University of Minnesota Athletics
Oz Memorial to Kick Off Home Slate
9/5/2017 12:00:00 AM | Women's Cross Country
| Oz Memorial Run | |||||||||||
| Date | Friday, Sept. 8, 2017 | ||||||||||
| Location | Les Bolstad Cross Country Course, Falcon Heights, Minn. | ||||||||||
| Time | 6:30 p.m. Women's 6K | 7 p.m. Men's 4-Mile | ||||||||||
| Coverage | @GopherWCCTF | #Gophers | Timing via Wayzata Results | ||||||||||
Sept. 5, 2017
MINNEAPOLIS - The No. 24 Golden Gopher women's cross country returns home to Les Bolstad Cross Country Course to host the 18th annual Oz Memorial Run this Friday.
About the Oz Memorial Run
The 2017 Oz Memorial Run is set for 6:30 p.m. CT Friday. The women's 6K race kicks off the evening, and the men's four-mile race will follow at 7 p.m. The Gophers will face competition from Drake University, Creighton University, Hamline University, Minnesota State, North Dakota State, and South Dakota State.
The Oz Memorial 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.
2016 Oz Memorial Rewind
Last year saw the Gophers win the team title at the season-opening Oz Memorial Run as the team finished with 12 runners in the top 20. Madeline Strandemo led Minnesota with a runner-up finish behind Wisconsin's Shaelyn Sorensen, who took home the individual crown in 22:19.1. Strandemo ran 22:26.1 just ahead of fellow Gophers Megan Hasz (22:32.7) and Bailey Ness (22:34.8) in third and fourth place, respectively. All seven of Minnesota's scoring finishers came in inside the top 13. Bethany Hasz (22:37.5) was sixth, and Danielle Anderson also earned a top-10 finish in 10th (22:52.4). Rounding out the Gophers' top seven were Emily Betz (23:04.8) and Patty O'Brien (23:15.0) in 12th and 13th, respectively.
Last Time Out: Indiana Open and Intrasquad 5K
Minnesota finished as runner-up in the team standings and placed three Gophers among the top seven at the team's season-opening Indiana Open 5K last weekend. Bethany Hasz was Minnesota's top runner, placing fourth in 17:46.5, with her sister Megan Hasz (17:48.9) and Madeline Strandemo (17:49.5) on her heels in fifth place and seventh place, respectively. Only 22 places and less than 40 seconds separated Minnesota's top seven in the season-opening meet. Bailey Ness placed 14th as the fourth Gopher in 18:10.3, followed by Courtney Alama (18:19.2), Emily Betz (18:20.5), and Patty O'Brien (18:25.4) in 21st, 23rd, and 26th places, respectively.
The members of the team not traveling to IU raced in the Intrasquad 5K exhibition race Friday night at Les Bolstad Course. Newcomers Olivia Hummel, Anastasia Korzenowski, and Jaycie Thomsen led the way. Hummel, a sophomore transfer from the University of Dayton, paced the field in 19:01.68 with true freshmen Korzenowski (19:05.93) and Thomsen (19:11.20) finishing second and third, respectively. Sophomore Elyse Prescott (19:19.92) and rookie Sophie Schmitz (19:32.88) rounded out the top five.
Gophers Rank No. 24 in USTFCCCA Preseason Poll
The Gophers opened the season ranked No. 24 in the nation according to the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) NCAA Division I Women's Cross Country Preseason National Coaches' Poll. Minnesota is one of three teams to make the preseason top 25 after not qualifying for the 2016 NCAA national championship, joining No. 19 Boise State and No. 26 (tied) Georgetown. The week one poll is set to be released Tuesday, Sept. 12.
Who's Back?
Minnesota returns all top nine runners from last year's postseason roster led by individual NCAA qualifier Madeline Strandemo. Bethany Hasz and Megan Hasz join Strandemo as returning NCAA all-region performers.
Quintet Serving as Captains
Five captains are leading this year's team: first-year captains Amelia Barczi, Bailey Ness, Patty O'Brien, and Paige Peschel and returning captain Madeline Strandemo.
Up Next: Roy Griak Invitational
After a week off from competition, the Gophers host the 2017 Roy Griak Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 23 at Les Bolstad Cross Country Course. This year's event marks the 32nd annual Griak Invitational. One of the largest meets in the country, the Griak includes six collegiate races and four high school races and begins with the Suzy Wilson Women's Maroon III (Division III) Competition at 9 a.m. CT.
Follow the Gophers Online
GopherSports.com is your home for all Minnesota Women's Track & Field and Cross Country news. Be sure to follow Gopher Women's Track & Field and Cross Country on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for behind the scenes info and the latest updates on the program.
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Players Mentioned
