Eastern Michigan Athletics
Women's Cross Country Season Preview
8/29/2016 11:57:00 AM | Women's XC
The Eagles will look to follow up their 2015 MAC Championship season with an even better 2016
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) - After a magical 2015 season in which the Eastern Michigan University women's cross country team won their first Mid-American Conference Championship in program history, the Eagles return to action this year with plenty of talent. Unlike the conclusion of the 2014 season in which the team lost MAC Champion Victoria Voronko, the Eagles will return all three of their top harriers from last year.
Going into head coach Sue Parks' 11th season at the helm, the team continues to build momentum, as they have consistently risen up the MAC Championship standings since 2007, taking second in 2014 and winning the title in 2015. Last season, the Eagles also took sixth at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional with 216 points, the squad's best finish since 1996 when they took second.
"Our line up will be very similar to last year with four of our top five returning," explained Parks. "Our distance group made great progress during the track season, so we hope to be a much improved team. We have high goals for the season, but we know that we have to stay healthy and work hard at improving each week."
Parks went on to elabortate about the team's top returners, stating "We have three very strong front runners who were all NCAA qualifiers in outdoor track. They give us a great punch up front. A big goal for us will be moving the rest of the group up and closing that gap to our front runners."
This season, EMU will be paced by a trio of experienced harriers, all of whom finished within the top-six at last year's MAC Championships. Senior Alsu Bogdanova (Kazan, Russia - Lyceum #83) joined the team just last season, but immediatly made a huge impact. In her first season donning the Green and White, Bogdanova secured all-region honors after taking ninth at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional with a time of 20:50.3. Following in Voronko's footsteps, the Russian also was crowned the MAC individual champion after crossing the finish line in 20:39.26 to beat the field.
"Alsu is a very talented runner and I'm excited to see what she can accomplish now that she has completed a year of training in our program," remarked Parks.
Also returning for Eastern will be junior Jordann McDermitt (Davison, Mich. - Davison) and redshirt-senior Sofie Gallein (Gits, Belgium - University of Leuven), both of whom had fantastic seasons in 2015. McDermitt, who was recently named a team captain, followed up her freshman campaign in 2014 with an even better season last year. Like Bogdanova, she also earned all-region honors, taking 19th at the regional with a time of 21:01.0. She also earned First Team All-MAC honors after placing fourth at the conference championships with a time of 20:53.62.
"Jordann made tremendous progress on the track and I know that she's anxious to have a breakthrough season this fall," said Parks. "She has a tremendous work ethic, which is a positive influence on the team."
Gallein will look to conclude her cross country career on a high note after two solid seasons with the Green and White. After qualifying to the NCAA Championships in 2014, Gallein also found success in 2015, being named All-MAC First Team for the second consecutive season after placing sixth in 21:09.80 at the conference championship. Like McDermitt, Gallein was also named a team captain for her final season with the Eagles.
"Sofie was disappointed with the end of her season after making NCAA's the year before, so I know that she's very anxious to take her performance to the next level this fall," explained Parks." She is a tough racer."
Despite debuting at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional at the end of the 2015 campaign, senior Jenna Wyns (Londerzeel, Belgium - Sportschol KA2) figures to have an even bigger impact this season after a year of both cross country and track & field experience under her belt. In her lone race representing EMU last season, she took 70th at the regional, which was fourth-best on the team. Sophomore Sydney Meyers (Zionsville, Ind. - Zionsville Community) had a strong debut season last year, running to a 23rd-place finish at the MAC Championships in 22:02.77 and finishing just two spots behind Amy Frauhammer, who has since graduated.
"Sydney had a great freshman year for us," exclaimed Parks. "She was very consistent throughout the year, and I know that she will be working hard to move closer to out front runners."
The Eagles will have considerable depth this season, as numerous harriers already have a wealth of race experience. Junior Lauren Pottschmidt (Granger, Ind. - Penn) improved upon her placing in the MAC Championships by four spots between her freshman and sophomore campaigns, and will look to climb even further this season. Redshirt junior Anna Aldrich (Fremont, Ind. - Fremont), who was named a team captain for the second straight year, ran in four meets last year after recovering from injury in 2014.
Redshirt sophomore Natalie Cizmas (Clinton Twp., Mich. - Chippewa Valley) had a very strong track and field season, qualifying to the NCAA East Regional in the 1500m and posting the fourth-best mark in progarm history, and will look to carry that success to the cross country season. Junior Danielle Bentzley (Birmingham, Mich. - Seaholm) ran in six meets last season, including both postseason races, bringing even more depth to the squad.
Parks is looking forward to seeing Cizmas make her cross country debut, stating "We're excited to see Natalie run her first cross country season for the team. We saw the kind of talent and toughness that she possesses last track season."
Three new faces will be joining the team for the 2016 season, as freshmen Kaitlyn Culler, Gabrielle Peck, and Abbigail Stemple will all look to have an impact in their first season donning the Green and White.
For more information on the 2016 schedule, please click here.
Going into head coach Sue Parks' 11th season at the helm, the team continues to build momentum, as they have consistently risen up the MAC Championship standings since 2007, taking second in 2014 and winning the title in 2015. Last season, the Eagles also took sixth at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional with 216 points, the squad's best finish since 1996 when they took second.
"Our line up will be very similar to last year with four of our top five returning," explained Parks. "Our distance group made great progress during the track season, so we hope to be a much improved team. We have high goals for the season, but we know that we have to stay healthy and work hard at improving each week."
Parks went on to elabortate about the team's top returners, stating "We have three very strong front runners who were all NCAA qualifiers in outdoor track. They give us a great punch up front. A big goal for us will be moving the rest of the group up and closing that gap to our front runners."
This season, EMU will be paced by a trio of experienced harriers, all of whom finished within the top-six at last year's MAC Championships. Senior Alsu Bogdanova (Kazan, Russia - Lyceum #83) joined the team just last season, but immediatly made a huge impact. In her first season donning the Green and White, Bogdanova secured all-region honors after taking ninth at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional with a time of 20:50.3. Following in Voronko's footsteps, the Russian also was crowned the MAC individual champion after crossing the finish line in 20:39.26 to beat the field.
"Alsu is a very talented runner and I'm excited to see what she can accomplish now that she has completed a year of training in our program," remarked Parks.
Also returning for Eastern will be junior Jordann McDermitt (Davison, Mich. - Davison) and redshirt-senior Sofie Gallein (Gits, Belgium - University of Leuven), both of whom had fantastic seasons in 2015. McDermitt, who was recently named a team captain, followed up her freshman campaign in 2014 with an even better season last year. Like Bogdanova, she also earned all-region honors, taking 19th at the regional with a time of 21:01.0. She also earned First Team All-MAC honors after placing fourth at the conference championships with a time of 20:53.62.
"Jordann made tremendous progress on the track and I know that she's anxious to have a breakthrough season this fall," said Parks. "She has a tremendous work ethic, which is a positive influence on the team."
Gallein will look to conclude her cross country career on a high note after two solid seasons with the Green and White. After qualifying to the NCAA Championships in 2014, Gallein also found success in 2015, being named All-MAC First Team for the second consecutive season after placing sixth in 21:09.80 at the conference championship. Like McDermitt, Gallein was also named a team captain for her final season with the Eagles.
"Sofie was disappointed with the end of her season after making NCAA's the year before, so I know that she's very anxious to take her performance to the next level this fall," explained Parks." She is a tough racer."
Despite debuting at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional at the end of the 2015 campaign, senior Jenna Wyns (Londerzeel, Belgium - Sportschol KA2) figures to have an even bigger impact this season after a year of both cross country and track & field experience under her belt. In her lone race representing EMU last season, she took 70th at the regional, which was fourth-best on the team. Sophomore Sydney Meyers (Zionsville, Ind. - Zionsville Community) had a strong debut season last year, running to a 23rd-place finish at the MAC Championships in 22:02.77 and finishing just two spots behind Amy Frauhammer, who has since graduated.
"Sydney had a great freshman year for us," exclaimed Parks. "She was very consistent throughout the year, and I know that she will be working hard to move closer to out front runners."
The Eagles will have considerable depth this season, as numerous harriers already have a wealth of race experience. Junior Lauren Pottschmidt (Granger, Ind. - Penn) improved upon her placing in the MAC Championships by four spots between her freshman and sophomore campaigns, and will look to climb even further this season. Redshirt junior Anna Aldrich (Fremont, Ind. - Fremont), who was named a team captain for the second straight year, ran in four meets last year after recovering from injury in 2014.
Redshirt sophomore Natalie Cizmas (Clinton Twp., Mich. - Chippewa Valley) had a very strong track and field season, qualifying to the NCAA East Regional in the 1500m and posting the fourth-best mark in progarm history, and will look to carry that success to the cross country season. Junior Danielle Bentzley (Birmingham, Mich. - Seaholm) ran in six meets last season, including both postseason races, bringing even more depth to the squad.
Parks is looking forward to seeing Cizmas make her cross country debut, stating "We're excited to see Natalie run her first cross country season for the team. We saw the kind of talent and toughness that she possesses last track season."
Three new faces will be joining the team for the 2016 season, as freshmen Kaitlyn Culler, Gabrielle Peck, and Abbigail Stemple will all look to have an impact in their first season donning the Green and White.
For more information on the 2016 schedule, please click here.
Players Mentioned
/ Women's XC
/ Women's XC
/ Women's XC
/ Women's XC
/ Women's XC
/ Women's XC
/ Women's XC
/ Women's XC
/ Women's XC
/ Women's XC
/ Women's XC
/ Women's XC
/ Women's XC
Track & Field at 2025 Spartan Invitational
Tuesday, April 08
2025 MAC Indoor Track & Field Championships Cinematic Recap
Wednesday, March 05
2025 MAC Indoor Track & Field Championships Day 1 Highlights
Saturday, March 01
2025 MAC Indoor Championships Hype Video
Wednesday, February 26