FLORENCE, SC – Bowling Green product Kelly May has opened her collegiate cross country running career in good fashion with a pair of top-five finishes.

    May is a freshman on the Francis Marion University women’s cross country team.  FMU, located in Florence, S.C., is a member of the NCAA Division II Peach Belt Conference.

    In her first two meets, May has been the top Francis Marion finisher.  She paced the Patriots with a second-place finish in the Division II portion of the University of South Carolina Gamecock Invitational, held Sept. 2 in Columbia, S.C.  She toured the 5,000-meter course in 20:16.78 and helped FMU to a second-place showing in the Division II team standings.

    This past weekend (Sept. 10), May finished fourth at the UNC Pembroke Invitational Meet in Lumberton, N.C.   She completed the 5,000-meter race in season-best time of 20:08.01, while FMU placed fourth in the team standings.  Only two Patriot runners in the history of the program have run a faster time than May’s performance.

    “I am very pleased with Kelly’s performance,” said FMU head coach Mark Bluman.  “She put in a lot of hard work during the 2005 summer, and these early returns are just the tip of the iceberg.  By the end of this season, I feel as though she could threaten the school record (for a 5,000-meter event) and could possibly make the All-Conference team.”

    Francis Marion will return to action on Sept. 24 when the Patriots host the FMU Invitational Meet.

    May is a graduate of Bowling Green High School.