The University of Wisconsin’s men’s and women’s cross country teams each swept the field in the Badger Classic on Friday morning on the Zimmer Championship Cross Country Course.
Though a small meet in terms of total teams and competitors, the meet provided head coach Mick Byrne with an opportunity to see both his men’s and women’s team in a racing setting — something that is valuable during a season which has few regular season meets.
It was the first meet in three weeks for the Badgers when they competed at the Mizzou Opener Aug. 29. Ironically, in that meet, both the men’s and women’s teams placed fourth with a total score of 100 points. That meet was a 5,000-meter race for both groups.
The women competed in a 6,000-meter race while the men ran 8,000 meters. The meet served as the first opportunity for both teams to race their normal distances. It was a small field on both sides, with the women racing two other schools and the men racing three.
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The value in Friday’s race was the ability to have experience in racing the course.
Wisconsin will host the Nuttycombe Invitational Oct. 17 when many of the nation’s top programs will come to Madison. In that meet, the Badgers will be one of the few, if not only, programs to have raced the course this season. In arguably the most competitive regular-season meet in the country, the Badgers will feel right at home.
Byrne’s women’s team — which entered the meet ranked No. 19 nationally — was the first to race on Friday and started the day strong for Wisconsin. Against a field of UW-Plateville and Marquette, 10 Badgers competed, all finishing within about a minute of each other and in the top 11.
It was Bella Jacobsen who claimed the individual crown, finishing the 6,000-meter race in 21:45.9. She was joined by Kylie Finger, Mya Bunke, Liv Phillips and Maggie Munson in the top five to complete the sweep and score a perfect 15 points.
Ranked fifth in the country, the men’s team raced second on Friday. In a field containing UW-Plateville, Marquette and UIC, the men followed the women’s sweep with one of their own. Micah Wilson led the way for the Badgers, securing an individual win in the 8,000-meter race with a time of 25:19.9. Liam Newhart, Bryce Stachewicz, Johnny Livingstone and Nick Gilles rounded out the top-five for the perfect score of 15.
Both squads will look to carry the momentum from Friday’s victories through the rest of the season. They will be in action again in two weeks in Chicago at the Sean Earl Lakefront Invitational hosted by Loyola University Chicago Oct. 3.