Cross Country To Compete At ACC Championships On Saturday

Oct. 28, 2004

The Clemson men’s and women’s cross country teams will compete at the 2004 ACC Cross Country Championships on Saturday, Oct. 30. This year’s conference meet will be hosted by the University of Maryland. The women’s 6K race will begin at 10:00 AM, followed by the men’s 8K race at 11:00 AM. An awards ceremony will be held upon completion of the men’s race, and will recognize both championship teams as well as All-ACC performers (top 10 runners in each race).

The Clemson women’s team will be comprised of Jennifer Barton, Thea Dix, Emily Edwards, Sudati Masasu, Patrice McMillan, Casey Phillips and Laura Ann Rukat. Phillips had led the Lady Tigers all season, and finished third at the Pre-ACC meet held in October. Barton has consistently been the Lady Tigers number-two runner, and Masasu and McMillan have held the three and four positions this season. Dix, Edwards and Rukat have all been among the top five for Clemson this season. Last year, the Lady Tigers finished ninth at the conference meet, scoring 282 points.

Overall, Clemson has won one ACC cross country championship, capturing the title in 1986. Clemson has finished as the runner-up eight times, and in third place on three occassions. The Lady Tigers have tallied two fourth-place finishes, three fifth-place finishes and five sixth-place finishes. Clemson has finished in eighth place once and ninth place three times. Clemson has fared well in meets held in College Park, MD. In the most recent conference meet hosted by the Terrapins (1996), the Lady Tigers posted a fourth-place finish. Prior to that, Clemson finished second in races held in College Park in both 1982 and 1989.

The Clemson men’s team will consist of Itay Magidi, Matt Pimentel, Sean Reilly, Jim Wahl and Derrick Wyatt. Wyatt, Clark and Magidi have each led the Tigers in races this season, and Clark and Magidi have both been named ACC Performers of the Week. Fenton, Pimentel, Soder and Wahl have all been among the top-five for Clemson this fall.

In all-time ACC cross country, the Tigers have captured seven ACC Cross Country titles, with the most recent victory in 1988. Clemson has finished as the runner-up three times and in third place on five occassions. The Tigers have posted 12 fourth-place finishes, including one each in 2002 and 2003. Traditionally, the Tigers have competed well in College Park, MD, as they have not finished lower than sixth in the six meets held there. In the most recent conference championship hosted by Maryland, Clemson finished fifth with 127 points in 1996. Prior to that meet, the Terrapins hosted the 1989 conference meet, in which the Tiger harriers finished second with 36 points and three Tigers earned All-ACC honors. Clemson won the 1982 meet in College Park, and placed fourth in the 1975 meet. In 1968, Clemson cross country brought home a fourth-place finish and the Tigers finished sixth in the first conference meet held in Maryland in 1960.