Jayhawks Gear Up for Cross-Town Meet at Haskell

Oct. 6, 2011

Meet Notes Get Acrobat Reader

Directions|Women’s 5K course Get Acrobat Reader | Men’s 8K course Get Acrobat Reader

LAWRENCE, Kan. – After two weeks away from competition, the Kansas cross country teams will be back in action at the Haskell Invitational on Saturday, Oct. 8. The annual meet, hosted by nearby Haskell Indian Nations University, will be held at the campus course, Gentle Rolling Hills.

Many of the Jayhawks participating in this weekend’s race will be donning the Crimson and Blue for the first time this season which should provide ample opportunities to move up among their team ranks.

“We have a few individuals who are opening up for the first time this weekend because of injuries,” explained Assistant Coach Michael Whittlesey. “We have some athletes that have improved an awful lot and we’re expecting to see some really good performances out of them this weekend.

Four KU men will be representing the men’s squad on Saturday. Senior Sean Proehl, juniors Colin Jockisch and Ben Wilson and redshirt freshman Brendan Soucie will each look to take home their first-career individual titles this weekend.

“Sean Proehl and Brendan Soucie are more middle distance type runners, but their distance workouts have been great this year,” said Whittlesey. “We’re expecting a lot from them and the other guys on Saturday.”

Just two women will suit up for the Jayhawks at Haskell. Junior Devin Wiegers and redshirt freshman Madison Moser are both hoping to impress their coaches and cement spots in the top women’s pack that will be competing later in the season.

“On the women’s side both Devin Wiegers and Maddy Moser will be running and trying to earn their spots for the rest of the year,” said Whittlesey. “Moser is coming off an injury and we are really trying to help her open up at this meet.”

The meet Saturday gives the Jayhawks a unique opportunity to run in front of their hometown fans for the second time this season. While the race isn’t technically a home meet for KU, there will certainly be a feel of a home course advantage. Four of the Jayhawks competing this weekend all hail from communities near Lawrence and there are sure to be dozens of family members and friends rooting them on this weekend.

The Haskell Invitational marks the halfway point of the 2011 campaign and will be a good opportunity for the coaches to reflect on the progress the team has made thus far in the season and the improvements that are still needed as the teams head into the larger, more challenging meets.

“From a fitness perspective I think training has been going great,” concluded Coach Whittlesey. “So now we just need to continue to bring forward what we’ve been trying to do as a team and apply that to competition.”

The women’s 5K race is set to begin at 9:15 a.m. Saturday morning while the men’s 8K race will start at 9:45 a.m. For results and a full recap of the day’s events log on to kuathletics.com.

Up Next
KU’s men’s and women’s cross country teams will travel to Madison, Wis., for the Wisconsin adidas Invitational on Oct. 15. The competition is projected to be the stiffest of the season and will provide both teams with chances to go up against the nation’s top teams before postseason meets begin. The meet will begin with the women’s 6K race at 1 p.m., and will be followed by the men’s 8K at 1:40 p.m.