June 14, 2008

NEW ORLEANS - Tulane University women's track and field head coach Heather Van Norman announced the signing of six high school seniors - Raquelle Collins, Kelly Curtis, Annette Glaz, Johanna Gretschel, Kasey Rodgers and Ana Ruzevic - to her squad for the 2008-09 season.

Van Norman nabbed a variety of athletes to add depth to her team, covering the areas of sprints, middle distance, long distance, throws, jumps and multi-events. The six signees join a young and talented Green Wave roster that sent five athletes to the outdoor NCAA Mideast Regional, one to the NCAA Indoor Championships and placed ninth at the cross country NCAA South Central Regional Championship during the 2007-08 academic year.

"When we looked at what we needed to recruit, we looked at where can we score points in the conference, number one, and where can we get people to put us on the national level, and where are our weaknesses - where we need to gain ground and score points at the conference level," said Van Norman on how she and her staff established the diverse signing class. "In other words, if we don't have any entries in the middle distance, or dominant sprinter or jumper, then we're losing points. So, when we sat down at this time last year, we made a chart and we said, `OK, where are we missing (athlete in events) and where do we need to go?' Throws, jumps and middle distance were our huge things. We really focused this year on jumps, distance and throwing - and we got them. These are people who are going to come in and help us out right away. We achieved our goals."

Collins will add depth to the jumps and hurdle events for the Wave. A native of nearby New Iberia, La., and New Iberia High School, Collins won the Class 5A state championship in the 100-meter hurdles as a senior, and also claimed several top-three finishes at the Louisiana high school state championships in the jumps in her career. She sports a personal-best long jump of 19 feet, 1.5 inches.

"Raquel Collins is somebody who is from the state of Louisiana, and when I watched her at the state meet, I was really, really impressed by her," Van Norman said. "She has a lot of heart and a lot of integrity when she competes, and she's definitely a competitor at heart. She comes from a great family. New Iberia is well-known for having fantastic athletes in that area. She's going to be a great addition for our team in the jumps and the hurdles."

Curtis, who hails from Princeton, N.J., and Lawrenceville High School, will provide much-needed depth in the multi-events for the Green Wave - the indoor pentathlon, outdoor heptathlon and various field events. Her personal bests include a 5 foot, 4 inch high jump, 106-06 javelin throw, a 17-08 long jump, 36-06 triple jump, and a 100m hurdle time of 15.6 seconds.

"Kelly is a basketball player also, and this year she really started concentrating on track and field," Van Norman said. "She is really developing as a heptathlete. She is somebody who is going to do a lot for us in that multi's area, and as well I think she could really do well in the jumps."

Glaz comes to Tulane from Palos Hills, Ill., and Stagg High School, where she won the Nike Midwest Region Cross Country meet, setting a course record in the process. She led her team to its first ever appearance in the Illinois state cross country meet, where she placed fourth individually. Glaz also twice qualified for the state championships in the 3,200-meter run, and figures to add depth to the cross country team and run the long distance races on the track.

"Annette, when you look on a piece of paper is a very sought-after high school athlete," Van Norman said. "She's done a fantastic job. Her primary is the 3,200m run, so she can do many things as far as the distance area. I think that she is extremely talented. She is going to be very impressive. Every year I've been here (at Tulane), with the exception of the Hurricane season, we've had a freshman of the year, and that is something I really take pride in. We will be looking to Annette to fill those shoes. She's going to be really, really good. We're looking at her to make a direct impact."

Gretschel is a middle distance runner from Silver Spring, Md., and attended Montgomery Blair High School, where she twice qualified for the state championships in the 1,600-meter run. At Tulane she will run cross country and compete on the track in the 800m, 1,500m and 3,000m, providing important depth in the middle distances and run with the indoor distance medley relay team.

"Johanna is going to add critical depth (to the middle distances)," Van Norman said. "We need to start filling the field between the 800m and the 1,500m runs. Johanna is the one that will come in here and is going to help fill that middle-distance gap that we're missing. That is crucial, especially for the indoor season where you have the distance medley and some areas that we could do very well in on a conference level." -more- Tulane Track and Field Signing Class

Rodgers, a native of Elk Grove, Calif., and Franklin High School, is a sprinter who placed third in the prestigious California state championship meet in the 100m as a senior. She has personal records of 11.86 in the 100m and 24.53 in the 200m.

"Kasey is our freshman sprinter, and is doing a heck of a job," Van Norman said. "She was at what is called the Masters level with track and field out in California, and she ended up winning the Masters. Kasey has gone 11.7 (seconds in the 100m) before. She is definitely a 100-meter sprinter. When you talk about the loss of (Gloria) Asumnu, and you need someone that can come in and help out - that's Kasey. Her dad is Dell Rodgers who used to be a San Francisco 49er, her mom was a pretty prestigious swimmer, her brother played football at Utah - she comes from a very athletic family, and a family that understands what commitment, determination and perseverance truly means. I'm looking forward to working with her."

Ruzevic hails from Split, Croatia, and will compete in the throws for the Green Wave. She was a 2007 silver medalist at the Croatian Championships, and in the same year was the No. 1 ranked junior javelin thrower in Croatia. She is a member of the Croatian Junior National team and has a personal record javelin throw of 48.45 meters (158 feet, 11.50 inches).

"Ana was our first signee this year. If you look at her throws, she is already throwing national qualifying throws. She really pops out at you on a piece of paper. She is one of the top javelin throwers and I think she is going to come in here and really make an impact on this team in the throws area. I think she and Kat (Katarina Busljeta) together are really going to help get Tulane's name back on the (conference scoring) boards as far as the throws. I am really excited about Ana."

Tulane's 2008-09 season begins on Aug. 29 with its home cross country meet - the Green Wave Invitational - held at City Park in New Orleans. For all Green Wave track and field news, notes and stories, visit www.TulaneGreenWave.com.

Name	Cl.	Exp.	Hometown	High School/Previous School
Raquelle Collins	Fr.	HS	New Iberia, La.	New Iberia HS
Kelly Curtis	Fr.	HS	Princeton, N.J.	Lawrenceville HS
Annette Glaz	Fr.	HS	Palos Hills, Ill.	Stagg HS
Johanna Gretschel	Fr.	HS	Silver Spring, Md.	Montgomery Blair HS
Kasey Rodgers	Fr.	HS	Elk Grove, Calif.	Franklin HS
Ana Ruzevic	Fr.	HS	Split, Croatia	Secondary School in Economics and Clerical Trades

*based on their classification for the 2008-09 academic year