For those who are interested, here's a quick update on the cross country teams heading into Big 10's this weekend:
Women: The women's team is presently ranked 8th in the country. They go into Big 10's with the very realistic goal to win the meet. MSU and Wisconsin both have strong teams and should provide the primary competition. Erika Vanderlende, their star freshman runner, has been better than advertised. She came in as one of the top recruits in the country and has been Michigan's #1 runner all year. She has the potential to have the most successful freshman season in the history of the program. Michigan's #2-7 runners bunch very closely in meets which greatly contributes to their success. Maddie Trevisan (Uncle is a poster on our boards), KC House, Camille Davre, and Anne West have been consistent scorers for the team. Michigan is redshirting two of their best runners from last year (Anne Forsyth and Jessie Larson)---missing these two will make winning Big 10's and a podium finish at NCAA's much harder. Michigan also just received a verbal commit from one of the top runners in the nation (Katelynn Hart, sub 10:00 3200 meter runner), and is rumored to be among the top choices for 2 of the other top recruits (Katelyn Touhy---arguably one of the best ever at the high school level, and Zofia Dudek, an AA Pioneer runner). If they land one of these...they may be contenders for multiple NCAA championships in the future considering their amazing young talent.
Men: The men's team is currently ranked 17th in the country. They go into Big 10's ranked behind Purdue, Indiana, and Wisconsin. A top 3 finish would be a very realistic goal. Qualifying for the NCAA championships and a top 20 finish would be a great ending after Big 10's considering how tough the Great Lakes region is in cross country. Michigan does not have a true front runner on the team, but have incredible depth through 10-12 runners. Coach Sullivan will have the luxury of selecting from a large pool of potential scorers for the team. A Baylor transfer, Devin Meyrer, has developed into their top runner, with a close pack behind him including star freshman Nick Foster (his father is a poster on our boards). Unfortunately, Ryan Robinson (transfer from MSU and likely top 2 runner) has not raced all year (I suspect an injury) which really hurts the top of their lineup.
Women: The women's team is presently ranked 8th in the country. They go into Big 10's with the very realistic goal to win the meet. MSU and Wisconsin both have strong teams and should provide the primary competition. Erika Vanderlende, their star freshman runner, has been better than advertised. She came in as one of the top recruits in the country and has been Michigan's #1 runner all year. She has the potential to have the most successful freshman season in the history of the program. Michigan's #2-7 runners bunch very closely in meets which greatly contributes to their success. Maddie Trevisan (Uncle is a poster on our boards), KC House, Camille Davre, and Anne West have been consistent scorers for the team. Michigan is redshirting two of their best runners from last year (Anne Forsyth and Jessie Larson)---missing these two will make winning Big 10's and a podium finish at NCAA's much harder. Michigan also just received a verbal commit from one of the top runners in the nation (Katelynn Hart, sub 10:00 3200 meter runner), and is rumored to be among the top choices for 2 of the other top recruits (Katelyn Touhy---arguably one of the best ever at the high school level, and Zofia Dudek, an AA Pioneer runner). If they land one of these...they may be contenders for multiple NCAA championships in the future considering their amazing young talent.
Men: The men's team is currently ranked 17th in the country. They go into Big 10's ranked behind Purdue, Indiana, and Wisconsin. A top 3 finish would be a very realistic goal. Qualifying for the NCAA championships and a top 20 finish would be a great ending after Big 10's considering how tough the Great Lakes region is in cross country. Michigan does not have a true front runner on the team, but have incredible depth through 10-12 runners. Coach Sullivan will have the luxury of selecting from a large pool of potential scorers for the team. A Baylor transfer, Devin Meyrer, has developed into their top runner, with a close pack behind him including star freshman Nick Foster (his father is a poster on our boards). Unfortunately, Ryan Robinson (transfer from MSU and likely top 2 runner) has not raced all year (I suspect an injury) which really hurts the top of their lineup.
