Weekly Release #8

Upcoming Schedule ...
Saturday, Nov. 15 -- at NCAA Great Lakes Regional (Terre Haute, Ind.), 12:15 p.m.
Monday. Nov. 24 -- at NCAA Championships (Waterloo, Iowa), 12:30 p.m.

This Week: NCAA Great Lakes Regional Championships ...
The No. 7-ranked University of Michigan women's cross country team looks to earn a trip to the NCAA Championships this Saturday (Nov. 15), when the 2003 Big Ten Conference champions travel to Terre Haute, Ind., for the NCAA Great Lakes Regional Championships. The regional meet will be held at the site of last year's NCAA Championships, the LaVern Gibson Championship Country Cross Course. The 6,000-meter race is scheduled to begin at 12:15 p.m.

At the Line for the Wolverines ...
Head coach Mike McGuire will send his top seven harriers from the Big Ten Championships to the line for the NCAA Great Lakes Regional. Heading the Wolverine seven-member squad this Saturday (Nov. 15) will be 2003 Big Ten Conference Athlete of the Year Rebecca Walter (Beverly Hills, Mich./Groves HS). Joining Walter on the line are 2003 All-Big Ten first teamers Lindsey Gallo (Freehold, N.J./Howell HS), Jessie Allen-Young (Loveland, Colo./Thompson Valley HS) and Sarah Pizzo (Golden, Colo./Mullen HS). All-Big Ten second teamer Katie Erdman (Cadillac, Mich./Cadillac HS), team captain Andrea Parker (Livonia, Mich./Stevenson HS) and Chelsea Loomis (Traverse City, Mich./West HS) round out Michigan's representatives.

The Meaning of the Regional Meet ...
Nine different regional meets will be held around the nation this weekend. The top two finishing teams at each regional will automatically qualify for the NCAA Championships on Monday, Nov. 24, in Waterloo, Iowa. With 18 teams earning automatic bids, the NCAA will then round out the field of 31 by making 13 at-large selections based on the teams' performance over the year. The top four individuals from each regional meet not on a qualifying team will earn invitations to NCAAs, provided they finish in the top 20 of their race.

Regional Experience ...
Of the Wolverines' seven harriers running in this Saturday's (Nov. 15) Great Lakes Regional, five have NCAA regional experience. Lindsey Gallo has the most tenure for the Maize and Blue as she has competed in the race in each of her first three years of her career. Gallo's best finish came last year when she placed 18th in 21:54.5. Andrea Parker is second on the tenure list as she has competed in two NCAA Great Lakes Regional meets. Parker had a career-best finish last year when she crossed the line in 30th place with a time of 22:10.7. Returning from last year's team are Rebecca Walter, Chelsea Loomis and Sarah Pizzo. Walter was Michigan's best finisher at the 2002 meet, placing 11th with a time of 21:44.9. Loomis and Pizzo finished 46th (22:27.6) and 65th (22:57.3), respectively.

Last Time on the Path: Big Blue Wins Big Two ...
The Wolverines ran to their second consecutive Big Ten Conference team championship two weeks ago as the Maize and Blue totaled a low score of 31 points to claim the league title by 26 points over runner-up and meet host Michigan State at the Forest Akers Golf Course in East Lansing, Mich. Sophomore Rebecca Walter headed the Wolverines team effort as she completed the rain-soaked 6,000-meter circuit in a personal-best time of 20:40.5. Also earning All-Big Ten first team honors were seniors Jessie Allen-Young (3rd, 20:52.4), Lindsey Gallo (6th, 21:11.1) and junior Sarah Pizzo (7th, 21: 16.1). Freshman Katie Erdman was the final scoring Wolverine to cross the finish line as she earned All-Big Ten second team accolades with a 14th-place showing in 21:41.8. Team captain Andrea Parker finished 28th (22:03.4), and Chelsea Loomis, 29th (22:06.2), Theresa Feldkamp (Lorian, Ohio/Amherst Steele HS), 41st (22:17.4), and Chelsea Homan (Cincinnati, Ohio/Anderson HS), 65th (22:55.0), rounded out the Wolverine finishers. The Wolverines' 31 points were the lowest scored at the championships since 1999.

Best of the Best ...
Sophomore Rebecca Walter became the fourth harrier in Wolverine history to run to the Big Ten individual title when she earned the gold medal at the 2003 Big Ten Championships two weeks ago in East Lansing, Mich. Walter joins Molly McClimon (1989-93), Deanna Arnill (1994) and Katie McGregor (1995-98) on the list of Michigan women who hold the title of Big Ten Athlete of the Year. McClimon and Arnill won back-to-back Big Ten individual titles in 1993 and '94, while McGregor posted two straight Big Ten crowns in '97 and '98.

Two Straight Big Ten Championships ...
Michigan won its second consecutive Big Ten team trophy two weeks ago when the Wolverines totaled a meet-low 31 points, topping the field by 26 points. It marked the fifth Big Ten team title in Michigan's 25-year history. In addition to its 2002 league team crown, the Wolverines posted three straight first-place finishes from 1992-94.

Leader of the Best ...
Michigan head coach Mike McGuire was honored as the Big Ten Coach of the Year after his Wolverines won their second consecutive conference title two weeks ago in East Lansing, Mich. The honor was the fifth of McGuire's career and second in as many years as the head man at U-M. He earned three consecutive conference honors as he led the Maize and Blue to conference championships from 1992-94.

First to Three ...
Senior Lindsey Gallo became the first harrier in Michigan history to earn three career All-Big Ten first team honors. Gallo saved her best performance at the conference championships for her final race at the league meet when she placed sixth overall with a time of 21:11.1. Gallo finished seventh in her first two conference meets.

In the National Spotlight ...
Following their second consecutive Big Ten Conference team title, the Wolverines jumped three spots in the latest FinishLynx NCAA Division I Poll. The Maize and Blue currently hold the No. 7 slot in the national rankings released last Tuesday (Nov. 4).

RANK, SCHOOL REGION PTS. PREV 1. Stanford (10) W 387 1 2. Brigham Young (3) MT 380 2 3. North Carolina SE 362 5 4. Notre Dame GL 345 7 5. North Carolina State SE 341 3 6. Colorado MT 311 9 7. MICHIGAN GL 308 10 8. Providence NE 292 8 9. Columbia NE 269 12 10. Northern Arizona MT 265 11 11. Arizona State W 264 4 12. Michigan State GL 254 6 13. Wake Forest SE 241 13 14. Princeton MA 234 14 15. UCLA W 213 15 16. Georgetown MA 205 16 17. Penn State MA 171 19 18. Baylor SC 158 24 19. Marquette GL 150 21 20. Missouri MW 142 17 21. Villanova MA 124 NR 22. Colorado State MT 120 22 23. UC Santa Barbara W 99 23 24. Tennessee S 87 26 25. Duke SE 68 29 26. Boston College NE 60 27 27. Nevada MT 58 28 28. Florida State S 32 30 29. Ball State GL 27 NR 30. Texas Christian SC 18 NR

The Mike McGuire File ...
Mike McGuire is in his 12th season as a head coach for the Michigan women's cross country team. McGuire has led the Wolverines to back-to-back Big Ten championships as the Wolverines claimed the 2003 team title with a team score of 31 points. Following the team victory, McGuire was named Big Ten Coach of the Year. It marked the team's fifth Big Ten Conference team title under McGuire and fifth time he was named Big Ten Coach of the Year. In his first four seasons, McGuire's teams 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.

What's Next ...
Depending on the Wolverines' finish at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional, U-M could travel to Waterloo, Iowa, for the 6,000-meter NCAA Championships. The NCAA will announce its selections Monday (Nov. 17). The meet is scheduled for a 12:30 p.m. CST start on Monday (Nov. 24).

Contact: Gene Skidmore (734) 763-4423