HAMMOND, La. –  The Southeastern Louisiana men's cross-country team received national recognition Tuesday as they came in ranked fourth in the preseason South Central Region poll.
 
Southeastern enters the cross-country season boasting three 2019 South Central Regional qualifiers.
 
Seniors Grant O'Callaghan and Anthony Cordero lead the way for SLU. The duo posted top 10 finishes at the Southland Conference Championships and qualified for the South Central Regionals; O'Callaghan in 2018 and Cordero in 2019.
 
O'Callaghan, out of Flowery Branch, George, finished eighth in the 2018 Southland Conference Championships 8K race. The Flowery Branch High School grad, who redshirted the 2019 cross country season, finished in the top ten in five out of six races during the 2018 season.
 
Cordero, an El Paso, Texas native, had an equally impressive campaign as O'Callaghan in 2019. The Franklin High School grad finished eighth in the Southland Championships 8K race, had four top 10 finishes in five races and punched his ticket to the South Central Regionals.
 
Senior Adam Cortez brings a lot of optimism in as well for the Lions. Also from El Paso, Texas, Cortez had three top 10 finishes in 2019 and qualified with Cordero for the South Regionals.
 
SLU will also have junior Shea Foster to provide some depth. The Lamar transfer finished 25^th in the Southland Conference Championships in 2019 running 25:08.01 as he joined Cordero and O'Callaghan at the South Central regional.
 
Newcomer Bradley Makuvire, out Zvishavane, Zimbabwe, could be the missing piece the Lions were looking for. The sophomore transfer from El Paso Community College finished eighth in the NJCAA cross country national championships running the 8K race in 24:30.90
 
"This is an extremely exciting time for our program," said SLU cross country head Corey Mistretta.  "Coach (Rocky) Capello (SLU distance running coach) and all of our distance runners have been extremely committed and dedicated to training over the past few years and things are finally coming to fruition. We will be racing against some of the best teams in the country this weekend, so we have an opportunity to see where we stack up and if we deserve this #4 regional ranking.  One thing is certain, this group is prepared for the challenge."
 
Southeastern will open the season Friday at the FSU Winter Classic meet in Tallahassee, Florida hosted by Florida State, ranked fifth in the nation.
 
South Central Regional Rankings
 
1.Arkansas
2. Texas
3. Lamar
4. Southeastern La.
5. Rice
6. LSU
7. Texas A&M
8. North Texas
9. Arkansas State
10. UT Arlington
 
PODIUM CLUB/S CLUB                                                         
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the track and field program are encouraged to join the Podium Club. Lion alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letter winners. All membership fees and donations to Podium Club are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern track and field program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting www.LionUp.com.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Southeastern Track and Field, follow @SLUTrack and @CoreyMistretta on Twitter, like /SLUathletics on Facebook and subscribe to the SLUathletics YouTube channel.

TICKETS
For ticket information, please contact the Southeastern Athletics Ticket Office at (985) 549-5466 or visit www.LionSports.net/tickets. Southeastern is implementing mobile ticketing as the primary source for securing tickets for the 2020-21 season. All tickets will be available via e-mail in a PDF format for fans to download on their phone or print at home. Tickets can also be downloaded to Apple Wallet.