Panthers Kick Off Season at UIC InvitationalComplete Release in PDF Format
Aug. 28, 2003 MILWAUKEE - Start Me Up Students are on campus, the calendar is nearing September, and the air is getting cooler. All of this must mean one thing, the beginning of cross country season. Things will start off a bit differently for the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee men's and women's cross country teams this fall as they will start earlier than usual in 2003. In years past, the Panther harriers have waited until the first full weekend in September to kickoff the season but this season Pete Corfeld's troops will begin racing Aug. 30 at the UIC Invitational in Chicago. UIC Here We Come As mentioned earlier, Saturday's (Aug. 30) race at UIC will be the earliest the UWM cross country program has started a season in some time. The event will be a little unique in the fact that the women will run just a two-mile course while the men will cover four miles. The event should be a very early season measuring stick for the Panthers as UWM will join three Chicago-based schools (UIC, Loyola, and DePaul), in the four team field. Alison And Anderson Lead The Way The 2003 version of the women's cross country team will be led by a pair of familiar faces. Alison Shattuck, a senior, and Katie Anderson, a sophomore, finished in UWM's top three in every race last season. Anderson paced UWM with a 20th place showing and 19:09 clocking at last season's Horizon League Championship while Shattuck crossed in 19:14, good for 22nd place. In addition to Shattuck and Anderson, the Panthers return junior Anna Christian and Christine Wampach from last year. Men Harriers Return Five Familiar Faces The 2003 campaign should be a bright one for UWM's men's cross country as it returns five of its top seven runners from a year ago. Pacing the running Panthers will be senior Andy Kivioja, juniors Micah Hanthorn and Bryan Hassemer, and sophomores Josh Nygren and Nate Weiland. Nygren consistently ran in the No. 2 spot for coach Corfeld in 2002, while Hanthorn, Hassemer, and Kivioja running in the three through five spots. Milwaukee will look to improve upon a 4th place finish in the 2002 Horizon League Championships. Looking Ahead The UWM men and women's cross country teams will run an identical schedule this fall, with the highlight coming Nov. 1 at the Horizon League Championships in Youngstown, Ohio. Following the UIC Invite on Saturday, the Panthers will enjoy a week off before heading to West Lafayette, Ind. for the annual Purdue Invitational. On The Record With Pete Corfeld
"We have a solid core of returnees on both the men's and women's squads and I expect a lot of them. We came into practice with a good attitude and we have really been training hard. I certainly expect us to mix it up with the perennial top teams in the Horizon League."
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