Eastern Michigan Athletics
Saturday, November 1
Mt. Pleasant, Mich.
11 a.m.
Eastern Michigan University
vs
MAC Championships
Photo by: EMU Athletics/Chloe Smith
Women's Cross Country Ready to Make a Run for the MAC Championship Title
10/31/2014 12:42:00 PM | Women's XC
Victoria Voronko will race for her first MAC individual title
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) — Eastern Michigan University's women's cross country team is primed for action at the conference level, and will head to Mount Pleasant, Mich. for the 2014 Mid-American Conference Cross Country Championships, Nov. 1. The Green and White is looking to further its consistent improvement within the MAC after a fourth-place showing last season.
The MAC looks solid across the board when it comes to regional rankings. In the NCAA Great Lakes Region, the University of Toledo holds the highest spot in fifth, and EMU is the next-highest ranked team at ninth. Defending MAC champions Miami University hold the 10th spot, while Bowling Green State University, Central Michigan University, and Western Michigan University rank at 13th, 14th, and 15th, respectively.
Last season, the Eagles finished fourth with 111 points, improving upon three years of finishing fifth in the conference from 2010-12. Miami edged out Toledo by three points, winning with a score of 45 compared to the Rockets' count of 48 points. Central Michigan grabbed the fourth spot with 60 points. The Green and White was paced by Victoria Voronko (Stavropol, Russia-School #42), who finished second behind the now-graduated Juli Accurso of Ohio University. Senior Kayla Pfund just missed out on All-MAC honors with her 15th-place finish, and another Eagle landed in the top-20 when Anna Aldrich (Fremont, Ind.-Fremont) took 19th.
This year's roster features seven of the nine harriers that competed in 2013's championship race. Undoubtedly, Voronko will be on the hunt for her first individual MAC Champion title, as she will also be looking to become just the second Eagle in program history to earn All-MAC honors all four years. Carrie Gould is the only other athlete to accomplish the feat, taking conference honors between 1996-2000 and picking up an individual win in 1997. Voronko has been a powerhouse this season, as she has not only led the Green and White in every race in which she has competed, but she finished in the top-10 in every meet despite going up against nationally-ranked opponents. For her efforts, Voronko was awarded the MAC Runner of the Week a whopping five times, once for every one of her races in 2014.
Voronko will be joined by her senior teammates in the task to be one of the Eagles' five scorers. Co-captain Taylor Knoll (Warren, Mich.-Mott (Lansing CC)) has been showing steady improvement throughout the season and most recently just missed out on the top-100 at the Indiana State Pre-Nationals Invitational, Oct. 18. Also running will be EMU championship veteran Marina Manjon-Rivadulla (Barcelona, Spain-Escola University). The Spanish product is one that can always be counted on to rise to the occasion of a conference meet, as she finished 30th last year in Bowling Green, Ohio.
Head Coach Sue Parks has also brought in a large recruiting class to add to the depth of her program, and will rely on newcomers Sofie Gallein (Gits, Belgium-University of Leuven) and Jordann McDermitt (Davison, Mich.-Davison) to provide an extra spark for the Eagles in the front pack. The pair has been the consistent second and third scorers for the team this season, with McDermitt picking up a season-best runner-up finish behind Voronko in the Toledo Home Opener, Aug. 29. In recent races, Gallein has been the second Eagle to cross the line with McDermitt not far behind, excluding the Pre-Nationals Invitational in which McDermitt suffered a fall early in the race which dropped her back about thirty spots. The freshman still managed to finish in the top-100, helping the Eagles earn an 18th-place finish in the elite-level Blue Race.
With all the right components to make a move up in the conference, the Eagles will surely make tomorrow's championship a fierce competition. The women will start off the day's events at 11 a.m. in Mount Pleasant, Mich. and will be followed by the men's race at noon. Results and information about the meet can be found at mac-sports.com.
The MAC looks solid across the board when it comes to regional rankings. In the NCAA Great Lakes Region, the University of Toledo holds the highest spot in fifth, and EMU is the next-highest ranked team at ninth. Defending MAC champions Miami University hold the 10th spot, while Bowling Green State University, Central Michigan University, and Western Michigan University rank at 13th, 14th, and 15th, respectively.
Last season, the Eagles finished fourth with 111 points, improving upon three years of finishing fifth in the conference from 2010-12. Miami edged out Toledo by three points, winning with a score of 45 compared to the Rockets' count of 48 points. Central Michigan grabbed the fourth spot with 60 points. The Green and White was paced by Victoria Voronko (Stavropol, Russia-School #42), who finished second behind the now-graduated Juli Accurso of Ohio University. Senior Kayla Pfund just missed out on All-MAC honors with her 15th-place finish, and another Eagle landed in the top-20 when Anna Aldrich (Fremont, Ind.-Fremont) took 19th.
This year's roster features seven of the nine harriers that competed in 2013's championship race. Undoubtedly, Voronko will be on the hunt for her first individual MAC Champion title, as she will also be looking to become just the second Eagle in program history to earn All-MAC honors all four years. Carrie Gould is the only other athlete to accomplish the feat, taking conference honors between 1996-2000 and picking up an individual win in 1997. Voronko has been a powerhouse this season, as she has not only led the Green and White in every race in which she has competed, but she finished in the top-10 in every meet despite going up against nationally-ranked opponents. For her efforts, Voronko was awarded the MAC Runner of the Week a whopping five times, once for every one of her races in 2014.
Voronko will be joined by her senior teammates in the task to be one of the Eagles' five scorers. Co-captain Taylor Knoll (Warren, Mich.-Mott (Lansing CC)) has been showing steady improvement throughout the season and most recently just missed out on the top-100 at the Indiana State Pre-Nationals Invitational, Oct. 18. Also running will be EMU championship veteran Marina Manjon-Rivadulla (Barcelona, Spain-Escola University). The Spanish product is one that can always be counted on to rise to the occasion of a conference meet, as she finished 30th last year in Bowling Green, Ohio.
Head Coach Sue Parks has also brought in a large recruiting class to add to the depth of her program, and will rely on newcomers Sofie Gallein (Gits, Belgium-University of Leuven) and Jordann McDermitt (Davison, Mich.-Davison) to provide an extra spark for the Eagles in the front pack. The pair has been the consistent second and third scorers for the team this season, with McDermitt picking up a season-best runner-up finish behind Voronko in the Toledo Home Opener, Aug. 29. In recent races, Gallein has been the second Eagle to cross the line with McDermitt not far behind, excluding the Pre-Nationals Invitational in which McDermitt suffered a fall early in the race which dropped her back about thirty spots. The freshman still managed to finish in the top-100, helping the Eagles earn an 18th-place finish in the elite-level Blue Race.
With all the right components to make a move up in the conference, the Eagles will surely make tomorrow's championship a fierce competition. The women will start off the day's events at 11 a.m. in Mount Pleasant, Mich. and will be followed by the men's race at noon. Results and information about the meet can be found at mac-sports.com.
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's XC
/ Women's XC
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