Oct. 15, 2009
ATLANTA – After a week off from competition, the Georgia Tech men’s and women’s cross country teams return to the course Saturday morning when they compete at the NCAA Pre-Nationals Meet hosted by Indiana State University in Terre Haute, Ind. Action begins for the men at 11 a.m., while the women’s team begins their race at 12:55 p.m.
The event features some of the top cross country programs across the country, all of which are looking to test out the course in Terre Haute before it hosts the 2009 NCAA Cross Country Championships on Nov. 23.
“This week will provide us one last tune-up before the ACC Championships so we’re looking to build on the improvements we’ve made week-to-week,” said cross country head coach Alan Drosky. “The competition will be outstanding and the course is a very fair one, offering challenging terrain, but with an opportunity to run fast times. Much of our team has competed on this course before so they know what to expect and are excited about this weekend.”
In their last event, the men’s team placed third out of 13 at the Great American Cross Country Festival in Cary, N.C. Leading the way for the Yellow Jackets was D.J. McMillan, who finished ninth overall in a time of 24:55.
‘”The men have improved throughout the season and continue to show good momentum each week,” said Drosky. “I’ve been impressed with the group efforts I’ve seen and hope that we can put together a tight pack and run some quality times on Saturday.”
On the women’s side, the Yellow Jackets are looking to build off a second place finish at the Great American Cross Country Festival. Sophomore Mary Kate DuBard was the squad’s top finisher in the event, placing second in a time of 18:03.
“The women are just now starting to come around and we like what we’ve seen in the last two events,” continued Drosky. “This race will be their first one of the season at the 6000m distance. So far we’ve seen some solid performances, but we really need to put together a great team effort this weekend.”
Fans are reminded that full results and a full recap of the action will be posted on RamblinWreck.com following competition on Saturday.
