Oct. 25, 2001
ATLANTA – The Georgia Tech men’s and women’s cross country teams will continue their seasons at Saturday’s Atlantic Coast Conference Championships held in Clemson, S.C. The men’s eight-kilometer race is slated to begin at 10 a.m., followed by the women’s 6K at 11 a.m.
The Yellow Jacket women’s squad enters the meet having posted a pair of impressive national-level performances, finishing 10th in its race at the NCAA Preview on Oct. 13 and 14th at the Roy Griak Invitational on Sept. 29.
Seven ACC women’s teams enter the champion ships either ranked or receiving votes in the national polls, which should make for a very competitive event. “It comes down to whoever runs well on the day of the meet,” says head coach Alan Drosky. “We’ve been training for that and we’re ready for that. I have every expectation that we’re going to run really well.”
Tech should be led by sophomore Renee Metivier, who placed second at the NCAA Preview and seventh at the Roy Griak Invitational. Both performances came against several nationally-ranked teams. “I don’t discount the possibility that Renee could win the conference,” says Drosky. “It would take a phenomenal race, but she’s been doing some pretty phenomenal things. Certainly a top-three or top-five finish is a very good possibility.”
Sophomore Katie Griffin and senior Sara Pardue have been consistently strong as the squads’ second and third runners. Senior Nicole Campbell, who missed the NCAA Preview meet, returns as Tech’s No. 4 runner.
After dealing with injuries for much of the season, Tech’s men’s team finds itself as healthy as possible entering the league championships. Sophomore Brendon Mahoney, a track All-American, will see his first action of the season.
Sophomore Kyle Rabbitt owns the team’s top 8K time this season, posting a 25:35.3 at the Roy Griak Invitational. Senior Joey Zins is not far behind, clocking a 25:38 at the NCAA Preview.
“I really like what I see on the guys side coming into the conference meet,” says Drosky. “I see things gelling right now. I look forward to seeing the men and how they respond. They’ve run in the big meets and should be comfortable with that. I really think they are looking forward to it and I can see in practice that they are anxious to line up.”
The Yellow Jackets are hoping to improve on their finishes from a year ago, when women placed seventh and the men finished eighth. Both teams finished third in 1994, earning the program’s highest finishes since joining the conference. Tech’s top all-time individual finish on the men’s side is second, while the best finish among Yellow Jacket women is sixth.
-GT-
