New Orleans, La. - Appalachian State University men's cross country was picked to finish second in the Sun Belt Conference, as selected by the league's coaches and announced by the conference office on Tuesday.

"UT Arlington is certainly the team to beat as they return three of their top four runners plus a really good transfer from New Mexico State," said head coach Michael Curcio. "At the same time though, it says a lot about our men's program (returns three of top four runners) when the other teams in the conference think that highly of us."

UT Arlington topped the poll with 71 points and four first-place votes, App State was one point and one first-place vote behind the Mavericks with 70 and three, respectively while South Alabama rounded out the top three with two first-place nods and a total of 70 points. UL Lafayette came in at fourth (52 points), Little Rock was fifth (43 points) and Arkansas State was ranked seventh with 37 points. The final three spots belonged to Texas State (32 points), UL Monroe (17 points) and Troy (13 points).

"We're looking forward to another challenge in Georgia for the Sun Belt Championships," said Curcio. "Aside from host Georgia State, the other teams in this conference aren't really familiar with that course so it'll be interesting to see how the league prepares for Nov. 1."

The Mountaineers will begin their season on Friday, Sept. 4 when they host the Covered Bridge Open in Boone. As mentioned above, the Sun Belt Championships will be held in Hampton, Ga. on Sunday, Nov. 1.