April 22, 2004
GREENSBORO, N.C. – Georgia Tech’s Chaunte Howard and Brendon Mahoney were selected as the Outdoor Atlantic Coast Conference Track and Field Most Valuable Performers, announced by the league office this morning. Tech freshman Ashlee Kidd was named Outdoor ACC Rookie of the Year, marking the first time that one school had claimed both individual top honors at the outdoor ACC meet.
A year removed from being honored as the ACC Freshman of the Year, Howard was named the Most Valuable Performer after posting four top-three finishes at the 2004 Outdoor Championship. Howard successfully defended her title in the women’s high jump setting a new outdoor meet, conference and school record, clearing the bar at 6′ 4.75″ (1.95m). Her mark was the best achieved by an American at the time and equaled the World’s best mark. Howard also automatically qualified for the Olympic team trials with her outstanding performance. The sophomore from Riverside, Calif., also finished second in the long jump (20′ 3.75″), third in the triple jump (42′ 3.75″) and third in the 100-meter high hurdles (13.78) to accumulate a total of 30 points on the weekend. All those marks were personal-records for the sophomore All-American.
Kidd was named the ACC Freshman of the Year after posting victories in the 200- and 400-meter dash events. In the 200m, Kidd registered a personal best time of 23.53 to win the event. The St. Petersburg, Fla., native then captured the 400m by crossing the finish line in a time of 52.40, fastest recorded in the ACC this season. Both times qualified her for the NCAA Region Championships in Gainesville, Fla., on May 28-29.
Mahoney earned Most Valuable Performer honors after placing first in the 800 and 1500 meters. Mahoney claimed the 800m championship for the second time in his career, winning the event by five one-hundredths of a second with a time of 1:51.15. The Cumming, Ga., native notched his second victory of the championship with a win in the 1500m run, crossing the finish line in a time of 3:45.76. With this honor, Mahoney becomes just the sixth athlete to garner both Indoor and Outdoor Most Valuable Performer honors in the same season. His time in the 1500 was a NCAA Region qualifying time.
For the first time in Tech history, two athletes swept the Performer of the Year awards in the same season. Howard and Mahoney were both named Indoor Performers of the Year earlier this season.
North Carolina head coach Dennis Craddock was named women’s Coach of the Year after leading UNC to the team title. UNC’s Nick Owens garnered Freshman of the Year honors, while Clemson’s Bob Pollock was selected as the men’s Coach of the Year after leading the Tigers to the men’s title.
