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October 9, 2001
Release: Upon Receipt
FURMAN INVITATIONAL/NCAA PRE-MEET THIS SATURDAY AT FURMAN
GREENVILLE, South Carolina -- Scores of the top collegiate athletes in the country will converge on the Furman University Golf Course Saturday, but they won't be wielding golf clubs or hoping for birdies. Instead, these athletes will be trying to get around the golf course as fast as possible, as part of the Furman Invitational/NCAA Pre-Meet.
In the women's competition, 21 of the top 25 teams in the country will be on hand, getting an early look at the course which will host the NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships on November 19. Top-ranked Colorado, the defending NCAA Champions, will be on hand, as will second-ranked Stanford, third-ranked North Carolina State, and Brigham Young and Arizona State, two schools currently tied for fourth in the Cross Country Coaches Association National Poll.
The Colorado men's team is also ranked number one by the coaches entering this weekend's meet. Stanford, winner of the National Championship when it was hosted by Furman in 1997, will be in attendance as the number two ranked team in the country, while fifth-ranked Notre Dame and eighth-ranked Northern Arizona try to plan a strategy for knocking the Buffalos out of first when it really matters - November 19.
In addition to the NCAA Pre-Meet, which consists of two women's 6K races and two men's 8K competitions, Furman will be hosting its annual Invitational on Saturday, which features boys' and girls' junior varisity races, boys' and girls' varsity races, and mens' and womens' collegiate competitions.
In all, Furman race officials have assigned numbers to almost 5,000 athletes and expect at least 4,000 to compete in 10 races on Saturday.
"We always issue numbers to everyone on the teams' rosters," said Furman coach Gene Mullin, the meet director. "There will certainly be scratches when Saturday morning rolls around, but we should still have well over 4,000 runners in the 10 races.
The top cross country collegiate teams in attendance this weekend will be placed into the seeded Pre-Meet races. The women's purple and silver races and the men's black and gold competitions will have the top-ranked programs evenly divided between them, ensuring top competition in each. The fields for these seeded races will be announced on the Furman website (www.furmanpaladins.com) Thursday at noon.
Admission to the Furman Invitational/NCAA Pre-Meet is $2 for adults and $1 for children. Fans should enter Furman through the front gate and follow signs to cross country parking. The race site will not be accessible from the Furman Golf Course parking lot or clubhouse.
Schedule of Events
8:30 J.V. Girls 5K
9:10 J.V. Boys 5K
9:40 Varsity Girls 5K
10:15 Varisty Boys 5K
10:45 Women's Pre-Meet 6K (Purple Race)
11:20 Women's Pre-Meet 6K (Silver Race)
11:55 Men's Pre-Meet 8K (Black Race)
12:35 Men's Pre-Meet 8K (Gold Race)
1:15 Furman Invitational Men's 8K
2:00 Furman Invitational Women's 6K
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