University of Illinois
Country Financial ISU Invitational
@IlliniWXC Travels To ISU Invitational
September 10, 2015 | Women's Cross Country
Illini Send 11 Runners to Normal
Meet PREVIEW
The Orange and Blue travel to Normal, Illinois on Friday to compete in the Country Financial ISU Invite where they will compete against eight other schools in the 5K meet, which set to start at 5 p.m.
Coach Jones on the Meet
"I'm really happy with this team and where we are after three weeks of training. We are working hard daily in practice and I think we will be a grittier group down the stretch this year. Going to Illinois State this Friday we are looking to build on the experience we gained from the Illini Challenge and extend that experience to competing on the road. Whenever we race we are striving to do our best and this is a meet that we can strive to win. We have the utmost respect for the other teams racing so we are not taking anything for granted. We know Illinois State will be ready to race. Jeff Bovee and his staff at Illinois State do a great job both coaching their team and putting on a first-class event."
Illini Set to Run
The Illini will send 11 runners to Normal for the Country Financial meet in Normal, Illinois. The Orange and Blue will be led by Illini Challenge winner, Alyssa Schenider. Joining her from the Illini Challenge will be Britten Petrey (4th at Challenge), Audrey, Blazek, Valerie Bobart, Denise Branch, Megan Lemersal, Ellie Palacios, and Kim Seger. Three Illini will be making their season debuts as Nicole Choquette, Amanda Fox, and Hanna Winter will suit up for the first time this season after each of them finished in the top-five on the team at the Midwest Regional last fall.
A Look at the Competition
The Fighting Illini will be competing against eight other teams this weekend, including in-state opponents DePaul, Illinois-Chicago, Loyola, Eastern Illinois, Southern Illinois-Edwardsville, and Northern Illinois. The other Big Ten school competing at the meet is Iowa, ranked 11th in the USTFCCCA preseason poll.
Last Time out
Last Friday night, the Illini opened their season victoriously with a win over Missouri and Northern Illinois in the Illini Challenge. The Orange and Blue were led by senior runner, Alyssa Schneider who outpaced the rest of the competition by 4.7 seconds en route to claiming first with a time of 17:43.3. Britten Petrey was not far behind Schneider, placing fourth. Audrey Blazek (8th) and Denise Branch (9th) completed the quartet of Illini to finish in the top-10.
2015 Illini Challenge - Illinois Results
1. Alyssa Schneider, 17:43
4. Britten Petrey, 18:19.2
8. Audrey Blazek, 18:44.8
9. Denise Branch, 18:47.4
11. Valerie Bobart, 19:02.8
14. Kim Seger, 19:44.5
21. Megan Lemersal, 20:08.8
24. Elena Palacios, 21:07.2
2014 Illini Challenge - Team Results
1. Illinois -- 33
2. Northern Illinois--45
3. Missouri--46
Up Next
After a week off, the Illini will head north to compete in the Roy Griak Invitational in Minneapolis, Minnesota on September 26 at 1:10 p.m. This will be the second year in a row that the team has competed at this meet.
