University of Minnesota Athletics
Indoor Event Previews: Distance
1/4/2018 12:00:00 AM | Women's Track & Field
MINNEAPOLIS - The University of Minnesota women's track & field team is set to kick off the 2018 indoor season. Assistant coach Sarah Hopkins looks ahead at the indoor season for the Gophers' distance runners as GopherSports.com previews each event group.
Indoor Event Previews: Multis and Jumps
Indoor Event Previews: Sprints and Hurdles
Indoor Event Previews: Throws
"Overall, we're excited to get back on the track," Hopkins said. "Last year we red-shirted a lot of people and put a lot on Madeline Strandemo's shoulders to kind of be the big-time scorer in the group. This year I think we'll have a little bit more depth and a little bit more experience across the board. Hopefully we will be able to go into the Big Ten meet and beyond with a lot of confidence and a lot of ability to score in every event, along with helping out in the DMR."
800-Meter Run
"We're have a really young 800m group," Hopkins said. "We have some young athletes who ran some really good times last year with Abby Kohut-Jackson, Lindsey Greenlund, and Carissa Dock. I think the young ones who ran unattached last year are ready to take another step."
Kohut-Jackson, Greenlund, and Dock begin their redshirt freshmen seasons of track & field after competing unattached a year ago. Kohut-Jackson (2:12.22), Greenlund (2:14.50), and Dock (2:18.67) all ran the 800m as true rookies last year and will make their Gopher debuts on the track this winter.
"One of the focuses of this recruiting class of the freshmen who are on campus now was the middle-distance world," Hopkins explained. "We haven't necessarily decided yet if they'll be competing in uniform or not this year, but people like Sophie Schmitz, Tate Sweeney, and some of those young ones were recruited to be middle-distance runners for us so we're excited to put them in with the others we have.
"Paige Peschel is probably the best returner in that group [of distance runners], and she came off a great cross country season where she gained a lot of confidence. We're really going to focus on the 600m and the 800m with her, and hopefully she can be the point person with that group since she has Big Ten experience."
Peschel is back for her redshirt junior season of track & field after finishing eighth with the 4x800m at the Big Ten Indoor Championship and placing 25th in the 800m (2:14.00) at the Big Ten Outdoor Championship last season.
"We'll mix in Titania Markland and Val Larson and some of the others [from the sprints group] who can kind of show them the ropes a bit, but I think our 800m group will be a fun group," Hopkins added. "There's not a whole lot on paper yet to brag about, but I think after the year there will be some pretty cool stories. It will be fun to see what comes out of this group."
Mile
Madeline Strandemo leads Minnesota's returners in the mile after winning the B1G title last season in 4:41.88 and recording the second-fastest time in Gopher history at 4:38.88.
"We have the returning Big Ten champ, so that's obviously fun," Hopkins said. "Maddie's excited to be back and getting in some more miles but also has some pretty lofty goals. We know that last year the mile at the Big Ten meet might have been a little diluted from what it could have been on paper, and we know that probably won't happen again -- but we're up for that challenge. There are some really fast women in the conference so it'll be a challenge to win it again, but obviously that's the goal.
"Maddie is a great point person, leader, queen bee for the mile group," Hopkins continued. "You're going to see Abby Kohut-Jackson, Lindsey Greenlund, Bethany Hasz; Megan Hasz, potentially, depending on where we decide to go with them, in that group, too. Same with Abby Lange -- she got some great experience last year and had a great cross country season. There are a couple big time returners in the mile and a lot of younger athletes who are trying to break into that world that we're excited about."
Bethany Hasz and Megan Hasz join Kohut-Jackson and Greenlund in making their official Gopher debuts on the track after competing unattached a year ago. Meanwhile, Lange returns after gaining B1G experience with a 12th-place finish in the mile indoors and a 21st-place showing in the 1,500m outdoors last season.
3,000-Meter Run and 5,000-Meter Run
"3K and 5K is probably where we have the most depth on paper," Hopkins said. "You have Maddie who can certainly run both of those events, it just depends on the meet and what the priorities are. She's number two all-time in the 3K and can obviously run a solid 5K if needed."
Strandemo leads Minnesota's returners in the 3,000-meter run, ranked second in program history at 9:17.54. Redshirt juniors Patty O'Brien (9:44.29 for 3K; 16:46.09 for 5K) and Bailey Ness (9:59.48 for 3K; 16:47.68 for 5K) posted PRs in both events indoors last year as well.
"Megan Hasz and Bethany Hasz will probably run the 3K and then go up or down depending on what we need for the team," Hopkins said. "They both ran some pretty solid 5Ks outdoors and 3Ks indoors unattached last year, so we're excited about how they fit in once they get in consistent competition each week and get to go to some bigger races. They'll build off some awesome cross country seasons.
"Bailey Ness and Patty O'Brien were both in the Big Ten 5K field last year," Hopkins said. "Both of their stronger suites is probably the 10K outdoors, but you don't want to ignore the indoor season by any stretch of the imagination."
Fellow returners Elyse Prescott, Courtney Alama, and Emily Betz also add depth to Minnesota's long distance corps.
"Elyse Prescott will also fit into the 3K world; where she goes, up or down, will depend on how the season is progressing," Hopkins explained. "Courtney Alama had a great cross country season and is ready to take another step on the track. Emily Betz brings Big Ten experience from last year, and she's somebody who can plug in there as well. There are always those younger kids who you never know what to expect, but there are some good things coming."
Distance Medley Relay
"We've been excited about the DMR this year, knowing we have Titania Markland back [after a red shirt year last season] and having Val Larson and Emerald Egwim, along with Maddie [Strandemo] as a big piece," Hopkins said.
"The 1200 leg is the biggest question mark right now, but we have a lot of great candidates for it, whether that's Bethany Hasz; Megan Hasz, Abby Kohut-Jackson, Lindsey Greenlund, Carissa Dock -- a lot of them have the mold for a good 1200m runner but the 1200m is a tough event because it's not one you get to practice much. It's not an 800m and it's not a mile, but it's the lead off distance so you have to have somebody on there that you trust and that can do what they're supposed to do."
In 2016, Minnesota's distance medley relay team of Haley Johnson, Erin Hawkins, Stacey Swatek, and Strandemo placed third in the Big Ten.
"We're all excited to get back to it," Hopkins said. "Relays are just always fun. Distance runners very rarely get to have a stick in their hands, so it's fun to take advantage of that indoors and know that it's a team thing."
Minnesota officially kicks off the indoor track & field season next weekend with the UST Opener on Friday, Jan. 12 and the Minnesota vs. Wisconsin Dual on Saturday, Jan. 13.
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Players Mentioned
