University of Minnesota Athletics
Veteran Gopher Squad Ready For NCAAs
11/24/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Cross Country
Golden Gopher Cross Country This Week:
2008 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships
Monday, Nov. 24
Women 11 a.m. (CT)
Men 11:48 a.m. (CT)
LaVern Gibson Championship Course
Terre Haute, Ind.
Indiana State U. - Host
TV - Live - CBS College Sports Network
Webcast - NCAA.com
Golden Gopher Watch List Nov. 24, 2008
Golden Gopher Head Off to NCAA Championships - The Minnesota men’s and women’s cross country teams
both earned automatic berths into the fields of the NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Championships. Indiana State U. plays host to the Championships at the LaVern Gibson Championship Course in Terre Haute, Ind. The women’s 6-kilometer race begins at 11 a.m. (CT), followed by the men’s 10-kilometer event at approximately 11:48 a.m. (CT).
Mead and Rombough Pace Golden Gopher Men - The Minnesota men’s cross country team have two runners, All-Americans Hassan Mead and Chris Rombough, to lead the pack. Rombough, competing in his fourth NCAA Championships has the chance to become the first three-time All-American in Minnesota cross country history.
Golden Gopher Women Consistent - The Minnesota women’s cross country team is coming off team titles in both the Big Ten and NCAA Midwest Region Championships. The Golden Gophers are among six teams to place in the top 12 in the NCAAs in each of the last three seasons.\
NCAA Meet Televised - The CBS College Sports Network will broadcast the NCAA Cross Country Championships live. NCAA.com will carry a live webcast of the national meet.
NCAA Cross Country Championships
The Minnesota women’s cross country team will travel to Terre Haute, Ind., to compete in the NCAA Cross Country Championships on Monday, Nov. 24. The Golden Gophers are making their fourth consecutive trip to the national meet. The women’s 6-kilometer begins at 11: a.m. (CT). Indiana State plays host to the meet at the LaVern Gibson Championships Course.
Watch It Live
The NCAA Cross Country Championships will be broadcast live on CBS College Sports Network and streamed online via NCAA.com. Check out Flotrack.com for additional coverage and interviews from the national meet.
Consistency at the Highest Level
Minnesota has finished in the top 12 in each of the last three NCAA Championships placing the Golden Gophers among an elite group of teams to consistently place that high during that span of time. The other teams matching the feat of consecutive top-12 national finishes are Stanford, Illinois, Arizona State, Colorado and Michigan.
The NCAA Field
Thirty-one (31) teams will compete in the NCAA Championships, 18 of them, including Minnesota, having earned automatic berths in the NCAA field by placing in the top two of last weekend’s region championships. The NCAA field is completed by 13 at-large teams and 38 individual student-athletes who advanced with top regional finishes.
Big Ten Matches Its Record Six Teams to NCAAs
The Big Ten Conference will be represented by six teams at the NCAA Championships, four of them (Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin) who earned automatic berths. Michigan State and Iowa were at-large selections
Golden Gophers Ranked No. 6 Heading into the NCAAs
Minnesota is ranked No. 6 in this week’s the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association NCAA Division I poll. The Gophers spent two weeks earlier this season ranked No. 4, the highest in school history. The Big Ten has three teams ranked in the top 10, with Michigan at No. 8 and Wisconsin at No. 10 joining the Gophers. Michigan State at No. 13, Illinois at No. 14 and Iowa at No. 23 round out the nationally ranked teams from the Big Ten.
NCAA Championships Women’s Preview
Stanford is the three-time defending champion, but it’s Pac-10 rival Washington that is a favorite to win this season. The Huskies have held the No. 1 rank in the national poll all season. Other teams in the top five are Oregon, Florida State, Princeton and West Virginia. Texas Tech junior is the two-time defending Sally Kipyego individual champion.
Minnesota at the NCAA Championships
Minnesota will make its 12th appearance in the NCAA Cross Country Championships and fourth consecutively. The Golden Gophers posted their highest finish in school history in 2005, placing ninth, then 11th in 2006 and 12th last season. Jamie Cheever ran to All-America honors in 2007.
The Golden Gopher Lineup
Seven Golden Gophers will compete at the NCAA Championships. A team’s final lineup does not have to be declared until the day of the competition. Following is a list of possible participants and a listing of any previous experience at the national meet.
Gabriele Anderson (Sr., Perham, Minn./Perham)
2006 - 127th, 22:21.1
2007, 139th, 21:35.9
Jamie Cheever (Jr., Minneapolis, Minn./Southwest)
2006 - 150th, 22:31.4
2007 - 33rd, 20:58.3 (All-American)
Heather Dorniden (Jr., Inver Grove Heights, Minn./Rosemount)
2006 - 185th, 22:50.6
2007, 186th, 22:15.2
Megan Duwell (Jr., West Bend, Wis./West Bend West)
2007 - 147th, 21:52.5
Amy Laskowske (Jr., Palatine, Ill./Palatine)
2006 - 157th, 22:33.4
Felicitas Mensing (Neuhausen, Germany/Kepler Gym./Coastal Carolina)
Nikki Swenson (So., Dawson, Minn./Dawson-Boyd)
Mallory Van Ness (Jr., Shoreview, Minn./Mounds View/Missouri)
Elizabeth Yetzer (Jr., Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North)
2006 - 22:11.8, 108th
2007 - 105th, 21:34.5
Golden Gopher Coaching Staff
Gary Wilson, the dean of the Big Ten women’s cross country coaches, is in his 24th season heading the Minnesota program. He is assisted by volunteer assistant head coach, Sarah Hesser, who is in her fourth season on the coaching staff after competing for the Golden Gophers. Kallie Suske is also a volunteer assistant.
Gary Wilson Honored as USTFCCCA Midwest Region Coach of the Year
Minnesota head coach Gary Wilson was honored as the USTFCCCA Midwest Region Women’s Cross Country Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season. Wilson directed the Golden Gophers to back-to-back NCAA Midwest Region and Big Ten Conference titles.
Players Mentioned
