Michigan
Pre-National Invitational
Top-5 Clash Looms for U-M at Saturday's Pre-Nationals
10/12/2017 10:07:00 AM | Women's Cross Country
» The No. 4 Wolverines will get a rematch against last season's NCAA Champion, No. 2 Oregon, as well as top-ranked Colorado. In total, seven other top-30 teams are in the field.
» Gina Sereno, Jamie Morrissey and the Wolverines will get a preview of the course in Louisville, Kentucky, on which the NCAA Championships will be contested next month.
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THIS WEEK
Saturday, Oct. 14 -- Pre-National Invitational (E.P. "Tom" Sawyer State Park / Louisville, Ky.) 10:45 a.m.
Meet Central | Watch Live on Flotrack Pro | Live Results | Course Map
A top-ranked showdown on the same course that will host next month's NCAA Championships awaits the national No. 4-ranked University of Michigan women's cross country team this Saturday (Oct. 14) at the Pre-National Invitational in Louisville, Kentucky.
The Wolverines get their rematch against defending national champion, No. 2-ranked Oregon, in the six-kilometer (3.73-mile) race at E.P. "Tom" Sawyer State Park. At last season's national meet, U-M was runner-up to Oregon to by one point. Michigan will also a chance to take on reigning Pac-12 champion No. 1 Colorado and five other top-30 teams from the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) National Coaches' Poll.
The race, which will be the de facto regular-season finale for the Wolverines, is scheduled for 10:45 a.m. Another matchup between these three teams -- should they all advance -- plus the rest of the national field on this very course will take place Saturday, Nov. 18 at the NCAA Championships.
"We are entering the championship phase of the season," head coach Mike McGuire said. "It's not the Big Ten Championships yet, but this is our stepping stone into Big Tens. I thought we had a good test at Indiana two weeks ago but this will definitely be more of an exam.
"We're excited about the opportunity and we'll see how we go out and match up. I think if we can be competitive with the national powers, then it bodes well for what we're trying to do at Big Tens in a couple weeks."
In addition to the Wolverines, Ducks, and Buffaloes, the meet will also feature reigning SEC champion No. 9 Arkansas, No. 12 Ole Miss, No. 19 Utah State, No. 25 Georgia and No. 29 Mississippi State -- as well as vote-receiving rival Ohio State, reigning WCC champion Portland, reigning American Conference champion SMU, reigning OVC champion Eastern Kentucky and Texas.
Among that group are four of the six teams -- Michigan, Colorado, Oregon and Utah State -- that are undefeated against ranked opponents this season, though only one will survive into Saturday afternoon.
Michigan defeated Louisville and Indiana in its last two meets, while Colorado claimed the Notre Dame Joe Piane Invitational over No. 3 New Mexico, and Oregon won its home invitational against No. 5 Stanford. Utah State is coming off of a win at the Lehigh Paul Short Run.
In addition to testing themselves against some of the best teams in the nation, the Wolverines will also have the opportunity to acclimate themselves to the nuances of the NCAA Championships course in a national championships-caliber scenario.
Though a number of current Wolverines competed on the 2015 squad that won Pre-Nationals and finished sixth at the NCAA Championships at this same venue -- including this season's top two runners, Gina Sereno and Jamie Morrissey -- the course since has been reformatted ahead of this season's championships.
In contrast to the rolling hills with which the Wolverines contended two weekends ago at Indiana -- a characteristic shared by both the Big Ten and NCAA Great Lakes Regional courses in Bloomington, Indiana, and Terre Haute, Indiana, respectively -- the Louisville course is flatter and faster by comparison.
"They've rerouted the course from years past, but there's definitely still a premium on getting out fast in the race," McGuire said. "If you don't get out, then you'd better have some discipline to move through. We've had success getting out and we've had success moving through on that course over the years, but many of those individuals aren't here now. So it's a matter of the seven we line up going out and competing to the best of their abilities and competing the way they've prepared for."
Morrissey in particular is much improved from her last appearance in Louisville, when she finished 180th as the Wolverines' No. 7 runner at the 2015 NCAA Championships. In all three of her races this season -- the Michigan Open, Indiana State John McNichols Invitational and the Sam Bell Invitational -- she has finished as the overall individual runner-up all three times to All-Americans in teammate Sereno or Indiana's Katherine Receveur.
After two victories to open her campaign, Sereno will look to bounce back from a ninth-place finish at Indiana two weekends ago. The redshirt senior was 90th at NCAAs and 35th at Pre-Nats at this venue two years ago.
While Sereno and Morrissey have proven to be a potent 1-2 punch for the Wolverines this season, depth has also been a strength for the Maize and Blue. Following up on her spring steeplechase successes, redshirt junior Claire Borchers is much improved on the trails this fall. She was the Wolverines' No. 2 in their victory at Indiana two weekends ago.
"It was a conversation with Claire to say, 'Let's run cross country like a 9:56 steeplechaser,' and she's doing that and more," McGuire said.
Sophomore Madeline Trevisan has been steady as a rock as Michigan's No. 3 runner and is looking to build on her success as one of the top freshmen in the country last season. She was 46th at NCAAs, just missing the top-40 cutoff for All-America honors.
Returning All-American redshirt junior Avery Evenson and redshirt senior Haley Meier are both rounding into form. Both women have improved their standing in the Michigan lineup with each passing race.
With additional depth provided by former NCAA Championships competitor redshirt senior Sophie Linn, the Wolverines have the firepower to take on the nation's best.
THE FIELD
No. 1 Colorado, No. 2 Oregon, No. 4 Michigan, No. 9 Arkansas, No. 12 Ole Miss, No. 19 Utah State, No. 25 Georgia, No. 29 Mississippi State, Ohio State (receiving votes), Portland (RV), SMU (RV), Eastern Kentucky (RV), Texas (RV)
A LOOK AHEAD
Friday, Oct. 20 -- at Eastern Michigan Fall Classic (Dexter, Mich.)
Sunday, Oct. 29 -- at Big Ten Championships (Bloomington, Ind.)
Friday, Nov. 10 -- at NCAA Great Lakes Regional (Terre Haute, Ind.)
Saturday, Nov. 18 -- at NCAA Championships (Louisville, Ky.)
Tweet of the Week
Check out this week's Scholar Story on our own Sarah Zieve from the @fordschool & @MichiganRoss!
— Michigan T&F / XC (@UMichTrack) October 11, 2017
STORY: https://t.co/La7AtXOnzV pic.twitter.com/ujOfJwhiL6
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