ROCK HILL, S.C. --- The South Atlantic Conference has released its Indoor Track & Field Preseason Coaches Polls and Athletes to Watch for the 2026 season. The Tusculum University women were picked to finish fourth in the conference while the men were picked sixth by the league's 12 head coaches.

Athletes to Watch for the Tusculum women are senior sprinter Jahzara Hart, sophomore hurdler Kori Moore and junior multi-eventer Kieley Smith. For the men, Athletes to Watch are freshman hurdler/sprinter Ivan Garcia Rubio and sophomore sprinter Tinotenda Musariri.

The Tusculum women finished ninth at last year's SAC Indoor Championship, while the men placed ninth. This year's SAC Championship will be held February 28-March 1 at the JDL Fast Track in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

Hart finished second in the 60 meters and third in the 200 meters at the SAC Championship last season to earn All-Region honors, and placed 10th at the NCAA Division II Indoor Championship. Her times of 7.37 in the 60 meters and 24.42 seconds in the 200 meters are both program records. The Raleigh, North Carolina native was honored as the Tusculum Female Athlete of the Year last spring.

Moore was All-Region in the 60-meter hurdles after placing second in the SAC Championship, and was part of the third-place 4x400-meter relay. The Jonesboro, Georgia native has career best times of 7.79 seconds in the 60 meters and 8.64 seconds in the 60 hurdles.

Smith competed in the pentathlon at last year's SAC indoor Championship and placed 14th overall with 2,453 points. The Greeneville, Tennessee native competed in seven different events during the season, and ranks in the top 10 in program history in five events including the high jump, long jump and triple jump.

Musariri competed in outdoor track for Briar Cliff University last season, and the Harare, Zimbabwe native took third in the 200 meters and fifth in the 100 meters in the conference championship meet. Garcia will be a top competitor for the Pioneers in both hurdles and sprints after coming to Tusculum from Dos Hermanas, Spain.

Wingate was the top team in both the men's and women's polls, with Carson-Newman, Lenoir-Rhyne and Catawba in the top four on the men's side and Lenoir-Rhyne, Catawba and Tusculum in the top four of the women's side.

The Pioneers will begin their indoor schedule on Saturday, January 10 at the Tryon International Collegiate Opener in Mill Spring, North Carolina. Tusculum will compete in six indoor meets ahead of the SAC Championship at the end of February.

2026 SAC Men's Indoor Track & Field Preseason Poll

2026 SAC Women's Indoor Track & Field Preseason Poll