DATE: Sunday, October 5, 1997               TAG: 9710050169

SECTION: SPORTS                  PAGE: C7   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY VICKI L. FRIEDMAN, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: WILLIAMSBURG                      LENGTH:   50 lines

TOGETHERNESS IS KEMPSVILLE'S CHIEF ASSET SOLID FINISHES BRING SECOND PLACE IN THE W&M INVITATIONAL CROSS COUNTRY MEET.

A pack of girls running at you at full speed can be a tad intimidating.

That's exactly what the Kempsville cross country team is counting on.

The Chiefs' pack was good enough to run to a second-place finish in the A Division of Saturday's William and Mary Invitational despite having no runners placing among the top 10 individuals. The Chiefs, whose runners finished Nos. 15, 22, 26, 27 and 46, were three points behind winner James Robinson.

The Chiefs' Kelly Lawver said the team gets a real rush out of sticking together throughout a race.

``When we run together like that, it's just like practice,'' she said. ``We tell each other `good job' and `smart running' along the way. It's an indescribable feeling to hear your packmate say your name. It gives you a boost of energy.''

Lawver, Marcie Anderson, Erin Holmes, Sally Harrison and Meredith Lowrance gave Kempsville its highest finish at the meet since coach Kendall Tata was on the team in 1979. Lawver, Anderson, Holmes and Harrison are all among the area's top 10 runners, but having Lowrance , also a field hockey standout, was key to the high place.

``That fifth runner makes all the difference,'' Tata said. ``Meredith is part of the pack now.''

Centreville's Laura Heiner won the A race in 17 minutes, 17 seconds, and Tallwood's Pam Edwards was fourth in 17:57. Edwards, the area's top female runner, had just competed against the same competition last week at the state course in Great Meadows. Fourth there also, Edwards said she needs to get off to a better start.

``It would be really good to run up there with them,'' Edwards said, referring to the leaders. ``In track you're so close together. I wish I could get a feel of running up there with them.''

Ocean Lakes' Mary Clifford was fifth in the girls C race despite losing her way on the course. She said the misdirection added about 20 seconds to her final time of 20:03.

``I don't know if I would have won it, but I would have been close,'' Clifford said.

The Chiefs' Josh Kagan was the top male finisher at No. 28 in the A race, and Princess Anne's Kevin Rhue was 33rd. Kellam, which is probably the strongest boys local team, did not participate in the event.

Fork Union's Ryan Davis won the boys A race in 15:24, and Robinson won the team competition. Kempsville finished 18th, followed by Princess Anne (22) and Tallwood (23).

Granby's Delano Harris won the boys C race in 16:17. Cox's Todd West and Garth Fry finished eighth and ninth respectively in the C race.

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