University of Minnesota Athletics
Women's Cross Country Set for Late-Season Charge
10/31/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Cross Country
| Junior Laura Bjork |
Those were the sentiments of veteran Golden Gopher women's cross country head coach Gary Wilson, when asked about his team's expectation heading into Sunday's (Nov. 3) Big Ten Championships.
Cross country is one of those sports that is so deeply individual, yet on the other hand, such a team sport. Each athlete battles not only her competitors, the course and the elements, but also herself as well. For a team to reach its potential, each and every runner must put forth their ultimate effort.
The race is 5-kilometers in distance. That is 3.1 miles for those not too familiar with the metric system. Big Ten coaches voted to keep the shorter distance instead of running the typical 6-kilometers race the teams will encounter in NCAA Regional and Championships competition.
Coaches talk all season about tapering their teams' performances, honing their athletes to peak at the precise time. That time is now. "I'm thinking there will be only a 10 to 15 point swing between about four teams at the Big Ten meet and the same thing for the second spot at the NCAA Regional," said Wilson. "It's going to be that close. It's going to come down to which team hits on those two days."
What Wilson is referring to when he speaks of his team "hitting" on a particular race, is to have each athlete run her best race. Wilson and the Golden Gophers have seen flashes from individual runners, but have yet to put it all together for one spectacular team effort.
Wilson is confident this will happen, despite a pair of injuries that quickly changed the makeup of the 2002 Gopher team.
Heading into the season, Wilson enthusiastically pegged this team as the most talented and deep in his 18 years at Minnesota. This is still the case even though senior Anita Menden and sophomore Lisa Dyer were forced to sit out the season with injuries. Dyer burst on the scene last year to earn second-team All-Big Ten and All-Midwest Region honors. She was the top Gopher finisher at the Big Ten meet, placing eighth. Menden was voted as a team captain for 2002.
As is the case with any injury, there is often a silver lining. Without Dyer and Menden in the lineup, other Golden Gophers were needed to step up and make bigger contributions. One only needs to point to three freshmen (Carly Emil, Jen Hess and Lauren Williams) and three sophomores (Paula Hoffert, Kimberly Magee and Zoe Nagell< /a>) competing at the Big Ten Championships to emphasize this point. But, four of these six will be running in the Big Ten event for the first time in their careers. How will they react to the pressure?
| Junior Darja Vasiljeva |
"These kids that are young are not really freshmen. They are veterans now because they have gone through the fires of competition. I don't think there is a meet we could run in, including nationals, that is any tougher than the ones we have already ran."
While Wilson and the Gophers look forward to seeing how the rookies perform on Sunday, two Minnesota veterans are expected to run with the elite in the Big Ten - juniors Darja Vasiljeva and Laura Bjork. Both earned all-region accolades a year ago and have been the Gophers' veteran leaders in 2002.
Vasiljeva ran to second-team All-Big Ten and Freshman of the Year honors in 2000, but struggled in her sophomore campaign. Her junior season has become one of excellence. She enters the Big Ten competition in top form..
"Darja is one of six or seven runners with a legitimate shot at winning a Big Ten title," said Wilson. "There isn't an odds-on favorite to win like in past years. Darja is one of the elite runners of the conference and a big-meet competitor."
Bjork has shown steady improvement in her three years in the program. She has worked extremely hard, first as a freshman walk-on to now being a scholarship athlete and one of the Gopher leaders.
Completing the contingent of Gophers to compete at the Big Ten Championships on Sunday is senior Jill Field, who has made a spectacular comeback after two frustrating seasons.
The training is over. Now it's time to harvest the rewards of that hard work. The difference will likely come down to the intangibles.
"I know the kids have a lot of pride in this program," states Wilson. "Regardless of who we lost to graduation or who was injured, this Golden Gopher program has always been one of the most consistent in the Big Ten. We also have a history of running well at the end of the year. We have a tradition going, not only with Big Tens, but with five straight trips to the NCAAs as well. That kind of success doesn't just happen without people working hard and believing in the program. I don't see it being any different this year."
Wilson is one tough old dog. So is his team.
| Junior Laura Bjork |
Those were the sentiments of veteran Golden Gopher women's cross country head coach Gary Wilson, when asked about his team's expectation heading into Sunday's (Nov. 3) Big Ten Championships.
Cross country is one of those sports that is so deeply individual, yet on the other hand, such a team sport. Each athlete battles not only her competitors, the course and the elements, but also herself as well. For a team to reach its potential, each and every runner must put forth their ultimate effort.
The race is 5-kilometers in distance. That is 3.1 miles for those not too familiar with the metric system. Big Ten coaches voted to keep the shorter distance instead of running the typical 6-kilometers race the teams will encounter in NCAA Regional and Championships competition.
Coaches talk all season about tapering their teams' performances, honing their athletes to peak at the precise time. That time is now. "I'm thinking there will be only a 10 to 15 point swing between about four teams at the Big Ten meet and the same thing for the second spot at the NCAA Regional," said Wilson. "It's going to be that close. It's going to come down to which team hits on those two days."
What Wilson is referring to when he speaks of his team "hitting" on a particular race, is to have each athlete run her best race. Wilson and the Golden Gophers have seen flashes from individual runners, but have yet to put it all together for one spectacular team effort.
Wilson is confident this will happen, despite a pair of injuries that quickly changed the makeup of the 2002 Gopher team.
Heading into the season, Wilson enthusiastically pegged this team as the most talented and deep in his 18 years at Minnesota. This is still the case even though senior Anita Menden and sophomore Lisa Dyer were forced to sit out the season with injuries. Dyer burst on the scene last year to earn second-team All-Big Ten and All-Midwest Region honors. She was the top Gopher finisher at the Big Ten meet, placing eighth. Menden was voted as a team captain for 2002.
As is the case with any injury, there is often a silver lining. Without Dyer and Menden in the lineup, other Golden Gophers were needed to step up and make bigger contributions. One only needs to point to three freshmen (Carly Emil, Jen Hess and Lauren Williams) and three sophomores (Paula Hoffert, Kimberly Magee and Zoe Nagell< /a>) competing at the Big Ten Championships to emphasize this point. But, four of these six will be running in the Big Ten event for the first time in their careers. How will they react to the pressure?
| Junior Darja Vasiljeva |
"These kids that are young are not really freshmen. They are veterans now because they have gone through the fires of competition. I don't think there is a meet we could run in, including nationals, that is any tougher than the ones we have already ran."
While Wilson and the Gophers look forward to seeing how the rookies perform on Sunday, two Minnesota veterans are expected to run with the elite in the Big Ten - juniors Darja Vasiljeva and Laura Bjork. Both earned all-region accolades a year ago and have been the Gophers' veteran leaders in 2002.
Vasiljeva ran to second-team All-Big Ten and Freshman of the Year honors in 2000, but struggled in her sophomore campaign. Her junior season has become one of excellence. She enters the Big Ten competition in top form..
"Darja is one of six or seven runners with a legitimate shot at winning a Big Ten title," said Wilson. "There isn't an odds-on favorite to win like in past years. Darja is one of the elite runners of the conference and a big-meet competitor."
Bjork has shown steady improvement in her three years in the program. She has worked extremely hard, first as a freshman walk-on to now being a scholarship athlete and one of the Gopher leaders.
Completing the contingent of Gophers to compete at the Big Ten Championships on Sunday is senior Jill Field, who has made a spectacular comeback after two frustrating seasons.
The training is over. Now it's time to harvest the rewards of that hard work. The difference will likely come down to the intangibles.
"I know the kids have a lot of pride in this program," states Wilson. "Regardless of who we lost to graduation or who was injured, this Golden Gopher program has always been one of the most consistent in the Big Ten. We also have a history of running well at the end of the year. We have a tradition going, not only with Big Tens, but with five straight trips to the NCAAs as well. That kind of success doesn't just happen without people working hard and believing in the program. I don't see it being any different this year."
Wilson is one tough old dog. So is his team.
Players Mentioned
