Jan. 30, 2007

MEMPHIS - Senior shot putter Gail Lee was named the Conference USA Female Track and Field Athlete-of-the-Week Wednesday as announced by the conference office.

Lee won the shot put and placed third in the weight throw at the Gladstein Invitational last weekend. She bettered her provisional qualification in the shot by more than two feet with a personal-best and school-record throw of 55'3". The mark was just two inches off of an automatic qualifier for the NCAA Championships and is the third longest NCAA throw and the 10th longest throw in the world this season.

Lee's weight throw of 61'2.25" was her second longest of the season and earned her a third place finish. She has already provisionally qualified for nationals in this event with a mark of 62'6".

Lee became the first ever Lady Tiger All-American in 2005 after she reached the NCAA Indoor Championships in the shot put. The Fort Worth, Texas native followed up with a trip to the Outdoor Championships in 2006.

Memphis will be in action this weekend at the SIU McDonald's Invitational in Carbondale, Ill.