Wednesday, September 23, 2009

MACON, Ga. - At a meet that included six regionally ranked schools, Kennesaw State’s Mackenzie Howe continued her undefeated 2009 campaign as she won the Crimson Classic. On Wednesday, she earned her third successive Women’s Cross Country Runner of the Week, the conference office announced.

The junior health and exercise science major from Watkinsville, Ga., won the 116- woman Crimson Classic 5K race in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on Friday, completing the race in 17:13.40, to beat out Auburn's Holly Knight by three-and-a-half seconds. The race included runners from six of the top 15 teams in the NCAA South Region, according to the USTFCCCA (Tennessee, Auburn, Alabama, Chattanooga, Belmont, Georgia Tech). With her team, she became the first Kennesaw State runner to win three consecutive meets in a season since the Owls moved up to NCAA Division I in 2005. The Owls finished 7th overall out of 15 teams.

The Atlantic Sun Conference is an 11-member league committed to Building Winners for Life. The A-Sun stands for achievement with integrity in both the academic and athletic arenas, with a focus on the balance between the two for our student-athletes. Headquartered in Macon, Ga., the A-Sun boasts six of the top eight media markets in the Southeast. The A-Sun includes a blend of the most prestigious and dynamic private and public institutions in the region: Belmont University, Campbell University, East Tennessee State University, Florida Gulf Coast University, Jacksonville University, Kennesaw State University, Lipscomb University, Mercer University, University of North Florida, University of South Carolina Upstate and Stetson University.

Other Top Performers
Carolyne Chelulei, USC Upstate (So. - Eldoret, Kenya - Nursing) -- Led the Spartans as they finished tied for fourth at the Virginia Tech Alumni Invitational last Friday evening. Chelulei recorded a time of 17:04.60 and finished in 11th place. Chelulei was less than five seconds away from cracking the top 10 at the meet. The sophomore, from Eldoret, Kenya, ran against a very competitive field of 93 runners that included Atlantic Coast Conference members Florida State, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest.

Rachel Deline, Campbell (So. - Belleville, Ontario - Undeclared) -- Rachel Deline topped the CU women, placing seventh on the 5K course coming in with a time of 19:02.00. This marks a 5k personal best for the Campbell sophomore.