Northwestern University Athletics
The 2002 Season In Review
12/5/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Cross Country & Track
Dec. 5, 2002
EVANSTON, Ill. - Led by a strong senior class, the Northwestern women's cross country team entered the 2002 season with a definite sense of unfinished business.
A near-miss for an NCAA Championship bid in 2000 was expected to spur the team in 2001, but a pair of ill-timed injuries held the Wildcats back for a year. Those travails combined to add a further sense of purpose, with four seniors expected to make NU's NCAA dream a reality in their final go-round.
The season was a roller-coaster ride, to be sure, but truly the defining moment of this season occurred on Saturday, Nov. 16. It was on that day the Wildcats had numerous harriers run the race of their lives, and it proved to be enough to guide them to a national berth.
The immediate thrill of the women that day -- knowing they had run great races -- was followed by nervous anticipation as they waited for final results. When head coach Amy Tush pulled them in to officially announce their qualification, exultation took over when rumor became reality. That wave of emotions carried the day -- and the season.
"That was a really exciting day," said Tush. "I knew how they felt, because I ran on teams that just missed getting bids and I knew they had been there two years ago. So it was really great to be the one to tell them they had made the NCAA's."
Running as the only school without a track program, Northwestern finished 30th overall at the national championships. However, the story of this season lies in the journey and not the destination.
"We were hoping to do a little better at NCAAs," said Tush, who pointed out that the Wildcats actually had all of its runners finish before all the runners of several other teams. "But the biggest thing was just to run there and experience the whole atmosphere surrounding a national championship event. These women had worked so hard for so long to make this happen, and it was great for them to be rewarded with the opportunity."
The season began with a positive harbinger, when the Wildcats defeated six other teams at the Illinois State Invitational. Senior Nicole Kuznia won the individual title, while Diana Hossfeld (fifth), Laura Evans (sixth) and Karen Rogers (seventh) also earned Top 10 finishes.
Two weeks later, Rachel Evjen returned to the lineup after missing the opening race with an injury. She seemed none the worse for wear at the Roy Griak, finishing as the Wildcats' top runner (something she would do in every race this season, the third straight year she accomplished the feat). On October 4, NU finished sixth of 24 teams at the Notre Dame Invitational.
The first indication that Northwestern deserved notice came two weeks later at the Pre-National Invitational, which was held in Terre Haute, Ind. on the course that would host the NCAA Championships. Running in the White race, the Wildcats surprised many people with a 13th-place finish as four women broke 22 minutes for the 6K race. That same day, in Vernon Hills, Ill., junior Catie LaBracke led another NU group to a team victory over 16 other teams by taking the individual title at the Forester Invitational. When the national polls came out on Monday, people showed they were paying attention -- Northwestern was ranked 27th, the first ranking for the 'Cats since they returned to varsity status in 1998.
The team carried that ranking into the Big Ten Championships, but its momentum hit a roadblock with a seventh-place finish. Following the race, though, Tush was still confident that her team had what it would take to earn a national berth -- and she would be justified, as the Big Ten would end up sending a conference-record six teams to the NCAAs.
The stage was set for the Midwest Regional, then, which occurred two weeks after Big Tens. Evjen, Evans and Hossfeld would earn All-District, and six of Northwestern's seven runners in the race would set personal bests for the 6K distance. Evjen set the tone by running the first sub-21 6K in Northwestern history. They award-winning trio was joined in that race by Kuznia, Rogers, Emily Blakeslee and Kyna Forkins.
The four seniors who led NU this season -- and, truthfully, for the last four years -- were Evjen, Evans, Kuznia and Rogers. They have raised the standard for the program, and now the torch will be passed to several talented young runners led by Hossfeld, Blakeslee and Forkins.
