May 19, 2000

COLUMBIA, MO. - Buoyed by point scoring efforts from distance runners Kristen Koppes and Evette Turner, the Texas Tech Red Raider women's track & field team is in eighth place with 4 points after the first day of competition at the Big 12 Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Columbia, Mo. The men's team is still scoreless at the end of Friday's events.

Koppes finished in seventh place in the women's 10,000 meter run with a time of 35:41.14, her best time of the season in the event. Turner placed seventh in the women's 3,000-meter run. Her time of 9:36.98 was just a shade shy of an NCAA provisional qualifying mark of 9:36.00. Both athletes earned 2 points for their efforts.

The best ever finish at the Big 12 meet for the Tech women came last season when they scored 31 points and finished in a tie for 10th place.