Ocean’s Grant Signs Letter of Intent to Georgia Tech
By ANDREW CANGIANO
Ocean Township High School senior Tiffany Grant is going places…fast.
She recently signed a letter of intent to attend Georgia Institute of Technology, as she has received a full athletic scholarship to run track and field for the yellow jackets.
Ray Elms, the sprinting coach at Ocean, said Grant is a unique athlete, who approaches each meet with a seriousness most high school athletes dont.
He said that even as a freshman Grant had dreams about what she wanted to accomplish and was very focused.
Tiffany is a unique athlete, said Elms. Shes mature beyond her years.
Shes a leader on the team, because she leads by example, he added.
Elms said he has been blessed to coach an athlete with her ability and determination.
Tiffany Grant of Ocean Township is pictured signing her national letter of intent to the Georgia Institute of Technology. Seated to her left and right are her parents Linda and Lamar Grant. Behind her on the left is Oceans sprint coach Ray Elms and to the right is Oceans Girls Track Coach Sue Henderson.
Grant, who was being courted by other top Division I-A universities, including Texas, Notre Dame, and South Carolina, said she had whittled her decision down to two schools: Georgia Tech and Notre Dame.
Her brother, Lamar Grant, who played football at Duke University, helped in the decision making process, she said.
In fact, her older brother teaches and coaches track at Mundys Mill High School in Jonesboro, Georgia, located about 20 minutes from Georgia Techs campus.
When he heard that Tiffany was being recruited by Georgia Tech, he contacted the schools sprint coach AuDrey Dempsey-Branch.
Having her older brother nearby is one of the main reasons Grant decided to head south for school.
Another was the facilities at Georgia Tech, which Grant said were amazing.
Finally, was the warm weather in the southern United States, where winters are milder than in South Bend, Indiana (where Notre Dame is located).
I cant stand the cold at all, Grant said.
Grant said that she plans to major in accounting while at Georgia Tech.
She said she would like to go to the Olympics one day, but is first and foremost focused on getting an education.
Education is the most important thing to me right now, she said. [The olympics] would just be the icing on the cake.
Grant, who specializes in the 400 meter dash, won the event at the 2005 Monmouth County Championships, Shore Conference Championships, and Central Jersey Group III Meet to advance to the New Jersey Meet of Champions.
At the Meet of Champions she won the state championship in the 400 meters outright with a time of 54.34 – her personal best.
She also won the 400 meters at the Golden West Invitational in Sacramento, CA with a time of 55.3 seconds, she said.
In June, she finished seventh in the 400 meters at the Nike Outdoor Nationals in North Carolina with a time of 54.57.
Grant also runs the 200 and the 800 for Ocean Township as well.
Her goal by the end of the upcoming spring track season is to get her time in the 400 down to 52 seconds.
Read more about your town by picking up The Coaster at your local newsstand or subscribe today.
Published every Thursday.
