September 16, 2011

Tech to make first-ever appearance at Georgia State Invitational

Head coach Tony Cox wants to get a better read on his Tennessee Tech cross country teams in the Golden Eagles’ second meet of the season this weekend.

Golden Eagles hope for cooler temperatures at Atlanta-area meet

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. — Head coach Tony Cox wants to get a better read on his Tennessee Tech cross country teams in the Golden Eagles' second meet of the season this weekend.

Tech ran its first event under oppressive heat and humidity at the Sewanee Invitational on Sept. 3 and is looking for lower times under what promise to be more ideal conditions at the Georgia State Invitational in Hampton, Ga., on Saturday.

The appearance at the Atlanta-area meet is the first-ever for Tech. Action begins at 9 a.m. with the men's race and continues at 11 a.m. when the women take to the course.

"This meet should give me a little better feel for how everybody can do on a good course under good conditions," Cox said. "I understand the course is hilly, and it should be a pretty big challenge for us. We're excited about going down there and seeing a new course and a new area."

Junior John Greene led the Golden Eagle men at the Sewanee Invitational, running a career-best time and finishing sixth out of 118 runners to help Tech to a fifth-place overall finish.

Cox said he expects to continue to see good things out of Greene, but also expects some of his other runners to step up.

"John trained really hard this summer and came back in great shape," Cox says. "I expect Matt Bishop to bounce back and run up there with him this weekend, as well."

On the women's side, sophomore Peri Winborne was the pacesetter for Tech at Sewanee, followed closely by a pack of runners who finished the 6K course around the 25-minute-mark.

The Georgia State Invitational marks the second consecutive meet in which the women will run a 6K instead of the traditional 5K.

"I want to see improvement from some of the sophomore returnees," Cox said, "and with the cooler weather, I think we'll see those times drop some."

The meet will be held at Nash Farm Battlefield Park in Hampton, approximately 30 miles from downtown Atlanta.

Schools attending the meet include Georgia, Kennesaw State, Troy, Austin Peay, UNC Wilmington, Clayton State, Morehouse, West Georgia and the host squad.