Sept. 5, 2003

MEMPHIS-The University of Memphis Men's and Women's Cross Country teams will host the Memphis Twilight Classic Cross Country Meet at Mike Rose Soccer Complex, Saturday, Sept. 6, beginning at 7 p.m.

The night meet will give athletes a unique experience of competing at night in the City of the "Delta Blues." The meet will consist of five races matching high school boys, high school girls, men's collegiate, women's collegiate and an open race. Each race will be a two-mile run starting with the open run at 7 p.m. with the four remaining races following every half-hour.

"I think having a cross country meet at night will be a great experience for athletes and spectators alike," said Memphis Women's Cross Country Coach Jonas Holdeman. "Typically, cross country meets are run during the day in a field somewhere and the only people there are the runners, coaches and the occasional parent. We are going with European style of race this year running a two-mile loop. The spectators will get to see the competitors a couple times and with the race ending in a stadium (Mike Rose S.C.) we will have fans cheering for the competitors as they cross the finish line."

The meet will feature 14 men's and women's college teams along with many high school teams. Over 750 runners will compete at the meet Saturday night. The meet will also feature Mississippi State's Tiffany McWilliams, the 2003 NCAA Champion in the 1500m run.

Results of the meet will be posted on www.gotigersgo.com Saturday night.