University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Set to Host Oz Memorial
9/3/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Cross Country
| Oz Memorial Run | |||||||||||
| Date | Friday, Sept. 5, 2014 | ||||||||||
| Location | Les Bolstad Course, Falcon Heights, Minn. | ||||||||||
| Course | 6K | ||||||||||
| Time | Women: 6:30 p.m. CT | Men: 7 p.m. CT | ||||||||||
| Teams | Drake, Minnesota State, Minnesota, Northern Iowa, South Dakota State | ||||||||||
Sept. 3, 2014
MINNEAPOLIS - The No. 25 Golden Gopher women's cross country team officially begins its 2014 slate by hosting the Oz Memorial Run at Les Bolstad Course this Friday. The women's 6K race is set to begin at 6:30 p.m., followed by the men's 6K race at 7 p.m. The Gophers will face Drake, Minnesota State, Northern Iowa and South Dakota State in their official season-opener.
Last Time Out: Intrasquad Meet
Redshirt juniors Liz Berkholtz, Becca Dyson, Kaila Urick and Kate Bucknam led the Gophers as Minnesota held its annual Intrasquad Meet to unofficially kick off the 2014 season at Les Bolstad Course last Friday. Berkholtz won the 5K race in 18:47.15, followed by Dyson (18:53.07), Urick (18:53.84) and Bucknam (19:00.84). Redshirt sophomore Jamie Piepenburg rounded out the top five in 19:05.23, and the top 13 Gophers finished in under 20:00.
2013 Oz Memorial Run Rewind
Minnesota claimed 22 of the top 25 places to win the 2013 Oz Memorial Run. The Gophers claimed the top seven places, including current Gophers Becca Dyson and Liz Berkholtz in fourth and fifth place, respectively. Laura Docherty paced the field in 21:48.0 to win her second-straight Oz Memorial title; a new champion will be crowned at the 2014 running of the Oz Memorial.
USTFCCCA Ranks Gophers 25th
Minnesota is tied for No. 25 in the nation and ranks third in the Midwest region to kick off the 2014 season according to the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Preseason National Poll and Preseason Regional Team Rankings.
2014 Track & Field Success
Several Gophers look to have breakout cross country seasons after experiencing success on the track last spring, including six returners who competed at the outdoor Big Ten championships: Lauren Domski (22nd in 800m), Liz Berkholtz (14th in 5,000m; fourth in 10,000m), Haley Johnson (26th in 5,000m), Jamie Piepenburg (23rd in 10,000m), Kaila Urick (ninth in 3,000m steeplechase) and Taylor Mikkalson (17th in 3,000m steeplechase).
Berkholtz owns Minnesota's sixth-best all-time 10,000m mark, clocking a 34:12.67 at the 2014 Stanford Invitational, while Urick (fifth, 10:26.52) and Mikkalson (10th, 10:39.41) both made the Gophers' all-time top-10 list in the 3,000-meter steeplechase last spring.
Domski and fellow redshirt junior Anne Ferguson were among Minnesota's top three 800-meter performers during the 2014 outdoor season. Each clocked career-best times as Domski ran a 2:11.99 at the Musco Twilight and Ferguson posted a time of 2:12.81 at the USF Collegiate.
Johnson also had a strong track season, finishing the year among the Gophers' top five 1,500-meter and 5,000-meter runners for the season. She ran a career-best 17:13.90 in the 5,000m at the Drake Relays.
About the Oz Memorial Run
The Oz Memorial Run is named in memory of former Drake coach Gary Osborn, who passed away on May 21, 2000. Osborn was a longtime friend of former Minnesota coach Gary Wilson. Osborn served as the head coach of the Drake women's cross country program from 1989-99 and also assumed the head coaching duties of the women's track & field program during the 1993-94 season. Under Osborn's guidance, Drake won consecutive Missouri Valley Conference cross country titles in 1994 and 1995, as well as 1998. In all, Osborn spent 32 years involved in coaching at Drake.
Osborn was named the MVC Cross Country Coach of the Year in 1983, when he guided Drake to within one point of the league title. Osborn was also honored by the league in 1994 and 1995. In 1989, he was named the Gateway Conference Cross Country Coach of the Year. A native of Winterset, Iowa, Osborn was a seven-time winner in the MVC, competing for Drake in the high and intermediate hurdles and the 100 and 220-yard dashes.
Up Next: BYU Autumn Classic
Next weekend, the Gophers' top 12 runners will travel to Provo, Utah, for the 2014 BYU Autumn Classic on Saturday, Sept. 13. Minnesota will face BYU, Weber State, Idaho State and UCLA in a three-mile race.
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Players Mentioned
