The MSU Women’s Cross Country Team won their second Big Ten Championship title last weekend in Champaign, Illinois. The team posted a score of 55 which beat UofM’s 61 points marking it the sixth narrowest margin of victory in the Big Ten conference history.
The team was led by sophomore’s Julia Otwell (sixth place), Sara Kroll (8th place) and senior Carlie Green (9th place). Otwell earned first-team All-Big Ten honors for her performance, with Kroll and Green following her earning second-team All-Big Ten.
The top seven girls on the women’s team got to compete in the Oct. 30th championship race which also consisted of, senior Rebekah Smeltzer, junior Rachel McFarlane, freshman Leah O’Connor and junior Katie Haines. However, they credit the win as a team win, with the entire team making the trek to Illinois to support and help them to edge out our in-state rivals (UofM) in the end.
“We love running together and improving everyday. We know how much each of us wanted this win (the Big Ten Championship) so times did not matter, it was all about place,” junior McFarlane said.
She added that they, “Worked together during the race and trusted each others abilities. It was a hard fought battle but we came out successful in the end and accomplished a team goal we set at the beginning of the year!”
This all around teamwork attitude is only one of many reasons why HCMSU chose to feature this amazing women’s Spartan team for not only their accomplishments on the course but also their love for MSU and working together as athletes with a common goal.