Evanston, Ill. – The Wildcats will kick of the 2018-2019 campaign at the EIU Walt Crawford Open at Eastern Illinois on Friday.
Northwestern will be running in the 5K on the Tom Woodall Panther Trail at 4:45 p.m.
Head coach 'AHavahla Haynes is hoping to carry the momentum from a spring season that saw numerous record-breaking races, including in the 1500 by junior Kelly O'Brien and in the 5000 by classmate Aubrey Roberts, into the start of the 2018 cross country campaign.
"We generated a lot of momentum during the spring season, and this meet will serve to see where the women are at following the summer break," said head coach 'AHavahla Haynes.
The Wildcats will also be looking to build off their strong performance from last fall in which the team finished eighth at the Big Ten Championships. The finish was the program's best at the meet since 2012, when the 'Cats took seventh place. Northwestern also rose to No. 4 in the USTFCCCA Midwest Regional Rankings last season, which was the highest ranking since 2013.
The spotlight will be on the newcomers for this first meet as Haynes is resting some of the upperclassmen.
"Some of our top veterans – Sara Nicholson, Aubrey Roberts and Isabel Seidel – won't be competing, so it's really an opportunity to see our first-year student-athletes race for the first time against collegiate competition and gain confidence," said Haynes. "We've had solid workouts over the first few practices of the year, so we are excited to see what this young group can do."
Results for the meet will be posted at www.eiupanthers.com.
Northwestern will be running in the 5K on the Tom Woodall Panther Trail at 4:45 p.m.
Head coach 'AHavahla Haynes is hoping to carry the momentum from a spring season that saw numerous record-breaking races, including in the 1500 by junior Kelly O'Brien and in the 5000 by classmate Aubrey Roberts, into the start of the 2018 cross country campaign.
"We generated a lot of momentum during the spring season, and this meet will serve to see where the women are at following the summer break," said head coach 'AHavahla Haynes.
The Wildcats will also be looking to build off their strong performance from last fall in which the team finished eighth at the Big Ten Championships. The finish was the program's best at the meet since 2012, when the 'Cats took seventh place. Northwestern also rose to No. 4 in the USTFCCCA Midwest Regional Rankings last season, which was the highest ranking since 2013.
The spotlight will be on the newcomers for this first meet as Haynes is resting some of the upperclassmen.
"Some of our top veterans – Sara Nicholson, Aubrey Roberts and Isabel Seidel – won't be competing, so it's really an opportunity to see our first-year student-athletes race for the first time against collegiate competition and gain confidence," said Haynes. "We've had solid workouts over the first few practices of the year, so we are excited to see what this young group can do."
Results for the meet will be posted at www.eiupanthers.com.