Contact: Jenna McElroy, Sports Info & Social Media Intern, mcelroy@midwestconference.org

GRINNELL, Iowa – Two years ago the St. Norbert College women’s cross country team won its first Midwest Conference (MWC) Championship since 2010; now they are back-to-back defending champions and are picked to win their third in a row by the league’s coaches.
 
The Green Knights ran away with the title last season finishing 26 points ahead of second-place Grinnell College. Based on the voting by the Conference coaches, the race looks to be much closer this year as St. Norbert (79) only received four more points than Grinnell (75) in the annual preseason poll. The Pioneers hope to prevent the Green Knights' dynasty and be crowned MWC Champion for the first time in four years, while Monmouth looks to challenge for a top-two spot after earning a total of 61 points for third place in the poll.
 
The coaches anticipate a tight battle for fourth place between Cornell College (55) and Lake Forest College (53) as the two schools are separated by only two points. Lawrence University (40) and Beloit College (36) look to break into the top-5 after finishing sixth and seventh respectively. Ripon College came in ninth with 14 points, while Illinois College finished tenth with 12 points to complete the poll.
 
The 2018 season gets off and running August 31 and September 1 with Illinois College, Knox, and Monmouth competing at the Illinois Wesleyan Titan Opener on Friday and three other teams heading to Green Bay on Saturday for St. Norbert’s Tom Barry Invitational. Lake Forest hosts this year’s MWC Championship on October 27.
 
Full Poll Results:

1. St. Norbert	79 (7)		6. Lawrence	40
2. Grinnell	75 (3)		7. Beloit	36
3. Monmouth	61		8. Knox	25
4. Cornell	55		9. Ripon	14
5. Lake Forest	53		10. Illinois College	12

 
Below is a team-by-team preview:
 
Beloit College Buccaneers
Head Coach: Dave Eckburg (19th season)
2017 MWC Finish: 7th
Projected 2018 MWC Finish: 7th
Returning top-7 runners: 5
 
The Buccaneers are all about the number seven as they return seven runners from last season’s seventh-place team. Beloit may have graduated its top finisher at the MWC Championship meet, but the team returns its number two through six runners led by Jamie Manchen and Fiona Cismedia. Manchen ran to a top-40 finish, while Cismedia crossed the line in 57th at her first MWC Championship race. Sophia Miliotis and Britta Johnson rounded out the scoring for the Bucs after moving up 23 and 45 places, respectively, from their 2016 finishes.
 
Cornell College Rams
Head Coach: Dan Schofer (13th season)
2017 MWC Finish: 4th
Projected 2018 MWC Finish: 4th
Returning top-7 runners: 5
 
The Rams crowned the past three MWC individual champions and have qualified at least one runner for the NCAA Championship meet in nine of the past ten seasons. Cornell graduated the team’s top two runners but hope the five returners can lead the team to a team title the Rams have not captured since 2015. Leading the way is the junior class of Dominique Fleming, Morgan Barnard, Lexi Ferenzi, Zoe Kane-Preissing, and Marissa Czapla. Fleming is the Rams top returner from the conference championship after finishing 31st, while Czapla and sophomore Erin Hosto weren’t far behind in 36th and 37th respectively.  
 
Grinnell College Pioneers
Head Coach: Evelyn Freeman (39th season)
2017 MWC Finish: 2nd
Projected 2018 MWC Finish: 2nd
Returning top-7 runners: 5
Returning All-MWC Performers: Anna Ahrens Sr., Mikayla Fujiwara Jr., Allison Cottrell So.
 
The Pioneers look to bring home their first title since 2014 led by a trio of All-MWC performers. Anna Ahrens, Mikayla Fujiwara, and Allison Cottrell return after finishing 8th, 11th, and 20th, respectively, in 2017. Grinnell lost its number one and five runners to graduation but look to Cara Keleher and Tori Laverdiere to move up after finishing 25th and 26th respectively.  The Pioneers are coming off a seventh-place finish at the NCAA Central Regional.
 
Illinois College Lady Blues
Head Coach: Jason Hayes (5th season)
2017 MWC Finish: 9th
Projected 2018 MWC Finish: 9th
Returning top-7 runners: 5
 
The Lady Blues were the youngest team at last season’s championship as all of the team’s five scorers were underclasswomen, but the good news is all five return having gained valuable experience. Leading the way is Ashlyn Haage who made a big jump at the Conference meet as she moved up 47 places from her freshman to sophomore races to finish 69th. Fellow junior Rebecca Lucas returns as one of the most consistent runners in the conference as she finished 90th and 91st in her first two seasons. 
 
Knox College Prairie Fire
Head Coach: Randy Overby (1st season)
2017 MWC Finish: 8th
Projected 2018 MWC Finish: 8th
Returning top-7 runners: 3
 
Knox graduated four of their top-7 runners but with seven total runners returning there is plenty of opportunity for young runners to step up as Randy Overby takes over the team in 2018. One runner who looks to make an impact is Danica Dosmann who was the team’s number four runner at the MWC Championship as a freshman. Also returning is Meaghan Dorsey after she was third for the Prairie Fire and finished in the top half of the championship field in 59th place last year.
 
Lake Forest College Foresters
Head Coach: Ciara Kissane (1st season)
2017 MWC Finish: 5th
Projected 2018 MWC Finish: 5th
Returning top-7 runners: 4
Returning All-MWC Performers: Yaneli Guajardo So.
 
Ciara Kissane takes over the Foresters’ program in 2018 with four of the top seven from the MWC Championship returning. Leading the way will be MWC Newcomer of the Year Yaneli Guajardo and Ariane Balaram. Competing in her first Conference meet, Guajardo was the highest finishing first year in 12th place to earn All-MWC and Newcomer of the Year honors. Lake Forest’s fourth, sixth, and seventh runners also return as Emily Staufer crossed the line in 39th, while Lauren Giurini and Julia Mastrobuono finished 51st and 71st respectively.
 
Lawrence University Vikings
Head Coach: Jason Fast (10th season)
2017 MWC Finish: 6th
Projected 2018 MWC Finish: 6th
Returning top-7 runners: 3
 
Lawrence just missed out on a top-5 finish at last season’s MWC Championship after tying with Lake Forest but losing the tiebreaker. The Vikings graduated their top four runners and will look to Alex Chand and Alyssa Kuss to lead the team in 2018. Chand and Kuss finished 43rd and 49th, respectively, as first years last season. Molly Doruska returns after placing 53rd, while Christina Sedall is also back after finishing just behind Doruska in 55th.
 
Monmouth College Fighting Scots
Head Coach: Jon Welty (4th season)
2017 MWC Finish: 3rd
Projected 2018 MWC Finish: 3rd
Returning top-7 runners: 4
Returning All-MWC Performers: Caitlyn Allen Sr.
 
Monmouth is coming off its highest finish since they won the MWC Championship in 2012. In 2018, a group of seniors hope to bring the championship back to Monmouth in their final season. Caitlyn Allen ran to her highest ever placing at the conference meet and All-MWC honors after crossing the line in seventh. Behind Allen, the Scots featured some great pack running as Kate Saulcy, Jessica Salinas, and Natalie Bobak finished 38th, 42nd, and 54th respectively. First-year Teagan McKenna stuck with the seniors as she came in 55^th last year, and looks to contribute to the team’s score as a sophomore.
 
Ripon College Red Hawks
Head Coach: Corey Bins (2nd season)
2017 MWC Finish: N/A
Projected 2018 MWC Finish: 10th
Returning top-7 runners: 3
 
The Red Hawks had a trio of runners compete at the 2017 MWC Championship with all three returning for 2018. Terrina Phillips leads the way after she had one of the best year-to-year improvements at the championship meet as she moved up 63 spots to 23rd and just missed out on All-MWC honors by one second. First-year Madison King also returns after running a new personal best at the championship race to place 52nd.
 
St. Norbert College Green Knights
Head Coach: Don Augustine (12th season)
2017 MWC Finish: 1st
Projected 2018 MWC Finish: 1st
Returning top-7 runners: 5
Returning All-MWC Performers: Graceanne Tarsa Sr., Gretchen Price Sr., Alyssa Wegner Sr., Elisabeth Klumpyan So., Abby Janto Jr.
 
In 2018, St. Norbert looks to win its third straight MWC Championship for the first time in school history, and the team has a great shot at the three-peat with five All-MWC runners returning led by seniors Graceanne Tarsa, Gretchen Price, and Alyssa Wegner. Tarsa has steadily improved her finish at the conference meet each year and cracked the top-10 for the first time as a junior with her sixth-place finish. Price has followed closely behind Tarsa each year and also earned a top-10 finish for the first time last year. Wegner continued the trend of personal best finishes for the Green Knights as she ran to her highest championship placing with a 15th place finish.