Head coach Jeff Miller is entering his 41st season as head coach of UW-Whitewater’s women’s cross country team. Growth, leadership and health are three points of emphasis for Miller and the Warhawks this year. The team is welcoming a couple of transfers and four freshmen to the squad for the 2024 campaign.
The transfers, Ella Hansen from UW-Parkside and Brinley Everson from Marquette were tabbed by Miller as potentially being a part of the top seven for the Warhawks this upcoming year. Incoming seniors Ari De La Cerda and Abbey Wedwick, juniors Katie Erb and Payton Scoggin, and sophomores Renee Forystek and Jocelyn Ramirez were all contributors to Miller’s squad in 2023. They look to continue that for 2024. In total, there will be about 25 runners this season, according to De La Cerda. She and Erb are going to be a huge foundation for the Warhawks, a team that lost Paige Fassbender, who graduated this past spring, the team’s second runner at nationals last season.
On the other hand, the incoming freshmen are going to be competing in the Sept. 6 meet at the North Central Invitational. This will be their first time running the collegiate distance (three and three-quarter miles) so it is an opportunity to grow.
“Ari and Katie have already ran (that distance), Payton as well, so we don’t need them to race,” Miller explained.
“We all finished in a really good spot,” Erb said of the Aug. 31 alumni race, “and it looked like everyone was doing really well over their summer training.”
De La Cerda is looking forward to seeing “how everyone is going to be working together. It’s going to be exciting to watch everyone grow.”
Erb and De La Cerda are both thrilled to see how competitive the top seven is going to be this season.
“We are all so close in competition. You could be one one day or you could be six, it’s all based on how everyone else does,” Erb said.
Competition is also bound to creep its way out of UW-Whitewater and into the WIAC. With a third-place finish last season, “it was a huge boost for [the team],” said Miller. Even with a better team, history may be hard to repeat as the conference keeps getting stronger. Last year, four teams from the WIAC were sent to nationals, and the year before that there were five. A tough conference only makes it more exciting. Seeing the Warhawks finish third last year in the WIAC, eighth in the nation, fans are in for even more of a treat this year.
“We are just trying to qualify for nationals. If you finish third in the conference, you got a shot. It all depends on the strength of your team,” Miller added.
Having excellent leadership is comforting to see for Miller and his staff.
De La Cerda discussed how she has taken her experiences outside of the sport and applied them to her abilities as a leader.
“I’ve definitely learned that over the years, active listening is super important. I’m just trying to help [the underclassmen] in their day-to-day practices,” De La Cerda said.
“Leading by example is also a big thing. If you get the option to do one more (rep) in a workout, then take it,” Erb said of her leadership.
But cross country isn’t about where you are at the start of the race, it’s where you finish. Miller compares this to the season as a whole by stating, “You have got to stay healthy and continue to grow throughout the season. Don’t get too caught up if you have a really good day or if you don’t have a good day. It’s all progression to get to the end of the year and that’s when we want to be and do our best. You want to be able to feel good at the end when it matters.”
The Warhawks plan to race their top runners for the first time this 2024 college season at the Tom Hoffman Invitational at home Sept. 21.
