The 2016 season brought domination for Wisconsin cross country, with both the men’s and women’s team commanding most of the invitationals they competed in.
This season, the Badgers aim to replicate the same success they had back in 2016. With both men’s and women’s cross country having already competed in two invitationals this season, let’s take a look at how they’ve done thus far, along with how the rest of their season will shape up.
Men’s Cross Country
Men’s cross country had an amazing 2016 season, taking home the Big Ten title for the 43rd time in program history. The Badgers managed to out-run Michigan State, Indiana, Minnesota and Michigan to gain their most recent title.
The men’s team earned a victory during four tournaments last year, two of which were post-season tournaments — the Big Ten Tournament and the NCAA Great Lakes Regional Tournament. Unfortunately, the Badgers did not manage to bring home a national title, and placed 11th overall in the NCAA Championship Tournament.
This year, the men’s cross country team struggles to find the same level of success they managed to find last year. By this time last year, the Badgers had already managed to place first during their second tournament of the season, but the highest place UW has earned in 2017 is fourth.
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This team is significantly younger than last years team — just over half of the team is composed of underclassmen. Two of the main leaders on this team are sophomore Eric Brown and freshman Tannor Wagner.
Even still, the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association ranked Wisconsin No.7 in this year’s preseason poll. The Badgers currently claim the same spot they entered the season in.
The first tournament of the year for the Badgers was the Indiana Open, during which the Badgers placed fifth overall. The fastest Wisconsin runner earned 32nd place, and the final Wisconsin runner earned 36th place.
Their second tournament, the Badger Classic, showed improvement for the Badgers, who placed fourth overall. But while these results demonstrate some gains from the weekend before, UW managed to come in first at the same tournament in 2016, showing there is still much progress to be made.
There are only two more invitationals remaining in this tournament before the Badgers begin their final leg of the season. The next tournament in the men’s schedule is the Louisville Classic, and their season will end here in Wisconsin with the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational on Oct. 13th.
While this season might not have started out the way they wanted it to, the Wisconsin men’s cross country team still has time to improve their standings in the Big Ten. They might be down right now, but a lot could happen before they reach the finish line.
Women’s Cross Country
Much like their male counterparts, Wisconsin women’s cross country had a fantastic season in 2016. They are looking at getting back to the same place that they found themselves in last season.
Wisconsin is currently ranked No.15 in the nation, but they have fallen from their previous No.14 ranking this season. One reason for this may be that the Badgers have been struggling to get to the front of the pack in their races, causing them to fall to fourth or fifth place in their races.
Granted, they have only been through two races this season, so there is ample time to recover. Much like the men, it is just going to be about finding the right momentum this year to propel themselves to the front of the pack.
This time last year, the women’s team had already come in second during the Oz Memorial Invitational and won the Badger Classic Invitational. Now, the Badgers came in fouth during their first race of the season, and fifth during their second.
The Badgers have some time to begin building a better strategy as they begin preparing for the Louisville classic at the end of September. After that, the women only get one more invitational before they head to the Big Ten Championship invitational.
One of the benefits of cross country is that performance during the regular season as a team does not affect team standing during post-season meets. Everyone begins with a blank slate, and it can be a good chance for teams to learn from mistakes, start anew and forget how the regular season unfolded.
Both teams have the potential to have a great season in 2017, despite slow starts. Now, both the men and women’s teams will have a full week to recover and begin preparing for their next tournaments and reflect on how their season has progressed thus far.
