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Tuesday, November a, aoio | The Red * Black
Junior wins SEC
cross country title
By ZACH DILLARD
The Rkii & Black
Junior runner Kristie
Krueger captured an SEC
title at the conference
championships in
Columbia. S.C., Monday
morning.
“I’m just so excited.
Freshman year I never
would have dreamed that
I could do this, but Coach
[Jeff] Pigg and my team
mates have helped me
along,” Krueger told
Oeorgia Sports
Communications. "I Just
wanted to start out and
see if I felt comfortable, at
least to halfway. I was
going to see how strong I
felt and then try to start
pulling away. Thankfully, I
felt pretty good, so it
turned out well.”
Krueger clocked a
20:41.25 on the six-kilome
ter course to capture the
second cross country indi
vidual title in school histo
ry.
Sarah Madebach cap
tured Georgia’s first SEC
title in 2010.
Auburn’s Hollie Knight
finished nearly eight sec
onds behind Krueger to
capture second place.
With her title-capturing
run, Krueger, who finished
in fourth place at the 2009
SEC Championships will
bring First Team All-SEC
honors back to Athens.
“Kristie looked fantas
tic and she did a great job.
I’m really proud of what
she's done,” Pigg said.
“She’s had continual
improvement from two
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SPORTS NOTEBOOK
years ago to today. We put
a lot of focus on the SEC
meet and we are excited
to come here and do the
best we can. We want to
do well and go to
Nationals, but when
you’re in the SEC, you
have to focus on doing
well here.”
Krueger's finish led the
Bulldogs to finish with 130
points good enough for
a fourth place finish at the
conference tournament.
The Bulldog men finished
in sixth place at the tour
nament, finishing just one
point behind Ole Miss at
the fifth spot.
Georgia-Auburn game
time announced
The Bulldogs, who face
off against the rival
Auburn Tigers on Nov. 13,
will square off at 3:30 p.m.
on CBS in Jordan-Hare
Stadium in Auburn. Ala.
The annual game,
known as the South’s
Oldest Rivalry, will feature
two teams at opposite
ends of the competitive
spectrum.
While Georgia has
struggled through its
worst season under Mark
Richt, the Tigers are
eqjoying national promi
nence under second-year
head coach Gene Chizik.
Georgia has won four
consecutive games against
Auburn, with the Tigers
holding the overall series
53-52-8.
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SEAN FRANCIS TAYLOR ITuhct Bun
▲ Junior Kristie Krueger captured the
University’s second individual SEC cross coun
try title on Monday with her time of 20:41.25.
SPORTS
Transfer ‘ready* for
return to live action
Junior to be an
instant factor
By MITCH BLOMIRT
The Red & Black
Gerald Robinson hasn’t
played a single game for
the men’s basketball team
yet, but he’s no newcomer.
After sitting out for a
year due to NCAA transfer
rules, the junior guard is
eligible to play once again,
and ready to be
somewhere other
than the bench.
Robinson trans
ferred to Georgia
from Tennessee
State last year, forc
ing him to miss the
entire season.
He was allowed
to practice with the
team and attend
home games, but
not play.
Until now.
"I’m in a whole
different position,”
Robinson said.
“Last year I came
and practiced every
day, but this year I
won’t be sitting on
the sideline every
game in a jumpsuit.
I’m ready to go suit
up and contribute and help
us win.”
' Robinson was subject
to the numerous close
losses the Bulldogs suf
fered last season, and not
being able to do anything
about them only made sit
ting out harder to endure.
At scrimmages, his
teammates discussed how
much different things
could have been If
Robinson had been on the
court for some of the loss
es.
“It’s kind of hard to
watch a team lose, or even
if we’re winning, because
you want to be part of
that,” Robinson said. "I
definitely wish I could’ve
been out there a lot last
year.”
But a year away from
the action hasn’t made
anyone forget about the
6-foot-l Nashville
native.
Robinson’s on
court debut for the
Bulldogs is being
highly anticipated
by coaches and
teammates —and
even fans for good
reason, judging by
his career numbers.
In two years at
Tennessee State,
Robinson started
every game he
played but two,
scoring over 1,000
points in his Tiger
career.
Asa sophomore,
he led the Tigers
with 17.8 points per
game, earning a sec
ond-team Ohio
ROBINSON
Valley Conference
selection.
Despite playing for a
mid-major conference
team, he still excelled
against SEC opponents,
including a 25-point effort
against the perennial pow
erhouse Kentucky
Wildcats.
“He probably realized
he signed below where he
should’ve been out [of]
high school,” Georgia head
coach Mark Fox said. "I
think he’ll have a big
Impact on this team. I
hope that translates into
victories, but I do think
he’s a guy who is a talent
who should’ve been at this
level a couple of years
already.”
Robinson got the
chance to move to that
level at the end of the 2008-
2009 season, when
Tennessee State head
coach Cy Alexander was
dismissed from the team.
The coaching change,
along with two years of
success, made him realize
he was ready for a bigger
stage.
Robinson picked up
offers from Memphis,
Alabama, Marquette and
Georgia before picking the
Bulldogs.
“I always figured I could
play anywhere, coming out
of high school,” Robinson
said. “There really wasn’t
any doubt whether I could
play. I Just wanted to stay
close to home when I got
out of high school. My
coach got released at
Tennessee State, so by
bringing In anew coach, I
just kind of figured I would
see my options on a bigger
level.”
A year later, Robinson
has gotten everything he
could ask for.
He found the bigger
stage, and even has the
opportunity to play along
side two potential NBA
draft picks in Trey
Thompkins and Travis
Leslie.
Dubbed “the fastest
player he’s ever seen” by
Thompkins, Robinson has
a chance to be a starter for
a Bulldogs team expected
to Improve and contend
for a conference title this
season.
The hope Is that
Robinson will fill the much
needed role of a third scor
er for the Bulldogs, an
aspect the team lacked at
times last season.
"I think he has an
advantage over most first
year players in the fact
that he’s spent a year in
our program learning how
we want to play, where he
should get shots from and
where other people should
get shots from,” Fox said.
“He’s really worked to
become well-aware of what
we’re doing offensively.”
All that’s left for
Robinson to do is make his
official debut for Georgia
on Nov. 12 against
Mississippi Valley State
a date when the Stegeman
Coliseum crowd finds out
if sitting out a year made a
difference for him.
The time spent away
from in-game action was
not wasted, though,
Robinson is sure to point
out.
If anything it may just
help him even more.
“I think more so it
helped me with learning"
Robinson said. “I'm glad I
got to sit back and just
leam a lot."