Weekly Release #8
10/29/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Cross Country
Upcoming Schedule
Sunday, Nov. 3 -- at Big Ten Championships (West Lafayette, Ind.), 10:45 a.m.
Saturday, Nov. 16 -- at NCAA Great Lakes Regional (West Lafayette, Ind.), 11 a.m.
This Week: Big Ten Championships ...
The University of Michigan women's cross country team will travel to the campus of Purdue University for the Big Ten Conference Championships in West Lafayette, Ind. The Wolverines will take to the paths on Varsity Cross Country Course Sunday morning (Nov. 3) at 10:45 a.m. Under head coach Mike McGuire the Maize and Blue has finished in the top two in nine of his 10 years at the helm.
Last Time on the Path: EMU Classic ...
The Wolverines received personal bests from both harriers wearing the Maize and Blue last Friday (Oct. 25) at the EMU Classic held in Ann Arbor's Buhr Park. Freshman Jennifer Leichtman (Ann Arbor, Mich./Greenhills HS) lowered her 5,000-meter personal best by 32 seconds as she completed the course in 19:35 for ninth place. Redshirt freshman Erika Flannery (Perry, Mich./Perry HS) also posted a career time with her 13th-place finish in 20:08.
Michigan at the Big Ten Championships ...
Michigan is the owner of three Big Ten championships, having reeled off titles in consecutive years from 1992 through 1994. Since that time, the Wolverines have been on the brink of their fourth title with six straight second-place finishes from 1997 to 2001, including the 1998 race when they finished just five points shy of Wisconsin for the conference team title.
Last Year at the Big Ten Championships ...
The Wolverines finished runner-up last season at the Big Ten Championships in Champagne, Ill., behind All-Big Ten performances by Lindsey Gallo (Freehold, N.J./Howell HS) and Jeanne Spink (Chelsea, Mich./Chelsea HS). Gallo ran to a seventh overall finish to garner first team conference while Spink ran a personal best to place 13th and second team honors.
Returning Big Ten Scorers ...
Michigan returns six harriers who scored at the Big Ten Championships last year with junior Lindsey Gallo, a first-team All-Big Ten runner, leading the way with a seventh-place performance at 17:26.7. Also returning are senior team captain and second-team All-Big Ten runner Jeanne Spink, senior Jane Martineau (Mt. Pleasant, Mich./Mt. Pleasant HS), junior Andrea Parker (Livonia, Mich./Stevenson HS) and sophomore Chelsea Loomis (Traverse City, Mich./West HS).
So Far This Year ...
In three of her four meets this season, junior Lindsey Gallo has led the Wolverines across the finish line. Gallo, a first team All-Big Ten performer last year, has three top 10 finishes, including a personal-best time of 17:20 for sixth at the Sundodger Invitational (Sept. 21). Freshman Rebecca Walter (Beverly Hills, Mich./Groves HS) was Michigan's top finisher at the NCAA Pre-National meet two-weeks ago in Terre Haute, Ind., when she placed 35th with a personal-best 21:22 on the 6,000-meter course. Walter also has a fifth place finish at the Running-Fit Detroit Mercy Invitational she crossed the line at 18:31 in her first collegiate race.
Adding to the Michigan depth is junior Andrea Parker who has two top 10 finishes in her four races this season as she placed third (18:17) at the Detroit Mercy Invite and eighth at the Sundodger Invite (17:25). Also contributing for the Maize and Blue are senior team captain Jeanne Spink, and Jane Martineau who set personal bests on a 5,000-meter course with time of 17:47 and 17:38 at the Sundodger, respectively.
In the Polls ...
No poll was released the week of Oct. 28 as teams prepare for their respective conference championships. Thusly, the Wolverines remained as the nation's No. 24th-ranked team.
No. Team Region Pts. Prev. 1. Brigham Young (11) MT 388 1 2. Stanford (2) W 379 2 3. Colorado MT 364 4 4. Wake Forest SE 347 26 5. Georgetown MA 335 5 6. North Carolina State SE 327 6 7. Northern Arizona MT 302.5 21 8. Notre Dame GL 300.5 13 9. Wisconsin GL 279 9 10. Arkansas SC 269 10 11. Missouri MW 259 20 12. Columbia NE 253 12 13. Duke SE 239 11 14. Providence NE 219 7 15. North Carolina SE 215 14 16. Virginia SE 201 16 17. Arizona State W 181 8 18. Indiana GL 165 -- 19. UCLA W 156 17 20. Marquette GL 138 23 21. William & Mary SE 122 24 22. Villanova MA 119 19 23. Michigan State GL 109 3 24. MICHIGAN GL 94 18 25. Washington W 77 28 26. Toledo GL 65 -- 27. Northwestern GL 41 -- 28. Texas SC 38 -- 29. Colorado State MT 24 25 30. Boston College NE 22 15Also Receiving Votes: Penn State, S.W. Missouri State, Dartmouth and Yale
The Mike McGuire File ...
Mike McGuire is in his 11th season as a head coach for the Michigan women's cross country team. McGuire led the Wolverines to three straight victories in 2002, with wins at the Running Fit Detroit Mercy Invitational (Sept. 7), Mel Brodt Invitational (Sept. 14) and the Sundodger Invitational (Sept. 21). In his first four seasons, McGuire won three consecutive Big Ten Conference and NCAA District IV championships, and finished as high as second at the 1994 NCAA National Championship. All told, McGuire's Michigan teams have nine top-two finishes at the Big Ten Championships and eight top-two finishes at the regional championships, winning the regional meet in 1993, '94 and '95. His teams have finished among the nation's top 10 five times at the NCAA Championships.
Up Next ...
The Maize and Blue return to West Lafayette, Ind. for the 6,000-meter Great Lakes Regional. The race will be held on the same course as this week's Big Ten Championships and will get under way at 11 a.m.
Contact: Gene Skidmore, 734-647-4237
Players Mentioned
