Cross Country runner Caelan (Cale) Pirtle is going the distance, moving from NJCAA (National Junior College Athletic Association) to NCAA (National College Athletic Association).
Pirtle recently signed a letter of intent to run the 2014-2015 Cross Country and Track and Field seasons at Clayton State University.
Competing for North Georgia Technical College last year, Pirtle led the men's team to second place in the Region XVII Cross Country meet in Albany, Georgia, at which he was the individual champion with a time of 26:25 for the 8K.
At NGTC, Cale has been taking general education courses in the Engineering Technology program and plans to continue his focus on math and science at Clayton State University.
As a member of the Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association (GCAA) and the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) for Cross Country sports, North Georgia Technical College began competing in the Cross Country sport in 2011. Pirtle is the first NGTC Cross Country athlete to move to the NCAA.