Harrogate, TN – The Lincoln Memorial University Men's and Women's Cross Country teams are set to open the season on Friday, as the Railsplitters begin their seasons run at the Golden Eagle Invitational, hosted by Tennessee Tech University. 

Both teams enter the 2026 campaign ranked fourth in the South Atlantic Conference preseason poll after a 2025 season that saw the Splitters finish fourth in the conference and top 10 finish in the Southeast Region. 

On the men's side, the senior tandem of Conner Chandler and Jaxson Branham were highlighted as Runners to Watch by the conference, as Branham looks to replicate his First-Team All-Conference success from last year. 

Reigning Second-Team All-Conference honoree Weslyn McIntosh and junior Jacie Begley were selected by the conference as preseason Runners to Watch on the women's team. 

Friday's race marks the second time that the Splitters have raced in Cookeville, and the first time since 2022 when the men finished in fourth while the women came in fifth. 

"Everyone is excited to get the season started and see where they are coming off of a good summer training block," said Head Coach Jeff Kavalunas. "Tennessee Tech is a great opener for us. It's a smaller, low-key meet that is running shorter race distances to start the season. The 4k race for women and the 6k race for men, allows everyone to see where they are at and will give a good indicator to what they will be ready to run when we move to the regular race distances in a couple weeks."

The race will begin at 10:00 a.m. Eastern and 9:00 a.m. Central Time with the Women's 4K and will conclude with the Men's 6K at 10:30 a.m. EST 9:30 a.m. CST. A link to the live results page can be found below.

Live Results