KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Georgia men’s and women’s cross country are set to open the postseason at the 2025 SEC Cross Country Championships at Tennessee’s Cherokee Farms Cross Country Course on Friday morning.
 
SEC Network begins live coverage at 10 a.m. ET, with the men’s 8K championship race at 10:08 a.m. ET, followed by the women’s 6K championship race at 10:53 a.m. ET. The No. 20 Georgia men faced a ranked slate of competition including No. 8 Alabama, No. 22 Missouri, No. 26 Ole Miss and No. 29 Oklahoma. On the women’s side the, the Lady Bulldogs also face ranked teams No. 3 Florida, No. 20 South Carolina, No. 23 Missouri, No. 25 Alabama and No. 27 Tennessee.  
 
Returning for last year’s conference roster on the men’s side are juniors Ryan Olree (31st) and Conner Rutherford (40th). Both Olree and Rutherford finished within the top 40 at last year’s conference meet. Other Georgia men competing Friday are graduate transfers Will Aitken, Matias Reynaga and Oliver Smart and freshman Kristers Kudlis.
 
This season the Bulldog men put together a historic undefeated regular season for the first time in school history in 20 years (as far as the record book shows). Georgia started the season by sweeping the season opener at the Covered Bridge Invite with all six runners finishing within the top six. Then the Georgia men continued their success with another meet win at the FSU invite, scoring all six runners within the top-10. The Bulldogs finished off the season with another meet victory at the Gans Creek Classic, registering ranked wins over No. 19 Missouri, No. 22 Arkansas and No. 24 Ole Miss, which earned themselves a spot in the USTFCCCA Coaches Poll at No. 20 – marking the first time the Bulldogs have been ranked since 2013.      
 
While on the women’s side, sophomore Izzy Yonas returns after an impressive freshman effort of 20:56.5 in last year’s conference championship. She is joined in competition for this year’s conference meet by freshmen Anastasia Nilsson, Maeve Waddell, Lauren Skeens, Madeleine Holland and Erin Musty.  
 
The Lady Bulldogs had a strong start to the season with a runner-up finish at the season-opening Covered Bridge Invite. Then the women put together a hard-fought performance at the FSU Invite to capture third place, with two impressive performances by Nilsson and Yonas.
 
“We are aiming at riding the momentum from Pre-Nats into this week’s conference meet,” head coach Adam Tribble said. “The SEC Championship is one of the, if not the, most unique and challenging meets we have all year, and I am looking forward to seeing how both groups react. The men are beginning to approach the potential we knew they had at the beginning of the school year and now we have to make sure we build on that progress and stay healthy.  I am proud of the strides our women have made as well. It’s a great group who have gelled well together and I think the ceiling is high for the women as they continue to improve.” 
 
Competition begins at 10 a.m. ET on SEC Network. For more information regarding the 2025 SEC Cross Country Championships, visit the conference meet central page HERE. 
 
Results and recaps from the Bulldogs’ cross country season will be found at georgiadogs.com. News and updates from Georgia’s track and field and cross country teams are always located on X/Instagram at @UGATrack.