Mavs Head To South Dakota This Weekend
Oct 4, 2012 | Cross Country
OMAHA, Neb. - The Omaha cross country team heads north on Saturday, Oct. 6 when it travels to McCook Lake, S.D. for the Briar Cliff Invite. The 5K women's meet begins at 10 a.m. The Mavericks finished 6th overall at last year's event.
This Season
The Mavericks are competing in their 31st season of women's cross country in 2012. This is the second year of their reclassification to Division I. The Mavs will compete in five meets leading up to the Summit League Championship on Oct. 27. Because they are not eligible to participate in NCAA championship competition until completing their four-year reclassification, the Mavericks will finish the season at the St. John's Fall Invite on Nov. 2.
The Coaches
Steve Smith is in his seventh season as the head coach of both the cross country and track & field teams. He has led UNO to multiple conference championships in track in addition to several top five finishes in the NCAA Championship. He was a two time indoor coach of the year in the Mavericks' previous conference, the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA). He is assisted by Marc Bierbaum who is in his third season. In addition to his work with cross country, Bierbaum coaches UNO's distance runners in track & field. He was a three-time national qualifier in cross country and track at Dana College
Last Meet - Rocky Mountain Shootout at Colorado
The Mavericks finished fourth among Division l teams at the Rocky Mountain Shootout in Colorado on Sept. 29. Senior Amanda Vorthmann was Omaha's top finisher, but nearly all the Mavericks posted strong times. Vorthmann finished 13th overall with a time of 22:03, almost two minutes faster than her time in the same event last year. Sophomore Katarina Zarudnaya, who didn't run in the event last year, placed second for the Mavs, 31st overall, with a time of 23:27.
The third, fourth, and fifth place finishers for the Mavs were senior Nicole Behm (23:29), sophomores MiKayla Peck (23:31), and Ashley Kildow (23:58). Behm was more than 2:30 faster than last season, while Kildow shaved more than three minutes off last year's time. Thirteen runners competed for the Mavericks, freshman Carolyn Newhouse (24:33) and junior Kayla Fenske (24:58) finished sixth and seventh for the Mavs while freshman Kourtney Osentoski was eighth (25:26).
Bumper Crop
The Mavericks added seven newcomers to their roster this season including six freshmen and a sophomore. The group includes three runners from Iowa in Kristen Carmichael (Corning/Corning), Carolyn Newhouse (Marion/Linn-mar) and Avery Schmidt (Centerville/Centerville). In addition, three of the newcomers hail from Nebraska in freshmen Karo Garcia (Columbus/Columbus) and Jackie Mezick (Bellevue/Bellevue East); and sophomore Michelle Gatewood (Omaha/Millard North) who was enrolled at UNO but did not compete. Michigan native Kourtney Osentoski (Temperance/Bedford) rounds out the group of incoming runners.
Next Up for the Mavs
The Mavericks are back in South Dakota next week to take part in the Tim Young Dakota Days Challenge on Saturday, Oct. 13 at 10 a.m. Last season, the Mavs finished fourth overall in the 5k race.
This Season
The Mavericks are competing in their 31st season of women's cross country in 2012. This is the second year of their reclassification to Division I. The Mavs will compete in five meets leading up to the Summit League Championship on Oct. 27. Because they are not eligible to participate in NCAA championship competition until completing their four-year reclassification, the Mavericks will finish the season at the St. John's Fall Invite on Nov. 2.
The Coaches
Steve Smith is in his seventh season as the head coach of both the cross country and track & field teams. He has led UNO to multiple conference championships in track in addition to several top five finishes in the NCAA Championship. He was a two time indoor coach of the year in the Mavericks' previous conference, the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA). He is assisted by Marc Bierbaum who is in his third season. In addition to his work with cross country, Bierbaum coaches UNO's distance runners in track & field. He was a three-time national qualifier in cross country and track at Dana College
Last Meet - Rocky Mountain Shootout at Colorado
The Mavericks finished fourth among Division l teams at the Rocky Mountain Shootout in Colorado on Sept. 29. Senior Amanda Vorthmann was Omaha's top finisher, but nearly all the Mavericks posted strong times. Vorthmann finished 13th overall with a time of 22:03, almost two minutes faster than her time in the same event last year. Sophomore Katarina Zarudnaya, who didn't run in the event last year, placed second for the Mavs, 31st overall, with a time of 23:27.
The third, fourth, and fifth place finishers for the Mavs were senior Nicole Behm (23:29), sophomores MiKayla Peck (23:31), and Ashley Kildow (23:58). Behm was more than 2:30 faster than last season, while Kildow shaved more than three minutes off last year's time. Thirteen runners competed for the Mavericks, freshman Carolyn Newhouse (24:33) and junior Kayla Fenske (24:58) finished sixth and seventh for the Mavs while freshman Kourtney Osentoski was eighth (25:26).
Bumper Crop
The Mavericks added seven newcomers to their roster this season including six freshmen and a sophomore. The group includes three runners from Iowa in Kristen Carmichael (Corning/Corning), Carolyn Newhouse (Marion/Linn-mar) and Avery Schmidt (Centerville/Centerville). In addition, three of the newcomers hail from Nebraska in freshmen Karo Garcia (Columbus/Columbus) and Jackie Mezick (Bellevue/Bellevue East); and sophomore Michelle Gatewood (Omaha/Millard North) who was enrolled at UNO but did not compete. Michigan native Kourtney Osentoski (Temperance/Bedford) rounds out the group of incoming runners.
Next Up for the Mavs
The Mavericks are back in South Dakota next week to take part in the Tim Young Dakota Days Challenge on Saturday, Oct. 13 at 10 a.m. Last season, the Mavs finished fourth overall in the 5k race.
Players Mentioned
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