Michigan
Pre-National Invitational
Pre-Nationals on Deck for Wolverine Women
10/16/2019 5:55:00 PM | Women's Cross Country
» The No. 7-ranked Wolverine women will face their last big challenge ahead of the postseason with a four-way top-10 matchup against No. 2 BYU, No. 3 Colorado and No. 8 Washington at the Pre-National Invitational at Indiana State on Saturday (Oct. 19).
» National Athlete of the Week and three-time Big Ten Athlete of the Week Ericka VanderLende also will face another tough test individually as she continues to establish herself as one of the nation's best.
THIS WEEK
Saturday, Oct. 19 -- at Pre-National Invitational (Terre Haute, Ind.)
Blue Race - 11 a.m. | Open Race - 1:30 p.m.
TV: FloTrack | Live Video | Live Results
• Social Media: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
For the second time this season, the No. 7-ranked University of Michigan women's cross country team is set for a showdown at Indiana State against a national-class field, this time at the Pre-National Invitational on Saturday (Oct. 19) in Terre Haute, Indiana.
The Wolverines will take their best shot against the likes of No. 2 BYU, No. 3 Colorado and No. 8 Washington -- as well as six other teams ranked top-30 nationally -- in what will be their de facto regular-season finale ahead of the November postseason, which could culminate in Terre Haute for the NCAA Championships on Nov. 23.
Michigan's top seven entrants will contest the "Blue Race" at 11 a.m. over the rolling hills of the six-kilometer LaVern Gibson Championship Course circuit. The remaining Wolverine runners will showcase the program's depth in the open race at 1:30 p.m.
Among those Wolverines who are entered to compete in either race are All-American Camille Davre, Micaela DeGenero, Alice Hill, Kathryn House, Kayla Keane, Jena Metwalli, Raquel Powers, Faith Reynolds, Emma Sloan, Maddy Trevisan, three-time Big Ten Athlete of the Week and Sept. 30 USTFCCCA National Athlete of the Week Ericka VanderLende and All-American Anna West.
The lineup largely could be the same as when the Wolverines took fourth in a close team battle almost a month ago at the John McNichols Invitational (Sept. 21) on this same course. With a month of training under their belts and an extra kilometer in the race, the Wolverine women are primed for an improved performance.
In addition to its top-10 opposition in BYU, Colorado and Washington, Michigan also will have to contend with co-No. 11s Boise State and Florida State, No. 17 Ole Miss, No. 26 Boston College and No. 30 Oklahoma State. Also in the race are Indiana, Butler and Virginia Tech squads that are in the "also receiving votes" category.
VanderLende, who is the nation's No. 2-ranked freshman per FloTrack (No. 17 overall), also will get another opportunity to test herself against national-level competition. Among those she could face are FloTrack No. 4 Erica Birk and No. 8 Whittni Orton of BYU; No. 12 Joyce Kimeli of Auburn; top-ranked freshman No. 16 Melany Smart of Washington; No. 20 Ester Gitahi of Alabama; and No. 22 Jessica Drop of Georgia, among others.
Follow the races on the live stream hosted on FloTrack's subscription streaming service, as well as by live results provided by PrimeTime Timing. Live updates will also be provided on the program's official Twitter account, @UMichTrack.
Things to Know
• Led by reigning Great Lakes Region and Big Ten Coach of the Year Mike McGuire, Michigan checked in at No. 7 in the latest regular-season National Coaches' Poll and remained No. 1 in the NCAA Great Lakes Regional rankings announced Tuesday (Oct. 7) and Monday (Oct. 8), respectively. by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
• The Wolverines have claimed six of the last seven regional titles and are in the midst of the third-longest active NCAA Championships qualifying streak in the nation at 17 years running.
• With a fourth straight NCAA Great Lakes Regional title last fall, Michigan owns the longest win streak in region history. The top two teams in the region automatically will advance to the NCAA Championships.
• In addition to its No. 7 rank in the USTFCCCA National Coaches' Poll, the Wolverines also checked in at No. 5 in Flotrack's rankings and at No. 8 per The Stride Report.
• Just three races into her collegiate career, VanderLende already has established herself as one of the most decorated in school history. The owner of three Big Ten Athlete of the Week awards and the program's first-ever USTFCCCA National Athlete of the Week honor, VanderLende trails only Erin Finn (nine) and Katie McGregor (four) on the all-time tally of conference honors by Wolverines.
• VanderLende ran 16:40.1 for the fastest 5K time by a Michigan woman at Indiana State -- site of numerous NCAA and top-tier regular-season meets -- by more than 20 seconds in mid-September. She could make more history this Saturday, as only two women in school history have ever gone faster than 20:20 in Pre-Nationals races at Indiana State. The overall freshman meet record at Indiana State is 20:13.2 by Laura Hoer of NC State in 2010. Erin Finn is the fastest Michigan freshman on the course, having run 20:33.8 in 2013.
• The pack behind VanderLende has been strong in each of the two major regular-season races in September at Indiana State and Ohio State. Kathryn House is in the midst of a breakthrough season with strong 12th- and sixth-place efforts at those meets. She was Michigan's No. 2 runner in both meets.
• House likely will be joined by former All-American Anna West for the first time this season. West is set to make her competitive 2019 debut after finishing runner-up at the season-opening Michigan Open. West was Michigan's No. 6 runner at the NCAA Championships last November with a 92nd-place finish.
• After missing the 2018 campaign with injury, team captain Maddy Trevisan has consistently shown she is back and as good as ever. Trevisan has been Michigan's No. 3 runner in all three races this year, finishing 14th at the competitive Indiana State meet and ninth at Ohio State.
• Michigan also will look to get repeat breakthrough efforts from Micaela DeGenero and Jena Metwalli, who were the Wolverines' Nos. 4 and 5 runners at Ohio State.
• Michigan fans should also keep an eye on Alice Hill, who was the winner of the open race at Pre-Nationals a year ago when it was held at Wisconsin.
• Michigan was deeper than any other team at Indiana State with nine runners finishing in the top 40. The Wolverines ran well as a pack, with only eight seconds separating No. 4 runner Hill from No. 8 runner Emma Sloan.
A Look Ahead
Saturday, Oct. 25 -- at Eastern Michigan Fall Classic (Dexter, Mich.), 5 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 3 -- at Big Ten Championships (Columbus, Ohio), 11:45 a.m.
Players Mentioned
