MONTGOMERY, Ala. – With less than a month left until the start of the 2025 cross country season, the Southern States Athletic Conference announced its annual Men's Cross Country Preseason Poll. Voted on by the coaches of the nine competing teams in SSAC, the Wolf Pack totaled 55 votes in this year's preseason poll, ranking fourth in the conference's newest poll.
Tennessee Southern (74) and Mobile (70 )sat atop the rankings with each receiving four first-place votes. Third-place vote getter William Carey (68) also earned a first-place nod. In fourth, the Wolf Pack totaled 55 votes, finishing ahead of Blue Mountain (48), Brewton-Parker (32), Faulkner (26), Abraham Baldwin (20), and Thomas (12).
The Wolf Pack will have eight newcomers joining Loyola's 17 runners from the 2024 team. Drake Breland, Jacob Kennedy, Jace Luckoski, and Connor Meigs are returning in 2025 after having successful campaigns. The sophomore Breland returns after competing in the 8-kilometer run at the NAIA National Championships and making both the SSAC All-Freshman and All-Conference teams. Kennedy comes back to the Pack after setting a program record in the 8-kilometer run in 2024. Luckoski and Meigs rejoin the Wolf Pack after being selected to the SSAC Scholar-Athlete Team.
Loyola is set to start the 2025 campaign in Clinton, Mississippi, at the Mississippi College Opener, on Friday, Sept. 5, at 6 p.m. The Wolf Pack will head to Westwego for the second meet of the season to host the Loyola Triangular at the Parc des Familles on Friday, Sept. 19. After a trip to Thibodaux for the Nicholls State Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 27, Loyola will head to Oakville, Alabama, for the Warhawk Invite on Thursday, Oct. 9. The Maroon and Gold will close out the regular season at the Watson Invite in Clinton, Mississippi, on Friday, Oct. 17, before heading to the SSAC Championship in Oakville, on Friday, Nov. 7.
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