Nov. 19, 2001

GREENVILLE, S.C. - Georgia Tech sophomore standout Renee Metivier finished second individually at the NCAA Cross Country Championships Monday at the Furman University Golf Course. Led by her finish the Yellow Jackets placed 26th as a team, the best-ever finish for the program.

By virtue of her runner-up finish, Metivier becomes just the second women's cross country All-American in Yellow Jacket history, joining Beth Mallory, who placed 25th at the NCAA meet in 1995. Metivier covered the six-kilometer course in a time of 20:31.

Metivier finished seven seconds behind individual champion Tara Chaplin of Arizona, who finished in 20:24.

"It was an awesome performance by Renee to get second-place at nationals, running against the best in the country," said Tech head coach Alan Drosky. "We thought going in that she could finish in the top five, and she was in the top five for most of the race. Renee moved up from fourth to second in about the last half-mile of the race."

Sophomore Katie Griffin was Tech's next runner, posting a time of 22:13 to finish 104th overall and 79th for scoring purposes. She was followed by senior Sara Pardue (22:43, 135th place) and senior Amy Edwards (23:01, 163rd place). Freshman Katie deVaux rounded out the scoring for Tech, clocking a time of 24:09 and finishing 204th. Tech totaled 583 points for the race.

Also competing for the Jackets was sophomore Betsy Bulat, who finished 208th with a time of 24:21. Senior Nicole Campbell started but did not finish the race.

Brigham Young claimed the team title, scoring 62 points to outdistance runner-up NC State, which tallied 148 points.

Colorado was victorious on the men's side with Boaz Chboiywo of Eastern Michigan racing to the individual title in a time of 28:47.

Making its second consecutive NCAA appearance, the Tech women's squad improved on its 31st-place finish of a year ago.

TEAM SCORES
1. BYU		62 points
2. NC State		148
3. Georgetown		180
4. Arizona		194
5. Stanford		206
6. Boston College	232
7. North Carolina	239
8. Colorado		240
9. Virginia		303
10. Providence		337
26. Georgia Tech	583

TECH FINISHERS
2. Renee Metivier	20:31
79. Katie Griffin	22:13
135. Sara Pardue	22:43
163. Amy Edwards	23:01
204. Katie deVaux	24:09
208. Betsy Bulat	24:21

-GT-