University of Tennessee Athletics
DICKIE PREPARES FOR NCAA CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS
November 18, 2001 | Women's Cross Country
Nov. 18, 2001
KNOXVILLE, Tenn.
Sharon Dickie, a junior on the University of Tennessee cross country team, will compete at the 2001 NCAA Women's Cross Country Championship on Nov. 19 in Greenville, S.C. The meet, hosted by Furman University, will be a 6,000-meter race at the Furman Golf Course.
To qualify for the national championship, Dickie was chosen as an at-large competitor after finishing sixth at the NCAA South Regional in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on Nov. 10. With her sixth-place finish, Dickie earned the third all-region honors of her career. Prior to the regional meet, Dickie earned an All-Southeastern Conference nod by finishing third at the SEC Championships for the second consecutive season. All of that success comes despite suffering from stress fractures in her shins and other injuries during the season.
Dickie, a native of Grand Blanc, Mich., looks to earn the second All-America honors of her career after finishing 29th at the 2000 NCAA Championships in Ames, Iowa. That finish, though, came despite a wind chill of 19 degrees below zero. Race-time temperatures on Monday in Greenville, S.C., are slated to be near 60 degrees. All-America honors go to the top-30 American finishers.
"Every national meet that an athlete runs in is an opportunity to become an All-American," Lady Vol cross country coach Rodney Rothoff said. "How an athlete seizes that moment ultimately determines how she will be remembered in UT history. This is Sharon's opportunity to display her character, mentally tenacity and sheer toughness as she tries to reach the elite level of women's cross country again.
"This meet will be tougher for her than last year, though, with all of the obstacles that she has overcome this season. The odds might not be in our favor, but you can never count Sharon Dickie out."
The 2001 NCAA Championships mark the end of the Lady Vol cross country season.
