UMAC Preseason Women's Cross Country Poll sees St. Scholastica take top spot
ST. PAUL, Minn.---For the last 16 years, the College of St. Scholastica has dominated the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) in women’s cross country winning 15 conference championship titles over that time span. Heading into the 2016 season, the UMAC coaches expect the Saints’ reign to continue as they were selected first in the Women’s Cross Country Preseason Poll announced Wednesday.
The Saints grabbed seven first-place votes to finish with 63 points in the poll with the University of Wisconsin-Superior and the University of Minnesota Morris each getting a first place vote to finish second (54 points) and third (48 points) in the poll, respectively.
|
Poll |
Meets |
Team Previews |
This season, the Saints will look a bit different, though, as longtime Head Coach Steve Pfingsten retired and handed duties over to Chad Samela – 10-year leader of the CSS Nordic ski programs – who will hope to keep the Saints’ running to success.
At the 2015 UMAC Championships, the Saints separated themselves from the rest of the pack with all five scoring runners placing in the top 13 for a total of just 32 points which was 31 points better than Minnesota Morris in second.
Leading the way for the Saints was Casey Hovland who became the youngest St. Scholastica individual to qualify for the NCAA Championships after she earned an All-Central Region finish. Hovland raced to her first UMAC title with a time of 23:45 that was 10 seconds faster than runner-up Kelli Praska (23:55) of Wisconsin-Superior.
Hovland was the first of three St. Scholastica runners to cross the line in the top five overall for All-UMAC First Team honors. The Saints will be without Andrea Mogren who was a four-time top-seven finisher at the conference meet and placed third in her final outing in the blue and gold.
Jordan Johnson will return for her final season, though, after placing fifth for her third-straight All-UMAC First Team finish as a Saint. Junior Anna Nelson should also help the Saints remain atop the UMAC throne following her 11th-place All-UMAC Second Team finish in 2015.
In just its second season as a UMAC program, Wisconsin-Superior could challenge the Saints at the UMAC meet with the return of Praska who had a breakout rookie season on the course for the Yellowjackets. Praska was the top finisher among all first-year runners and helped the Yellowjackets to their highest finish (third) at a conference meet in program history.
The Yellowjackets lose the speed of Jackie Erickson who placed 12th overall for All-UMAC Second Team recognition, but should be in the mix for another top-three team finish with the return of Alissa Boyhtari and Ali Manthey who placed 21st and 22nd, respectively, in 2015.
Repeating the same success from last season will be tough for Minnesota Morris which loses its top three finishers from last season and three of the most decorated runners in program history in Laura Borkenhagen, Rachel Wingenbach and Nicole Deziel.
Fortunately, the Cougars can rely on the experience of senior Hannah Goemann who was a 2014 All-UMAC finisher but did not compete in the 2015 UMAC Championship due to injury. Katherine Novak and Lis Anderson also return after finishing in the top 25 a year ago.
Bethany Lutheran College was just behind Minnesota Morris in the poll with 45 points for fourth. The Vikings should challenge for the top three with three of its top five runners returning from a year ago. Megan Sauer should give the Vikings plenty to look forward to after placing fourth a year ago and also earning All-Central Region honors. Morgan Sauer joins sister Megan to lead the Vikings following a rookie campaign in which she placed 13th at the UMAC meet.
Martin Luther College was picked to round out the top five (37 points), while the University of Northwestern was just behind in sixth (31 points). Crown College and North Central University tied for seventh with 16 points. Northland College placed ninth with 14 points.
Martin Luther looks solid heading into 2015 with three of its top four finishers from last year's UMAC meet slated to compete. Sohomore Tiffany Tellock will lead the way after placing just outside All-UMAC honors in 16th. Sydney Cody also returns following a 20th-place showing as a first-year.
Northwestern will challenge the Knights for a top-five team placing, but will need to do it without All-UMAC finisher Alyssa Arends. Danica White and Lisa Greenslade placed 26th and 27th, respectively, at last year’s conference meet and should give the team stability this season.
Crown is set for improvement this season with the addition of new talent and the return of its top two runners from a year ago in Elizabeth Kern and Hannah Myers. Kern was a top 30 finisher during her sophomore campaign.
North Central will definitely miss the talent of three-time All-UMAC runner Annalise Schroeder, but looks for an overall better season with incoming first-years and the return of runners 2-4 from last season in Bri Griffin, Hannah Foster and Sami Gish.
Northland will look to Hailey Keen – who placed 32nd at the 2015 Championships – to lead the squad along with Mikaela Fischer who was injured a year ago.
The UMAC women’s cross country teams begin competition Thursday with several teams competing at Crown, while the remainder of squads open up Friday or Saturday.
Four teams (Bethany Lutheran, Martin Luther, Northwestern and Wisconsin-Superior) will be in action Sept. 9 at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls Falcon Invitational, while seven of the nine teams will head to Northfield, Minnesota, Sept. 17 to compete at the St. Olaf Invitational.
Bethany Lutheran and Northwestern will represent the UMAC at the famous University of Minnesota Roy Griak Meet Sept. 24. The month concludes with three teams slated to run at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Blugold Invitational.
The month of October sees UMAC teams competing at various meets across the Midwest before the culmination of the season takes place at the 2016 UMAC Cross Country Championships Saturday, Oct. 29 in Benson, Minnesota.
Complete Women's Cross Country Schedule
2016 UMAC Women's Cross Country Preseason Coaches Poll
1. St. Scholastica - 63 Points (7 First Place Votes)
2. Wisconsin-Superior - 54 Points (1 First Place Vote)
3. Minnesota Morris - 48 Points (1 First Place Vote)
4. Bethany Lutheran - 45 Points
5. Martin Luther - 37 Points
6. Northwestern - 31 Points
T-7. Crown - 16 Points
T-7. North Central - 16 Points
9. Northland - 14 Points
TEAM PREVIEWS
|
BLC |
CC |
CSS |
MLC |
NC |
NCU |
UMM |
UNW |
UWS |
1. College of St. Scholastica
Chad Salmela | 1st Season |
2015 Season
| 1st | 32 Points |
Postseason: Casey Hovland qualified for the NCAA Championships and placed 54th; CSS finished 13th out of 30 teams at the NCAA Central Region Championships
Runners returning: 12
Runners lost: 11
Top Returners
- Casey Hovland, Jr. | 2015 First Team All-UMAC | 2015 NCAA qualifier, 2015 NCAA All-Central Region | 2015 Championships: 1st, 23:45, 1st team finisher |
- Jordan Johnson, Sr. | 2015 First Team All-UMAC; 2013, 2014 All-UMAC | 2015 Championships: 5th, 24:36, 3rd team finisher |
- Anna Nelson, Jr. | 2015 Second Team All-UMAC | 2015 Championships: 11th, 25:43, 4th team finisher |
Top Losses
- Andrea Mogren | 2015 First Team All-UMAC; 2012, 2013, 2014 All-UMAC| 2013, 2015 All-Central Region | 2015 Championships: 3rd, 24:05, 2nd team finisher |
Need to Know
- Longtime head coach Steve Pfingsten retired in the spring and Chad Salmela jumps over to take over this season after 10 season coaching the CSS nordic ski teams.
- Casey Hovland became the youngest Saint to individually qualify for the NCAA Cross Country Championships.
- Jordan Johnson is the reigning three-time UMAC champion in the 3,000m steeplechase.
2. University of Wisconsin-Superior
Glen Drexler | 7th Season |
2015 Season
| 3rd | 86 Points |
Postseason: Team Finish: 24th place at NCAA Regional
Runners returning: 9
Runners lost: 5
Top Returners
- Kelli Praska, So. | 2015 All-UMAC | 2015 Championships: 2nd, 23:55.7, 1st team finisher |
- Alissa Boyhtari, Sr. | 2015 Championships: 21st, 26:53.0, 3rd team finisher |
- Ali Manthey, So. | 2015 Championships: 22nd, 26:56.2, 4th team finisher |
Top Losses
- Jackie Erickson | 2015 All-UMAC | 2015 Championships: 12th, 25:59.3, 2nd team finisher |
- Hannah Kautz | 2015 Championships: 58th, 29:21.6, 9th team finisher |
Need to Know
- The third place finish for the Yellowjackets in the UMAC Championships was their highest conference finish in school history.
- Kelli Praska was the UMAC runner-up a year ago, the top finisher in the field among first-years.
- The Yellowjackets earned the Team Academic Award from the USTFCCCA for the ninth straight year in 2015.
3. University of Minnesota Morris
Tony Krueger | 2nd Season |
2015 Season
| 2nd | 63 Points |
Postseason: 22nd at Regionals
Runners returning: 9
Runners lost: 5
Top Returners
- Hannah Goemann, Sr. | 2014 All-UMAC | Injured – did not compete in 2015 |
- Lis Anderson, Jr. | 2015 Championships: 25th, 27:09, 5th team finisher |
- Katherine Novak, So. | 2015 Championships: 18th, 26:46, 4th team finisher |
Top Losses
- Laura Borkenhagen | 2015 First Team All-UMAC | All-UMAC in track | 2015 Championships: 6th, 24:40, 1st team finisher |
- Rachel Wingenbach | 2015 Second Team All-UMAC | All-UMAC in track | 2015 Championships: 8th, 24:47, 2nd team finisher |
- Nicole Deziel | 2015 Second Team All-UMAC | UMAC All-Conference in track | 2015 Championships: 10th, 25:23, 3rd team finisher |
Need to Know
- UMM has finished first or second for the past seven years in the UMAC
- The Cougars return Hannah Goemann, who sat out the 2015 season, along with three that placed in the top 31 in 2015.
- The Cougars finished second at the UMAC championship and 22nd at the Regional
4. Bethany Lutheran College
Michael Dunn | 2nd Season |
2015 Season
| 4th | 87 Points |
Postseason: 19th at NCAA Central Regional (2nd UMAC School behind only St. Scholastica)
Runners returning: 8
Runners lost: 3
Top Returners
- Megan Sauer, Sr. | 2015 All-UMAC | 2015 All-Region (32nd) | 2015 Championships: 4th, 24:29.6, time, 1st team finisher |
- Morgan Sauer, So. | 2015 All-UMAC | 2015 Championships: 13th, 26:09.7, 3rd team finisher |
- Katie Farquhar, So. | 2015 Championships: 56th, 29:09.3, 5th team finisher |
Top Losses
- Lauren Farquhar | 2015 All-UMAC | 2015 Championships: 9th, 24:59.3, 2nd team finisher |
- Katie Caflisch | 2015 Championships: 23rd, 26:59.6, 4th team finisher |
- Danielle Marzinske | 2015 Championships: 84th, 31:41.7, 8th team finisher |
Need to Know
- The Vikings women will have more women on the cross country team this season than ever before (18-plus athletes)
- Bethany women’s cross country team is coming off of its best finish at regionals in school history (19th)
- The Vikings women finished only 1 point behind UW-Superior last season in the conference championship
5. Martin Luther College
Matt Pearson | 3rd Season |
2015 Season
| 5th | 128 Points |
Runners returning: 6
Runners lost: 1
Top Returners
- Tiffany Tellock, So. | 2015 Championships: 16th, 26:28.9, 1st team finisher |
- Sydney Cody, So. | 2015 Championships: 20th, 26:50.8, 2nd team finisher |
- Sarah Hackbarth, Sr. | 2015 Championships: 42nd, 28:23.8, 4th team finisher |
Top Losses
- Monica Sletten | 2015 Championships: 24th, 27:03.9, 3rd team finisher |
Need to Know
- MLC returns six of its top seven runners from last year’s team
- MLC was picked to finished fifth in last season’s UMAC preseason poll
6. University of Northwestern
Steve Thiessen | 25th Season |
2015 Season
| 6th | 141 |
Runners returning: 6
Runners lost: 1
Top Returners
- Danica White, Jr. | 2015 Championships: 26th, 27:26.3, 2nd team finisher |
- Lisa Greenslade, Sr. | 2015 Championships: 27th, 27:27.8, 3rd team finisher |
- Vanessa Whyte, So. | 2015 Championships: 34th, 27:51.5, 4th team finisher |
Top Losses
- Alyssa Arends |2015 All-Conference| 2015 Championships: 15th, 26:23.3, 1st team finisher |
Need to Know
- UNW returns three of its top four runners from 2015.
- The Eagles competed at the NCAA Central Region Championships last November in Pella, Iowa.
- UNW opens the season Sept. 1 at the Crown’s Early Birth Triangular.
T-7. Crown College
Bill Braunger | 2nd Season |
2015 Season
| 8th | 217 Points |
Runners returning: 3
Runners lost: 4
Top Returners
- Elizabeth Kern | 2015 Championships: 30th, 27:41, 1st team finisher |
- Hannah Myers | Other Honors | 2015 Championships: 55th, 29:00, 2nd team finisher |
Top Losses
- Beth Zoromski | 2015 Championships: 73th, 30:33, 3rd team finisher |
- Alyssa Coleman | 2015 Championships: 78th, 31:02, 4th team finisher |
Need to Know
- Freshman recruits will make the women a stronger team
T-7. North Central University
Trey Meadows | 8th Season |
2015 Season
| Incomplete team | NA |
Runners returning: 3
Runners lost: 1
Top Returners
- Bri Griffin, So | 2015 Championships: 94th on injured leg, 4th runner on non-scoring team |
- Hannah Foster, Jr | 2015 Championships: 85th, 31:56, 2nd runner |
- Sami Gish, So | 2015 Championships: 89th, 33:25, 3rd runner |
Top Losses
- Annalise Schroeder | First team All-UMAC | UMAC Female Scholar Athlete Leadership Award winner | 2015 Championships: 7th, 24:40, 1st team finisher |
Need to Know
- Despite losing one of the best runners in school history NCU should be more competitive this season.
- The Rams will field a scoring team this fall including experienced high school athletes ready to contribute at the front of the Rams scoring.
9. Northland College
Peter Macky | 2nd Season |
2015 Season
| 7th | 191 Points |
Runners returning: 5
Runners lost: 3
Top Returners
- Mikaela Fischer | 2015 Championships: Injured and did not compete |
- Hailey Keen | 2015 Championships: 32nd, 27:46, 2nd team finisher |
- Katie Nolan | 2015 Championships: 71st, 30:25, 5th team finisher |
Top Losses
- Kim Oldenborg | 2015 Championships: 28th, 27:27, 1st team finisher |