Wolverine Weekly: Eastern Michigan Fall Classic News and Notes

» The No. 7 University of Michigan women's cross country team will run its younger and less-experienced competitors to close out the regular season in Friday's Eastern Michigan Fall Classic.
» The women's race begins at 4:30 p.m. at the Hudson Mills Metropark just north of Dexter, Mich. Admission into the Metropark is $10 per vehicle.

THIS WEEK
Friday, Oct. 19 -- at Eastern Michigan Fall Classic (Dexter, Mich.) / 4:30 p.m.

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Before the two-time defending Big Ten champion No. 7 University of Michigan women's cross country team goes for three-in-a-row next week, it will first close out the regular season on Friday (Oct. 19) as some of its younger and less-experienced runners compete at the Eastern Michigan Fall Classic.

The five-kilometer (3.11-mile) race over the Hudson Mills Metropark course just north of Dexter, Michigan, will begin at 4:30 p.m. against similar contingents from Eastern Michigan, Michigan State, Kalamazoo, Lansing CC, Toledo and Windsor.

Directly following the women's race is the men's competition at 5 p.m.

Spectators are subject to a $10 entry fee into the Metropark.

Competing for the Wolverines are redshirt senior Rachel Coleman, redshirt juniors Audrey Belf and Faith Reynolds, redshirt sophomores Micaela DeGenero and Jena Metwalli, and redshirt freshmen Haley Click, Carola Jansohn, Raquel Powers and Julia Vanitvelt.

The squad for next weekend's Big Ten Championships is largely determined and resting up ahead of the attempted defense of their 2016 and 2017 conference titles. Big Tens will be hosted by Nebraska on Sunday, Oct. 28.

Things to Know

• Led by reigning Great Lakes Region and Big Ten Coach of the Year Mike McGuire, Michigan moved up to No. 7 in the National Coaches' Poll and took control of the NCAA Great Lakes Regional Rankings announced Tuesday (Oct. 16) and Monday (Oct. 15), respectively, by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

• This marks the eighth year in a row Michigan has been ranked top-10 nationally at some point during the season. Only one other team in the country (Stanford, 24 years in a row) has a longer active top-10 streak than the Wolverines.

• This week marks the 138th consecutive edition of the National Coaches' Poll that has included Michigan in its top-30, a streak surpassed only by Stanford. Among Big Ten teams, Penn State is next on the list with 30 consecutive appearances.

• No Big Ten team is ranked higher nationally than Michigan, though the conference meet is shaping up to be one of the nation's best with five teams in the top 15 and six in the top 30. Behind Michigan are No. 10 Indiana, No. 11 Wisconsin, No. 13 Penn State and No. 14 Michigan State, as well as No. 21 Minnesota.

• The Wolverines have claimed five of the last six regional titles and are in the midst of the third-longest active NCAA Championships qualifying streak in the nation at 15 years running. Never before has a women's team in the Great Lakes Region claimed four consecutive regional titles, but the Wolverines -- winners of three straight -- will look to change that in 2018. The top two teams in the region will automatically advance to the NCAA Championships.

• This marks the 16th year in a row Michigan earned a top-30 national rank to start the season. Of those 16 years, Michigan -- No. 13 to start 2018 -- has gone on to outperform its preseason rank at the NCAA Championships in nine of those seasons.

• Michigan had unmatched depth in its runner-up finish in the Pre-National Invitational "White Race," with all seven runners finishing top-60 individually. No other team in the field had more than five in the top-60 and no other team even managed seven in the top-100.

• Avery Evenson (eighth) and Hannah Meier (12th) gave the Wolverines firepower out front, and Jessi Larson (40th), Anna West (48th) and Kathryn House (59th) brought home the depth as the best Nos. 5, 6 and 7 runners in the field.

The Course

Name: Hudson Mills Metropark North Course
Distance: Five Kilometers (3.11 miles)
Maximum Elevation: 874 feet
Minimum Elevation: 837 feet

Here's a sneak preview of the 5k course at Hudson Mills Metropark. #Team100 #Team40 #GoBlue pic.twitter.com/cdt86qUmgX
— Michigan Cross Country / Track & Field (@UMichTrack) August 29, 2018

We showed you yesterday what every step of our 5k course at Hudson Mills Metropark looks like from the ground.

Here's what it looks like from above. #Team100 #Team40 #GoBlue pic.twitter.com/wu3bIDitvk
— Michigan Cross Country / Track & Field (@UMichTrack) August 29, 2018