2012 Minnesota Women’s Cross Country Schedule

Sept. 7 OZ MEMORIAL RUN 1st of 6

Sept. 14 at SDSU Classic (Brookings, S.D.) 1st of 8

Sept. 21 at Blugold Invite (Eau Claire, Wis.) 1st of 17

Sept. 29 ROY GRIAK INVITATIONAL 3rd of 17

Oct. 12 at Wisconsin Adidas Inv. (Madison, Wis.) 16th of 48

Oct. 13 at Tori Neubauer Inv.l (LaCrosse, Wis.) 1st of 26

Oct. 20 JACK’S RUN NTS

Oct. 28 Big Ten Championships (East Lansing, Mich.)4th of 12

Nov. 4 ROCKY’S RUN NTS

Nov. 9 NCAA Midwest Regional (Springfield, Mo.) 3rd of 31

Nov. 17 NCAA Championships (Louisville, Ky.)

2012 NCAA ChampionshipsGopher Quick Facts• The Golden Gophers earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Champi-

onships after finishing third by one point at the NCAA Midwest Region

meet.

• Minnesota is one of five teams making at least its eighth consecutive

appearance at the NCAA Championships. Both Minnesota and George-

town have reached every national meet since 2005. Stanford (19), Michi-

gan State (14), and Michigan (11) are the three teams with longer active

streaks.

• Overall, Gary Wilson has guided the Golden Gophers to 15 NCAA

Championships appearances in his 28-year tenure.

• Five Gophers (Maggie Bollig, Ashlie Decker, Laura Docherty, Molly

Kayfes, and Katie Moraczewski) on this year’s travel roster have com-

peted at the NCAA Championships before, and sixth runner (Rachel

Drake) had previous NCAA regional experience.

• The Golden Gophers’ highest finish at the NCAA Championships came

in 2005 when they finished ninth. All-Americans Ladia Albertson-Junkans

and Emily Brown led Minnesota’s efforts. The ninth-place showing was

the first of five straight top-12 finishes.

• Minnesota’s most recent All-American is Stephanie Price, who earned

that honor in 2010 with a 31st-place finish. Price finished 41st as a sen-

ior last year.

• Eight different Golden Gophers have earned NCAA or AIAW All-Amer-

ica honors.

NCAA Championships Travel Roster

Liz Berkholtz RFr. Sun Prairie, Wis. Sun Prairie HS

Maggie Bollig Jr. Cross Plains, Wis. Middleton HS

Kelli Budd Jr. Omaha, Neb. Omaha Marian HS

Ashlie Decker Jr. Des Moines, Iowa Dowling Catholic HS

Laura Docherty Jr. St. Paul, Minn. Cretin-Derham Hall HS

Rachel Drake Jr. White Bear Lake, Minn. White Bear Lake HS

Becca Dyson RFr. Roseville, Minn. Roseville Area HS

Molly Kayfes So. Maple Grove, Minn. Maple Grove HS

Katie Moraczewski Jr. White Bear Lake, Minn. White Bear Lake HS

Jamie Piepneburg Fr. Alexandria, Minn. Jefferson HS

Gary Wilson

Head Coach

28th Season

In the cyclical world that is collegiate athletics, head coach

Gary Wilson has been the constant of the Minnesota women's

cross country program. In fall 2012, Wilson begins his 28th

season with the Golden Gophers looking to add another sea-

son to an impressive list of the program's recent successes

and continue building on his already-impressive coaching re-

sume. He will retire following the outdoor track season.

Wilson, the dean of the Big Ten Conference cross country coaches, guided the Gophers to

a best-ever ninth-place finish in the 2005 NCAA Championships to usher in a streak of five

consecutive top-12 NCAA finishes. The Gophers also climbed to the top of the victory

stand winning the program's first Big Ten titles in 2007 and 2008.

An experienced squad with four seniors among the top seven led the charge as Minnesota

captured its third consecutive NCAA Midwest Region title and tallied a 10th-place finish in

the NCAA Championships in 2009. Senior Megan Duwell enjoyed one of the finest individ-

ual seasons on record, placing third at Big Tens, second at the regional meet and a Go-

pher-best seventh for All-America honors at the NCAA Championships. Minnesota has

now celebrated a national awardwinner in each of the last five seasons. En route to the

Midwest Region crown all seven Gophers earned all-region accord.

The Gophers proved they had the power and determination to repeat in 2008. Minnesota

won the Griak Invitational and another dramatic Big Ten title before capturing the NCAA

Midwest Region crown. The Gophers were ranked No. 4 in the nation, the highest ever,

during the season, and went on to place 11th at the NCAA Championships. Megan Duwell

earned All-America honors. Once again six Gophers were accorded All-Midwest Region

honors and academically the momentum of this program continued with an impressive

3.54 cumulative team grade point average, the best of Gopher Athletics!

The 2007 season was one to remember. Jamie Cheever, who would later earn All-America

honors, might have kicked it off with her record-setting back-to-back medalist perform-

ances in the first two meets of the season. A win at the prestigious Roy Griak Invitational

added plenty of momentum. By the time the Big Ten Championships rolled around, the Go-

phers were firing on all cylinders and captured an emotional first running away with the

program's first Big Ten title. The Gophers stormed into the NCAA Midwest Region Champi-

onships and captured that title as well, as six athletes ran to all-region honors. The Go-

phers celebrated a No. 5 national ranking, the highest in program history to that point,

heading into the NCAA Championships before the season culminated with a 12th-place

showing in the national meet.

Wilson was honored by his peers after both the 2007 and 2008 seasons with U.S. Track

and Field/Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) NCAA Midwest Region

Coach of the Year and Big Ten Conference Coach of the Year accolades.

The 2006 Gophers celebrated two All-Americans in Ladia Albertson-Junkans and Emily

Brown, the first two-time honorees in over 20 years for the Minnesota program. En route to

the NCAA Championships, Minnesota placed second at the NCAA Midwest Region Cham-

pionships and garnered six all-region awards, the most in school history. The Gophers also

earned a No. 6 national ranking during the season. Overall in Wilson's 25 years at Min-

nesota, the fiery, yet humorous coach has guided the Golden Gopher women's cross coun-

try team to NCAA Championships appearances 14 times (1989, 1991, 1997, 1998, 1999,

2000, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011). The harriers have been

ranked in the top 25 of the national cross country poll in 19 of the past 23 seasons. Min-

nesota has hoisted the Big Ten team trophy in 2007 and 2008, but also has a history of

upper-echelon finishes in 19 of the past 24 seasons.

During the spring, Wilson turns his attention to coaching the distance runners as an assis-

tant coach for the women's track & field team. After 21 years as the head coach, Wilson

stepped into an assistant role in 2007 and helped direct the Gophers to the first of three

consecutive Big Ten indoor titles. The Gopher distance runners also excelled at the 2007

Drake Relays, winning all three distance relays (4x800m, 4.x1,600m and the distance

medley relay), a feat only accomplished three times in the storied history of the event. The

4x800m relay is currently the four-time defending Drake Relays champion.

As head coach, he has guided the Golden Gophers to scoring performances at the NCAA

Outdoor Track & Field Championships in 14 of his 21 seasons. Minnesota's highest na-

tional finish was a pair of 18th-place finishes in 1990 and 1991. In 2006, Wilson's final as

the head coach, Minnesota finished 19th at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, and

scored a record number of team points (14, mark has since been broken).

The 2006 track season was one of important firsts for the Golden Gopher program. Min-

nesota first celebrated its first national champion, when freshman Heather Dorniden won

the 800 meters at the NCAA Indoor Championships. The outdoor season was an impres-

sive display of one success after another. The Gophers rolled to their first Big Ten title with

five athletes capturing conference titles along the way. Wilson was honored as the Big Ten

Outdoor Coach of the Year. After the Gophers' 19th-place showing at the NCAA meet and

a third-place finish at the Midwest Region Championships, Wilson was further honored by

his peers with the Midwest Region and Midwest District Coach of the Year awards.

Perhaps the most fitting way for Wilson to complete the 2005-06 season was by the Uni-

versity of Minnesota honoring him with the President's Award for Outstanding Service.

The 1989 Minnesota squad was Wilson's first to earn its way to the NCAA Cross Country

Championships, marking the first appearance for the Gophers since 1983. Wilson's

achievements were recognized by fellow coaches when he was named 1989 Region IV

Coach of the Year after guiding the Gophers to a second-place finish at the regional cham-

pionship. Despite losing three of their top runners from that squad, the 1990 Gophers

came within an eyelash of qualifying again for the NCAA meet. In 1991, Wilson led the Go-

phers back to the national championships, and their 17th-place finish was the team's high-

est since 1983, a finish his team duplicated 1999. Another program highlight was five

consecutive NCAA Championships appearances from 1997 to 2001.

In a coaching career that spans nearly 40 years, Wilson was honored with one of the most

prestigious awards a collegiate track coach can receive; he was inducted into the Drake

Relays Coaches Hall of Fame in 2005.

Another of Wilson's shining accomplishments at Minnesota was his part in establishing the

annual Roy Griak Invitational, the Gophers' annual cross country event that has grown into

one of the largest single-day cross country meets in the nation. Minnesota won the team

title at the prestigious Griak event in 2000. Not all of Wilson's accomplishments with cross

country and track & field occur on the race course. Wilson served as the president of the

Women's Intercollegiate Cross Country Coaches Association in 1994 and 1995. He served

as the Region IV representative on the national committee from 1987-91. Other accom-

plishments in his distinguished career include coaching the U.S. junior team that partici-

pated at the 1993 World Cross Country Championships in Amorebieta, Spain, and the

World Junior Track and Field Championships in Sydney, Australia, in August, 1996.

Wilson was lured to Minnesota after building a Division III powerhouse at the University of

Wisconsin-LaCrosse (1977-85), where he coached the women's team to three consecutive

national track and field championships and one national cross country title. UWL finished in

the top five at cross country nationals in six of Wilson's eight years with the program.

Wilson also coached the Wisconsin-LaCrosse men's track and field team for seven years,

guiding both the men's and women's teams in 1982 and 1983. In all, his teams at UWL

won 21 conference titles. Wilson was inducted in the UWL Hall of Fame in 1997.

Wilson is considered to be one of the foremost authorities in the United States on distance

training. Not only has he produced many national-class runners, he is also a teacher of

coaches. Wilson served as the national curriculum coordinator for endurance events in the

USATF Coaching Education Program from 1984-93. He also teaches a number of schools

and clinics at the Olympic Training Center every year and is often sought after to speak at

camps and clinics throughout the U.S. and Caribbean. A native of Lyndonville, N.Y., Wilson

competed in cross country and track and field while an undergraduate at Cortland State,

N.Y., serving as a captain for all three teams as a senior.

Gary and his wife, Suzy, have three grown children: Ben, Laura and Adam. The Wilson

family resides in Stillwater.

Sarah Hesser

Volunteer Assistant

Head Coach in Waiting

Nikki Swenson

Volunteer Assistant

• Has emerged as a consistent runner for Minnesota in 2012

• Redshirted the 2011 season

• Placed sixth at her high school state championships as a senior

• Three-time all-state honoree in cross country

• Three-time Big 8 cross country champion

• Placed 139th (fourth on the team) at the 2011 NCAA Championships

with a time of 21:38

• Ran a 2011 season-best time of 21:16 at the Big Ten Championships

• Competed in six races as a redshirt freshman in 2010

• Redshirted the 2009 season

• Competes in the mile, 1,500 meters, and 3,000 meters on the track

2012 Race Results

Race Time Place TeamPlace

Oz Memorial 22:15.34 7 7

SDSU Classic (5K) 17:47.11 8 8

Griak Invitational 17:47.11 48 8

Wisconsin adidas Inv. 21:06 153 6

Big Ten Championships 21:27.0 48 6

NCAA Midwest Regional 21:59.26 50 6

2012 Race Results

Race Time Place TeamPlace

Oz Memorial 22:18.46 8 8

SDSU Classic (5K) 17:32.97 5 5

Griak Invitational 22:30.3 46 7

Wisconsin adidas Inv. 21:17 185 7

Big Ten Championships 21:14.6 37 5

NCAA Midwest Regional 21:33.99 27 4

Liz BerkholtzRedshirt Freshman

Sun Prairie, Wi.

Sun Prairie HS

Maggie BolligJunior

Cross Plains, Wis.

Middleton HS

• 2012 All-Midwest Region

• Finished 112th individuall (second on the team) at the 2011 NCAA

Championships with a time of 21:22

• The Gophers’ third runner (26th overall) at the 2011 Big Ten Champi-

onships with a season-best time of 20:59

• Finished 124th (second on the team) at the 2010 NCAA Champi-

onships as a true freshman

• Was the Gophers’ fourth runner at the Big Ten meet in 2010

• On the track, competed in the 3,000 meters and steeplechase at the

2012 Big Ten Championships

2012 Race Results

Race Time Place TeamPlace

Oz Memorial 21:48.65 3 3

SDSU Classic (5K) 17:30.10 4 4

Griak Invitational 21:54.4 18 3

Wisconsin adidas Inv. 21:02 141 4

Big Ten Championships 21:12.9 35 4

NCAA Midwest Regional 21:23.12 20 3

• Competed in her first Big Ten and NCAA Midwest Region meets this

season

• Missed most of 2011 season with an injury

• Competed in six races as a redshirt freshman in 2010

• Redshirted the 2009 season

• Competes in the mie, 1,500 meters, 3,000 meters, and 5,000 meters

on the track

2012 Race Results

Race Time Place TeamPlace

Oz Memorial 22:24.92 9 9

SDSU Classic (5K) 17:84.54 9 9

Griak Invitational 22:23.9 41 6

Wisconsin adidas Inv. (open race) 21:05 3 1

Big Ten Championships 21:44.0 67 8

Kelli BuddJunior

Omaha, Neb.

Omaha Marian HS

Ashlie DeckerJunior

Des Moines, Iowa

Dowling Catholic HS

• Minnesota’s 2012 Big Ten Sportsmanship Award honoree

• Minnesota’s fifth runner (56th overall) at the 2011 NCAA Midwest Re-

gion meet with a time of 22:29.96

• 2011 season PR was 22:21.35 at the Roy Griak invitational

• The Gophers’ eighth runner at the Big Ten Championships as a redshirt

freshman in 2010

• Redshirted the 2009 season

• On the track, qualified for the NCAA Preliminary meet in the 10,000

meters

2012 Race Results

Race Time Place TeamPlace

Oz Memorial 22:06.81 5 5

SDSU Classic (5K) 17:46.70 7 7

Griak Invitational 22:14.0 32 5

Wisconsin adidas Inv. 21:06 151 5

Big Ten Championships 21:28.5 51 7

NCAA Midwest Regional 22:01.47 57 7

• 2012 Second Team All-Big Ten

• 2012 All-Midwest Region

• Finished 164th (sixth on the team) at the 2011 NCAA Championships

with a time of 21:53

• Posted a season-best time of 21:29 in finishing sixth on the team at the

2011 Big Ten Championships

• Earned the team’s Blue Collar Award as a redshirt freshman in 2010

• Redshirted the 2009 season

• Had a breakout season on the track in 2012, finishing fourth in the

10,000 meters and seventh at the 5,000 meters at the outdoor Big Ten

Championships before competing at the NCAA Preliminary meet

2012 Race Results

Race Time Place TeamPlace

Oz Memorial 21:31.44 1 1

SDSU Classic (5K) 17:22.95 2 2

Griak Invitational 21:17.0 4 1

Wisconsin adidas Inv. 20:29 51 1

Big Ten Championships 20:35.4 9 1

NCAA Midwest Regional 21:11.10 16 2

Laura DochertyJunior

St. Paul, Minn.

Cretin-Derham Hall HS

Rachel DrakeJunior

White Bear Lake, Minn.

White Bear Lake HS

• 2012 All-Midwest Region

• Finished 131st (third on the team) at the 2011 NCAA Championships

with a time of 21:30

• 2011 PR was 20:49 at the Big Ten Championships, good for 19th over-

all (second on the team)

• Redshirted the 2010 season

• On the track, competed in the steeplechase at the 2012 Midwest Re-

gional

2012 Race Results

Race Time Place TeamPlace

Oz Memorial 21:43.75 2 2

SDSU Classic (5K) 17:15.82 1 1

Griak Invitational 21:38.5 12 2

Wisconsin adidas Inv. 20:30 55 2

Big Ten Championships 21:00.7 26 2

NCAA Midwest Regional 20:47.87 8 1

• Was the Gophers’ first alternate at the Big Ten Championships

• Alternate for the NCAA Midwest Regionals

• Redshirted the 2010 season

• As a senior in high school, finished 25th at the state cross country meet

• On the track in high school, finished second in the state in the 1,600

meters

2012 Race Results

Race Time Place TeamPlace

Oz Memorial 22:35.46 10 10

SDSU Classic (5K) 17:44.19 6 6

Griak Invitational 24:05.1 127 21

Wisconsin adidas Inv. (open race) 21:19 16 2

Becca DysonRedshirt Freshman

Roseville, Minn.

Roseville Area HS

Molly KayfesSophomore

Maple Grove, Minn.

Maple Grove HS

• The only true freshman to compete for the Gophers at this year’s Big

Ten Championships

• In high school, was a top-three state cross country finisher for four

straight years

• On the track, was the 2009 and 2011 Minnesota state champion in the

3,200 meters

• Holds her high school’s records for 4,000-meter cross country and the

outdoor and indoor 1,6000 meters and 3,200 meters

2012 Race Results

Race Time Place TeamPlace

Oz Memorial 22:08.27 6 6

SDSU Classic (5K) 18:10.30 12 11

Griak Invitational 22:59.2 69 13

Wisconsin adidas Inv. (open race) 21:30 23 3

Big Ten Championships 21:52.5 70 9

• Finished 154th (fifth on the team) at the 2011 NCAA Championships

with a time of 21:48

• Finished fifth among Gophers at the 2011 Big Ten Championships with

a season-best time of 21:17

• The Gophers’ fifth runner at the 2010 NCAA Championships as a red-

shirt freshman

• Redshirted the 2009 season

• On the track, competed in the steeplechase at the 2012 NCAA Prelimi-

nary meet

2012 Race Results

Race Time Place TeamPlace

Oz Memorial 21:52.44 4 4

SDSU Classic (5K) 17:24.01 3 3

Griak Invitational 22:03.4 26 4

Wisconsin adidas Inv. 20:45 84 3

Big Ten Championships 21:01.0 27 3

NCAA Midwest Regional 21:37.25 30 5

Katie MoraczewskiJunior

White Bear Lake, Minn.

White Bear Lake HS

Jamie PiepenburgFreshman

Alexandria, Minn.

Jefferson HS