Weekly Release #6

Upcoming Schedule ...
Friday, Oct. 24 -- at EMU Classic (Ypsilanti, Mich.), 4:30 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 2 -- at Big Ten Championships (East Lansing, Mich.), 10:45 a.m.

This Week: EMU Classic ...
The No. 10 University of Michigan women's cross country team heads east Friday afternoon (Oct. 24) for the EMU Classic, hosted by Eastern Michigan University. The Wolverines will send only three harriers to compete in the 5,000-meter race slated to begin at 4:30 p.m. at Rolling Hills Park.

At the Line for the Wolverines ...
Head coach Mike McGuire will send just three Wolverines to the start line of the 5,000-meter EMU Classic this Friday (Oct. 24). Michigan's three representatives will be Laura Brosius (Saline, Mich./Saline HS), Anna Jones (Omaha, Neb./Marian HS) and Jessica Wagner (Toledo, Ohio/Notre Dame Academy). The remainder of the squad will be off in preparation for next week's Big Ten Conference Championships.

Last Time on the Path ...
The Wolverines finished fourth at the NCAA Pre-Nationals Saturday (Oct. 18) in Waterloo, Iowa, as sophomore Rebecca Walter (Beverly Hills, Mich./Groves HS), graduate/senior Jessie Allen-Young (Loveland, Colo./Thompson Valley HS) and senior Lindsey Gallo (Freehold, N.J./Howell HS) all finished in the top 25 of the Purple race, helping U-M to a team total of 135 points. All three harriers posted personal-best times as Walter crossed the line 13th overall in 20:42.4, Allen-Young placed 18th in 20:49.9 and Gallo placed 25th in 20:58.8. Michigan's four other runners were Sarah Pizzo (Golden. Colo./Mullen HS), 37th (21:15.15); Andrea Parker (Livonia, Mich./Stevenson HS), 42nd (21:19.9); Chelsea Loomis (Traverse City, Mich./West HS), 62nd (21:41.1); and Theresa Feldkamp (Lorain, Ohio/Amherst Steele HS), 152nd (22:50.0).

In the National Spotlight ...
Following their fourth-place finish at the NCAA Pre-Nationals last week in Waterloo, Iowa, the Wolverines jumped 11 spots in the latest FinishLynx NCAA Division I Poll. The Maize and Blue currently holds the No. 11 slot in the national rankings released Monday (Oct. 20).

RANK, SCHOOL REGION PTS. PREV 1. Stanford (7) W 384 2 2. Brigham Young (6) MT 383 1 3. North Carolina State SE 355 6 4. Arizona State W 350 3 5. North Carolina SE 337 11 6. Michigan State GL 328 4 7. Notre Dame GL 308 5 8. Providence NE 298 10 9. Colorado MT 285 7 10. MICHIGAN GL 276 22 11. Northern Arizona MT 250 16 12. Columbia NE 246 9 13. Wake Forest SE 241 15 14. Princeton MA 227 23 15. UCLA W 215 12 16. Georgetown MA 195 8 17. Missouri MW 180 21 18. Wisconsin GL 165 17 19. Penn State MA 158 18 20. Nebraska MW 137 25 21. Marquette GL 127 26 22. Colorado State MT 118 20 23. UC Santa Barbara W 107 NR 24. Baylor SC 92 14 25. West Virginia MA 63 27 26. Tennessee S 52 28 27. Boston College NE 46 NR 28. Nevada MT 38 NR 29. Duke SE 29 NR 30. Florida State S 20 29

The Mike McGuire File ...
Mike McGuire is in his 12th season as a head coach for the Michigan women's cross country team. McGuire led the Wolverines to their fourth Big Ten Conference team title in 2002. In his first four seasons, McGuire won three consecutive Big Ten Conference and NCAA District IV team championships, and finished as high as second at the 1994 NCAA National Championship. All told, McGuire's Michigan teams have 10 top-two finishes at the Big Ten Championships and eight top-two finishes at the regional championships, winning the regional meet in 1993, '94 and '95. His teams have finished among the nation's top 10 five times at the NCAA Championships.

Who's Next ...
Michigan looks to defend its Big Ten Conference cross country title when the Wolverines travel to East Lansing, Mich., for the conference championship meet next Sunday (Nov. 2).

Contact: Gene Skidmore (734) 763-4423