ATLANTA – The Georgia Tech men and women’s cross country teams each turned in solid outings and were victorious in the annual Georgia Collegiate Cross Country Championships held at Georgia State on Saturday morning.
The Tech men’s runners finished the event with 19 points, which beat out Georgia State’s total of 36 points, and claimed the team title
The Yellow Jacket men’s harriers were once again led by a pair of freshmen, as Kyle Rabbitt (Red Oak, Ga.) finished sixth in the overall competition with a time of 26:04 over the 8K circuit, but was the top finisher in the division one race. Fellow rookie Neil McDonagh (San Francisco, Calif.) placed right behind Rabbitt in seventh (second in division one) with a time of 26:05.
Senior Brent Williams (Farmington, Mo.) was the next Tech runner in the field as he finished 11th (4th, DI) with a time of 26:17, while juniors Phillip Gable (Kennesaw, Ga.) and Matt O’Brien finished in 12th (5th, DI) and 16th (7th, DI) respectively with their times of 26:27 and 26:47.
Another pair of freshmen in Daniel Moss (Alpharetta, Ga.) and Billy Simpson (Mtn. Home, Ark.) also scored points for Tech, as they finished in 36th (13th, DI) and 37th (14th, DI) with times of 27:36 and 27:46. Rounding out the Yellow Jacket contingent in the event was junior Jared McGehee (Richardson, Texas) in 41st with a time of 28:12, and Joe Poliseo who finished 56th with a time of 28:53, along with Ashton Manley (Lake City, Ga.), who was 70th with a time of 29:16. The final Tech performer was Jason Grier, who finished in 79th with his time of 29:55.
Georgia Tech’s women’s team won its second-straight outing, by capturing the Division one team title with a total of 17 points, which was well ahead of Georgia State’s total of 45.
The Yellow Jackets placed six runners in the top 10 of the overall race, as Tech claimed positions two through four and seven through nine in the event. Tech was led once again by sophomore Amy Dock (Charlotte, N.C.), who finished second (1st, DI) with a time of 18:04 over the 5K course. She was followed by freshman Renee Metivier (Highland Village, Texas) in third place (2nd, DI) with a time of 18:15 and junior Sara Pardue (Aurora, Colo.) in fourth place (3rd, DI) with her time of 18:28.
The second pack of Tech runners was led by Rachael Caruso (Duluth, Ga.), who finished sixth (5th, DI) with a time of 18:47. Amy Edwards and Eboni Crosby followed Caruso in the event, finishing seventh and eighth respectively with their times of 18:49 and 18:54.
Junior Ashley Espy rounded out the scoring performers in the race for Georgia Tech, as she finished 12th with a time of 19:19. She was followed in the race by rookies Betsy Bulat, who placed 16th with her time of 19:29, and Christine Noelke in 18th place in at time of 19:31.
Rounding out the Georgia Tech contingent in the event were Elizabeth Greene, in 28th place in a time of 20:42, and Neta Ezer, in 55th position with her time of 22:06.
The Georgia Tech cross country team will return to action next weekend, when it competes at the Iowa State Classic, in Ames, Iowa on October 14. The race will be held at the same course as the 2000 NCAA Championships.
