SAINT LEO, Fla. – Winners of the last three Sunshine State Conference men's cross country titles, the 2017 edition of the Saint Leo men's cross country team will begin the season in an unfamiliar position.

Hunters. Not the hunted.

The Lions placed fourth in this week's U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Division II preseason South Region rankings, a reflection of the fact Saint Leo graduated two runners who had been dominant in the SSC in recent years.

Lee University (Tenn.), who captured the 2016 NCAA South Region crown, appeared atop the preseason South Region ranking, followed by Saint Leo's SSC-rival Florida Southern in second and Alabama-Huntsville in third place.

Embry-Riddle, Nova Southeastern, and Tampa fill the five, seven, and eight spots in the South Region poll, suggesting the 2017 SSC meet could be one of the tightest in the last five or six seasons.

The Lions are far from declawed however, and the underdog role may be easier for Reiber's young-ish team to accommodate.

Headlining the returnees is sophomore Ron Cheserek, who was a phenom in the regular season and won the SSC title in record-setting time while becoming just the fourth freshman to claim the SSC crown. Cheserek will be expected to pace the pack in every meet during 2017, but will also have to face greater pressure to post a top finish at the South Region meet.

Senior Anthony Deleva will be looking to improve his own times in his final SSC season with the goal of a top-three finish at the SSC meet, and classmate Joe Fuller will be aiming for a top-10 placement at the conference championship in his final season.

Senior Stephen Brown will be looking to rebound from injury in his final collegiate campaign, and sophomore Tyler Pantley will need to be more of a presence in the pack for the Lions to have any team success in 2017.

Much will be expected of newcomers freshmen newcomers Hunter Chavis, Ethan Markey, and Tadgh McGinty, as well as graduate student Josh Sickinger, who had some solid performances on the track for the Lions last spring.

"We'll be able to work as a group a little bit better this year because we're leaner and meaner," said Saint Leo Head Coach Kent Reiber, who is entering his third season at the helm of the Lions. "We only have nine men on the roster, so it makes it a little bit easier to individualize the training."

"Just knowing that each person now has to do their job in order to accomplish our goals of winning the conference for a fourth year and making it back to the national championship," added Reiber.

The Lions open their 2017 season on Saturday, Sept. 2, when they compete in the Southeastern University Fire Short Course Invitational at Lakeland's Holloway Park, which will also be the site of this year's NCAA South Region meet.

2017 Saint Leo Men's Cross Country at a Glance

Head Coach: Kent Reiber (Third season)
2016 SSC Finish: 1st (Third straight SSC title)
2016 NCAA South Region Finish: 2nd
2016 NCAA Championship Finish: 27th
Returning Scorers: Ron Chesarek, So. (SSC Runner of the Year & All-SSC); Anthony Deleva, Sr. (All-South Region, All-SSC); Joe Fuller, Sr.
Other Returnees: Stephen Brown, Sr.; Tyler Pantley, So.
Newcomers: Hunter Chavis, Fr. (Sorrento, Fla.); Ethan Markey, Fr. (East Lansing, Mich.); Tadgh McGinty, Fr. (Swinford, Ireland); Josh Sickinger, Sr. (Bad Schoenborn, Germany).