been called off in the midst of the pandemic. In fact, the Bulldog Invitational, which was set to be hosted by the Georgia Bulldogs in Athens, Ga., was supposed to be the Tigers’ first competition before being called off. The Sept. 17 meet was canceled one day prior to taking place, leaving Clemson with an even longer delay to the start of their season.
While Clemson’s cross country team usually participates in its first meet of the season in late August or early September, the Tigers will have to wait until early October before competing for the first time this year. As of now, a meet with the Florida State Seminoles, which will take place on Friday, Oct. 2, in Tallahassee, Fla., and the ACC Championships make up the entirety of the Tigers’ schedule. Despite the NCAA canceling all fall sports championships and not yet committing to rescheduling them to the spring semester, the ACC will go ahead with its cross country championships at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, N.C., on Friday, Oct. 30.
Therefore, Pounds and her program will be expected to give it their all in the pursuit of conference titles. As far as the bevy of talent boasted by the Clemson roster, both the men’s and women’s squads, which compete for separate ACC championships, feature their fair share of proven veterans and promising youngsters. Colt Griffith, Danny Shaughnessy and John Ward are the senior leaders of the men’s team and have the most decorated track records of any male Clemson runners entering the 2020 season. Sophomore Jackson Leech showed out in the distance events during the most recent indoor season, and he is poised to emerge as one of the Tigers’ top cross country runners this fall. Also of note, Michael Fabiano recently transferred to the program after an impressive season with the West Georgia Wolves.
The women’s cross country team is led by an accomplished, talented trio of seniors in Sydney Collins, Mikie Harris and Amelia Jones. Jones was the undisputed star of Clemson cross country last year, and she is well-positioned to compete for the ACC crown this year. Senior Kate Miekley and junior Josie Wirtz are two additional veterans who will likely make significant impacts for the Tigers this autumn. The men’s and women’s teams have a combined 11 freshmen on their rosters this season, many of whom could very well run at the front of the pack for Clemson as early as this year. Thus far, Pounds has done an excellent job of molding a cross country program that is set up for ample success both in the present and the years to come, making the Tigers worth keeping an eye on in this season’s race to the finish line in the ACC.
