Full Incoming Class for 2019 Announced by Michigan Women
8/10/2018 11:57:00 AM | Women's Cross Country, Women's Track & Field
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Head coaches James Henry and Jerry Clayton of the University of Michigan track and field and cross country program announced on Friday (Aug.10) the full contingent of 20 student-athletes who represent the first women's incoming class that will train exclusively at the new U-M Athletics South Competition and Performance Center.
In addition to seven women who signed National Letters of Intent in November of 2017 -- Maddie Brand, Anne Forsyth, Jessi Larson, Aurora Rynda, Amanda Schaare, Olivia Theis and Megan Worrel -- 13 more women, including a pair of transfers, have committed to joining the Wolverines starting in the 2018-19 academic year.
Henry, Clayton and the rest of the program are excited to welcome into the U-M family transfers Anna West (Baylor) and Kendall Hacker (Purdue), and incoming first-year Wolverines Chika Amene, Charlotte Cochrane, Katherine Forsyth, Eva Jansohn, Theresa Mayanja, Sydney McGinley, Jessica Mercier, Meghan Monaghan, Hannah Palomino, Samantha Saenz, and Gabby Swider.
Together from across five different states and Canada, they form an impressive corps that has been lauded nationally.
By Flotrack, Michigan is ranked as the No. 1 distance recruiting class in the nation, and by Milesplit as both the No. 2 women's recruiting class of the early signing period and part of the No. 6 overall recruiting class nationally (taking into account both men and women).
"This new class of talent coming into our program is exciting not just for how large it is, but also because of its amazing depth and balance across the event groups," Henry said. "Given what these young women achieved at the high school level, I expect this group of future Wolverines to make an immediate and long-lasting impact on Michigan track and field and cross country."
All told, those 20 women combined to win 32 high school state titles in track and field and/or cross country, with no fewer than eight among them having competing at the prestigious New Balance National track and field meet either indoors and/or outdoors -- including national champions in the Troy High School relay trio of Worrel, Palomino, and Monaghan; and runners-up in Theis and Forsyth.
West, meanwhile, enters with collegiate All-American credentials already to her name with a 40th-place finish at the NCAA Cross Country Championships last fall.
Led by head cross country coach and distance coach Mike McGuire, the incoming crop of endurance runners is particularly strong. With much of the corps that finished as the NCAA Cross Country national runners-up in 2016 having already graduated or set to compete one final time this upcoming year, the Wolverines have taken advantage of the opportunity to reload.
"With such a large and accomplished group of seniors finishing their Michigan careers this past year, we really had a chance to add a tremendous new class to the young and talented group that will be taking over on the distance side of things," McGuire said. "I think that with everyone we've brought in with this class, we've built a strong foundation to continue our legacy of excellence both in competition and in the classroom.
Not only will this class be adding to the long, storied legacy of Michigan track and field and cross country, they will also be part of the newest chapter of that story as the first class to exclusively compete and train for the full duration of their collegiate careers in the state-of-the-art indoor and outdoor facilities set to open this winter. Though last year's class will have competed in the new facility for all of their careers, they spent the fall in the previous indoor facility and part of the spring at old Ferry Field as construction concluded at the Athletics South Competition and Performance Center.
"For a long time the members of previous incoming classes were only able to look at renderings of the new facility and follow along with the progress of its construction from afar," Clayton said. "This year they were able to come in and see our new world-class home for themselves in person, and that, combined with Michigan's history as both an athletics and academics powerhouse, really made a difference."
They will have the advantage of utilizing the nation's only indoor facility that features both a hydraulically banked 200-meter track that features the same surface as that used for the track at the 2016 IAAF World Indoor Championships in Portland, Oregon, and a 300-meter practice track running along the inner perimeter of the facility.
The building also features large, open-air throwing bays on the south side of the facility in addition to spacious runways for pole vaulting and jumps events.
With work on the new outdoor track adjacent to the indoor building also complete as of this spring, this incoming class will also be the first to train and compete exclusively at that venue.
Information on all 20 incoming recruits can be found below. More detailed information on each can be found by clicking through to their MGoBlue.com biography pages.
Chika Amene -- Southfield, Mich. / Southfield Christian -- Sprints
Six-time MHSAA Division 4 state champion ... Swept the 100-, 200-, and 400-meter events at the 2018 state championships ... Among Michigan high schoolers in 2018, ranked No. 11 at 400 meters, No. 15 at 200 meters, and No. 21 at 100 meters.
Maddie Brand -- Middletown, N.J. / Middletown South -- Distance
Five-time NJSIAA Meet of Champions qualifier in track, including an individual title at 1,600 meters in 2018 ... Finished 15th in the New Balance Nationals Outdoor mile in 2018 ... Among all high schoolers nationally, ranked No. 9 indoors at 1,600 meters and No. 96 at 1,600 meters outdoors ... In the state of New Jersey, ranked No. 2 at 1,600 meters indoors and No. 5 at 1,600 meters outdoors
Charlotte Cochrane -- Little Silver, N.J. / Red Bank Regional -- Distance
Finished sixth over 3,200 meters at the 2018 NJSIAA Meet of Champions ... Among New Jersey high schoolers in 2018, ranked No. 7 at 3,200 meters and No. 21 at 1,600 meters outdoors ... Two-time top-40 finisher at NJSIAA Cross Country Meet of Championships
Anne Forsyth -- Ann Arbor, Mich. / Pioneer -- Distance
Three-time MHSAA Division 1 state champion in track ... Broke MHSAA State Championships record for 3,200 meters ... Runner-up in the mile at the 2017 New Balance Nationals Outdoor meet and third at the 2017 New Balance Nationals Indoors in the mile ... Finalist at the 2017 Commonwealth Youth Games ... Ranked nationally No. 8 at 3,200 meters outdoors, No. 19 in the mile indoors, No. 22 at 1,600 meters indoors, and No. 31 at 1600 meters outdoors ... Fifth-place finisher at the 2016 Foot Locker Cross Country National Championships after winning the Foot Locker Midwest Regional ... Daughter of former U-M national champion Ian Forsyth and former U-M cross country team captain Jessica Kluge
Katherine Forsyth -- Royal Oak, Mich. / Royal Oak -- Distance
Two-time MHSAA State Championships qualifier at 800 meters ... Among Michigan high schoolers in 2018, ranked No. 8 indoors at 800 meters and No. 18 at 800 meters outdoors
Kendall Hacker -- Purdue Transfer -- Pacifica, Calif. / St. Ignatius -- Distance
Finished 29th at the 2015 NCAA Great Lakes Regional Championships in cross country ... Two-time top-40 finisher at the Big Ten Cross Country Championships (2014, 2015)
Eva Jansohn -- Rochester, Mich. / Rochester Adams -- Distance
Finished 16th at the 2018 MHSAA State Championships at 800 meters ... Younger sister of current Wolverine Carola Jansohn
Jessi Larson -- Saline, Mich. / Saline -- Distance
Three-time MHSAA State Championships qualifier at 3,200 meters, taking 14th place during the 2017 season ... Finished 14th and 18th in the 5,000 meters and two mile, respectively, at the 2016 New Balance Nationals Indoor meet ... Four-time qualifier for the MHSAA State Championships with a pair of top-four finishes
Theresa Mayanja -- Bothell, Wash. / Bothell -- Multi-Events
Finished fourth in the 2017 USATF Region 13 Junior Olympic Championships in the heptathlon ... Qualified to the 2017 WIAA State Championships in both the 100-meter and 300-meter hurdles
Sydney McGinley -- Hallandale, Fla. / Hallandale -- Hurdles
Two-time FHSAA 2A state champion in the hurdles in 2018, winning both the 100-meter hurdles and the 300-meter hurdles, to go along with another state title in the 4x400 relay ... Finished 23rd at the 2018 New Balance Nationals Outdoor in the 100-meter hurdles and 31st in the 400-meter hurdles ... Among all high schoolers nationally in 2018, ranked No. 18 in the 300-meter hurdles and No. 19 in the 100-meter hurdles under all conditions
Jessica Mercier -- White Lake, Mich. / Waterford Kettering -- Pole Vault
2018 MHSAA state champion in the pole vault ... Three-time top-five finisher in the pole vault at the MHSAA State Championships, including a runner-up finish in 2017 ...Ranked tied for 14th nationally in the pole vault and No. 1 in the state of Michigan ... In Michigan high school history, only two women have cleared higher bars than Mercier's 13-3 clearance in 2018
Meghan Monaghan -- Troy, Mich. / Troy -- Distance
Ran a leg of the national champion 4 x Mile relay at the 2018 New Balance Nationals Indoor and a leg of the fourth-place distance medley relay ... Three-time qualifier for the MHSAA State Championships in cross country
Hannah Palomino -- Troy, Mich. / Troy -- Distance
Ran a leg of the national champion 4 x Mile relay at the 2018 New Balance Nationals Indoor and a leg of the fourth-place distance medley and 4x800 relays ... Two-time MHSAA State Championships qualifier at 800 meters, finishing ninth in 2017
Aurora Rynda -- Toronto, Ontario / Lawrence Park -- Distance
Bronze medalist at the 2017 Commonwealth Youth Games at 800 meters for Canada ... Member of Team Canada for the 2018 IAAF World Junior Championships ... Top-ranked U20 athlete in the world in the indoor 600 meters for 2018 (regular and oversized tracks) ... 2017 OFSAA champion at 800 meters ... Ranked No. 2 all-time at 800 meters in Canadian history among U18 athletes
Samantha Saenz -- Concord, Mich. / Concord -- Distance
Claimed three MHSAA Division 4 State Championships individual titles in 2018, winning the 800-meter, 1,600-meter and 3,200-meter titles ... Five-time state champion overall, with her 2018 title at 1,600 meters capping a streak of three consecutive years winning the event ... In cross country, won the state title as a senior in 2017, finished third in 2016, took seventh in 2015 and took 22nd as a freshman in 2014
Amanda Schaare -- Clinton, Mich. / Clinton -- Throws
Two-time MHSAA Division 3 state champion in the discus and four-time state qualifier in the shot put ... Won the discus title and finished runner-up in the shot put at the 2018 state championships ... Ranked third in the state of Michigan among high schoolers in the discus and No. 6 in the shot put
Gabby Swider -- New Hudson, Mich. / Livonia -- Distance
Three-time individual qualifier to the MHSAA State Championships, twice at 800 meters and once at 1,600 meters ... Finished seventh over 1,600 meters at the 2018 state championships and 14th at 800 meters
Olivia Theis -- Lansing, Mich. / Lansing Catholic -- Distance
State Championship record-holder at 1,600 meters for MHSAA Division 3 and at 3,200 meters for both divisions 2 and 3 ... Three-time MHSAA state champion ... 2017 New Balance Nationals Outdoor two-mile runner-up and 2018 sixth-place finisher ... Ranked No. 3 nationally at 3,200 meters among all high schoolers in 2018, and No. 12 over two miles ... Third-place finisher at 2017 Foot Locker Nationals, trailing only Erin Finn's runner-up finish as the best Foot Locker Nationals result by an incoming recruit ... Won the 2017 Foot Locker Midwest Regional and the MHSAA Division 2 State Championship titles ... Broke the all-divisions MHSAA state championships record on the Michigan International Speedway
Anna West -- Wildwood, Mo. / Lafayette (Wildwood) -- Distance
Earned All-America honors with a 40th-place finish at the 2017 NCAA Cross Country Championships after finishing runner-up at the Big 12 Championships and third at the NCAA South Central Regional ... Seven-time top-eight scorer at the Big 12 track and field championships ... Won four MSHSAA state titles in high school, including three in track and one in cross country ... Placed 13th at the 2015 Nike Cross Nationals
Megan Worrel -- Troy, Mich. / Troy -- Distance
Ran a leg of the national champion 4 x Mile relay at the 2018 New Balance Nationals Indoor and a leg of the fourth-place distance medley relay and 4x800 relay ... Finished 12th in the championships section of the 800 meters at the 2018 New Balance Nationals Indoor ... Three-time MHSAA State Championships qualifier over 800 meters, finishing runner-up in 2017, fifth in 2018 and sixth in 2016 ... Among high schoolers nationally, she ranked No. 15 indoors at 800 meters and No. 87 outdoors
Players Mentioned
