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Washington University cross country coach Jeff Stiles was named the 2011 Division III Women’s Cross Country Coach of the Year.

Stiles, who coaches both the men’s and women’s squads along with the track and field teams, just completed his 11th and most successful season as the cross-country coach at the University. He helped lead the women’s team to its first ever NCAA Division III national championship on Nov. 19, while also guiding the men’s team to a third-place finish.

The championship is the program’s first, while the third-place finish for the men’s team was also a school-best mark.

Both squads also won University Athletic Association titles this year—the women’s squad for the third straight year and eighth time under Stiles, the men’s squad for the second straight year and fourth time under Stiles.

Stiles began coaching cross-country at the University in 2001, two years after graduating from North Central College in Illinois. Al Carius, the head coach at North Central who was named 2011 Men’s Coach of the Year by the USTFCCCA, was Stiles’ coach in college.

Stiles and the track and field teams will begin the 2012 indoor season on Friday at Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington, Ill., in the Titan “First Chance” Meet, at 4:00 p.m.

Courtesy of Lacey Vogel

The Washington University Women’s Cross Country team poses for a photo Saturday November 19 after capturing their first NCAA Division III National Title at the Lake Breeze Golf Club in Winneconne, Wisconsin.

Though delighted, the runners soon realized they had fallen just eight points short of first-place Middlebury—mere seconds shy of a national championship. With five of the top six runners from that 2010 squad returning this year, the Bears’ new goal became crystal clear: to unseat Middlebury and bring the title to St. Louis.

The team made good on its mission Saturday in Oshkosh, Wis., blowing past Middlebury by 41 points and claiming its first title in program history. Senior Erica Jackey checked in at fourth overall (21:04.21) on the 6K course, the best finish by a women’s runner in school history. Jackey was one of four Bears to place in the top 23 out of 277 and one of five in the top 40.

“Going into this year, we knew that we were set up pretty well—us, Williams and Middlebury were all top-three teams kind of vying for that top spot,” senior Liz Phillips said. “We knew that we definitely had the chance to do it, but it all depended on this day.”

The Wash. U. women weren’t the only ones forcing mass edits to the record books—the men’s team placed third in the nation for its best-ever finish. Senior Michael Burnstein earned All-American honors for the third straight year, finishing 10th out of 279 (24:25.25) in the men’s 8K.

Each of the top-five runners for the men’s and women’s teams ran season-best times. Freshman Lucy Cheadle (20th place, 21:28.59), sophomore Sarah Fisher (22nd place, 21:31.34), senior Molly Wawrzyniak (23rd place, 21:31.55) and Phillips (40th place, 21:48.79) followed Jackey in the Bears’ top five.

Senior Tucker Hartley (30th place, 24:41.99) joined Burnstein as an All-American, as did Jackey, Cheadle, Fisher and Wawrzyniak. The day before the meet, Phillips won a record-setting third Elite 89 award, which recognizes the student-athlete with the highest grade-point average among championship competitors. A biomedical engineering major, Phillips has a 4.0 GPA.

Though the Wash. U. women ended up having what Jackey deemed the race of their lives, the beginning was far from ideal.

“If you saw how we looked after the first mile, it did not look good at all,” she said. “We were pretty far back, but that’s really been our strength this year—starting off conservatively and just moving up for the rest of the race.”

The men’s team finished 34 points behind second place Haverford College and 94 points behind run-away champion North Central College. Junior David Hamm (44th place, 24:55.98), senior Kwin Keuter (83rd place, 25:10.33) and freshman Ryan Senci (107th place, 25:19.04) completed the top five.

The Bears race at Oshkosh every year, and familiarity with the course aided both squads. But more than anything else, Phillips, Jackey and head coach Jeff Stiles agreed that outstanding team chemistry fueled the runners’ success.

“I know that cross-country isn’t a big spectator sport, but when you go to the national meet or the regional meet, there are only seven people for each team, but every single other team member—and that’s 70 people total—comes and cheers,” Phillips said. “It was 40 degrees out today, and they were wearing nothing but spandex and body paint and girls just with sports bras and guys shirtless, just running around and cheering for their teammates. It’s just so inspirational what a great team atmosphere it is.”

That unity was most apparent at the women’s awards presentation, when the top seven runners brought all of their teammates onto the podium with them.

The meet was quite a send-off for seniors, to whom Stiles directed great praise for creating the tight-knit environment and adhering to his coaching.

“Tucker Hartley’s mom told me that it was the first time she’s ever seen him cry as an adult,” Stiles said. “And so something like that is pretty neat—to have that. [The runners] put so much into it. They practiced at 6:30 in the morning throughout the season.”

Hartley attributed his emotional moment to the progress he has seen in the men’s program since his freshman year. While the women’s team has been a consistent top-four presence at nationals in recent years, the men’s team was seventh in the University Athletic Association just three years ago. The men have finished in the top ten at nationals every year since.

“When we came in here as freshmen, we weren’t a very good team that year—we were actually pretty bad,” Hartley said. “Just seeing the change the program’s had the past three years…kind of hit all of us—that’s how it ends.”

The men’s team finished third in the nation, also a program record.

Each of the top five runners for both the men’s and women’s teams ran season-best times. Senior Erica Jackey (21:04.21) checked in at fourth overall on the 6K course, the highest finish by a women’s runner in school history. Freshman Lucy Cheadle (20^th place, 21:28.59), sophomore Sarah Fisher (22^nd place, 21:31.34), senior Molly Wawrzyniak (23^rd place, 21:31.55) and senior Liz Phillips (40^th place, 21:48.79) followed Jackey in the Bears’ top five.

Senior Michael Burnstein earned his third straight All-American honors for the men’s team, finishing 10^th overall (24:25.25). Burnstein was joined by fellow senior Tucker Hartley (30^th place, 24:41.99), Jackey, Cheadle, Fisher and Wawrzyniak as All-Americans.

Junior David Hamm (44^th place, 24:55.98), senior Kwin Keuter (83^rd place, 25:10.33) and freshman Ryan Senci (107^th place, 25:19.04) completed the men’s top five.

See Monday’s edition of Student Life for full coverage of the national title meet.

The No. 2 women’s team cruised to first place in a field of 38 on the 6K course in Rock Island, Ill. Seniors Erica Jackey and Liz Phillips (21:53.8) crossed the finish line in virtual lockstep to claim second and third place overall. Freshman Lucy Cheadle (21:55.4) was close behind in fourth, followed by sophomore Sarah Fisher (22:00.4), the sixth place finisher, and senior Molly Wawrzyniak (22:08.8), who placed ninth.

The No. 3 men’s team was topped by only No. 1 North Central in its 39-team 8K race. Senior Michael Burnstein (24:54.9) notched second place by edging Wisconsin-Stout’s Tim Nelson, who was the sole runner out of 434 to defeat Burnstein at the Brooks Oshkosh Invitational on Oct. 15.

The men finished 72 points behind North Central but scored 22 points higher than No. 8 Wisconsin-Oshkosh. Junior David Hamm (10th place, 25:15.4) and senior Tucker Hartley (19th place, 25:28.9) cracked the top 20 in a 277-person race.

No competitors came remotely close to the women’s team, which outdistanced No. 7 Wisconsin-Eau Claire, the second-place team, by nearly 100 points.

According to Hamm, watching the women’s team dominate excited the men’s team. Head coach Jeff Stiles told his male runners to remain patient at the start of their race. The strategy worked perfectly, according to Hamm.

Freshman Ryan Senci (40th place, 25:53.0) and sophomore Caleb Ford (43rd place, 25:57.1) rounded out the Bears’ top five.

“We’ve had a lot of freshmen and sophomores really start stepping it up towards the later meets,” Hamm said. “I know Ryan Senci has just been really coming on strong. Caleb Ford wasn’t feeling as good midseason, but in the last couple of weeks, he’s been just exponentially improving. Everyone seems to be going in the right direction.”

The full men’s and women’s squads came out to support the 14 competing Bears, shouting words of encouragement throughout both races and breaking into chants of “ole, ole.”

“It was crazy,” Fisher said. “Everyone was dressed up in body paint and crazy outfits. Even though it was cold, they were hardly wearing any clothes.”

The race was a bounce-back of sorts for Phillips, the Bears’ top runner in the first month of the season, who finished fifth and third among her teammates in the two most recent meets. Because of her return to form, Jackey’s emergence and Cheadle’s continuing improvement, the Bears boast a formidable top three heading into the NCAA National Championship in Oshkosh, Wis., the meet they have set their sights on the whole year.

The Bears are also deep—Fisher has consistently held down a top five spot all season long, and Wawrzyniak has been a top five Bear in all but one race. The Red and Green’s sixth and seventh runners, senior Jessica Londeree and freshman Grace Bridwell, both finished in the top 20 out of 264 at regionals.

The Bears will finally face some stiffer competition at nationals, where they hope to upset No. 1 Williams College.

“We haven’t been nervous for our team all season, and it’s not just because [success] has gone to our heads,” Fisher said. “We just trust each other because we’ve been working so hard together, and it all comes together during the race.”

Both teams are confident that their training throughout the season has prepared them for the upcoming weekend.

“We don’t want to change anything this week just because it’s nationals,” Hamm said. “We want to keep everything that’s been working all season and carry that into nationals. And hopefully, if everything goes as planned, we [can] be up there in the top three, top four.”

The No. 2 women’s team cruised to first place in a field of 38 on the 6K course in Rock Island, Ill. Seniors Erica Jackey and Liz Phillips (21:53.8) crossed the finish line in virtual lockstep to claim second and third place overall. Freshman Lucy Cheadle (21:55.4) was close behind in fourth, followed by sophomore Sarah Fisher (22:00.4), the sixth place finisher.

The No. 3 men’s team was topped by only No. 1 North Central in its 39-team 8K race. Senior Michael Burnstein (24:54.9) notched second place by edging Wisconsin-Stout’s Tim Nelson, who was the only runner out of 434 to defeat Burnstein at the Brooks Oshkosh Invitational Oct. 15.

No competitors came remotely close to the women’s team, which outdistanced No. 7 Wisconsin-Eau Claire, the second-place team, by nearly 100 points.

It was a bounce-back race of sorts for Phillips, the Bears’ top runner in the first month of the season, who finished fifth and third among her teammates in the two most recent meets. Because of her return to form, Jackey’s emergence and Cheadle’s continuing improvement, the Bears boast a formidable top three heading into nationals, the meet they have set their sights on the whole year.

The Bears are also deep—Fisher has consistently held down a top five spot all season long, and senior Molly Wawrzyniak, who finished ninth overall, has been a top five Bear in all but one race. The Red and Green’s sixth and seventh runners, senior Jessica Londeree and freshman Grace Bridwell, both finished in the top 20 out of 264 at regionals.

The men’s team finished 72 points behind North Central, but scored 22 points higher than No. 8 Wisconsin-Oshkosh. Junior David Hamm (10^th place, 25:15.4) and senior Tucker Hartley (19^th place, 25:28.9) cracked the top twenty in a 277-person race.

Freshman Ryan Senci (40^th place, 25:53.0) and sophomore Caleb Ford (43^rd place, 25:57.1) rounded out the Bears’ top five.

For full coverage of the Regional meet, see Monday’s edition of Student Life.

Nathaniel Margolies | Student Life

Junior Emily Gosché, Senior Emma Brown, Sophomore Lauren Steimle, Sophomore Jen Reed, and Senior Alyssa Marulli line up on Francis Field before a game against Carnegie Mellon on October 2.

With the regular season successes of the Washington University volleyball, cross country and men’s and women’s soccer teams, a postseason berth was essentially a foregone conclusion for all four teams.

But the volleyball team and both soccer teams received additional good news on Monday, when the postseason brackets were released and all three found out that they would be hosting opening-round matches in the postseason.

Here’s a quick look at each of those three teams—along with the cross country teams, which will travel to Rock Island, Ill., for the NCAA Midwest Regional—and their looming postseason opponents.

Ending the regular season with a 14-3-1 record and a share of the University Athletic Association title, the Bears will open up postseason play against the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Thursday evening at Francis Field. Whitewater, which finished the season as the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletics Conference champion with an 11-7-1 record, will be facing the Bears for the first time in history. Wash. U. is making its second consecutive tournament appearance and 20th overall, and it is seeking its first postseason win since 2007 when it reached the NCAA quarterfinals. The Bears are looking to improve their postseason track record after a heartbreaking loss in last season’s second round, in which they lost in penalty kicks to Loras College.

If the Bears win, they will travel to Delaware, Ohio, to face No. 6 Ohio Wesleyan University on Sunday. While Wash. U. has not played OWU since 1990, the Bears are 5-2 all-time against the Bishops.

The women’s team was rewarded for its 15-4 regular season campaign with a shot at home-field advantage in each of the first two rounds of the playoffs. The Bears have won at least one postseason game each year since 2006, and will be looking to continue that streak by beating Thomas More College in the opening round on Saturday. Thomas More comes in as the Presidents’ Athletic Conference champions, sporting a 12-4-1 record. The Saints will also be facing Wash. U. for the first time ever.

Eric Chalifour | Student Life

Junior Marilee Fisher plays against Webster University on Wedneday, October 26. The Bears scored a 3-0 victory Wednesday and defeated all rivals this weekend to win the Halloween Classic.

The Bears would host the winner between Ohio Wesleyan University (12-4-4) and the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh (12-6-3) if they advance to the second round. Wash. U. is 2-0 all time against OWU and 1-0 against Whitewater.

With a 32-1 record and the 2011 UAA championship to its name, the volleyball team will begin its 25th straight postseason appearance in the Washington University Field House. The Bears are very familiar with their opening-round opponent: cross-town rival Webster, which has never beaten Wash. U. in 19 tries (including a 3-0 Bears win on Oct. 26).

The Bears’ opponent in the second round would be either UAA rival No. 15 Chicago (the first team to beat Wash. U. in a set in 2011, during a 3-1 Bears win on Oct. 15) or No. 21 Wisconsin-Whitewater (whom the Bears defeated 3-0 on Sept. 10). Among the potential Regional Championship match opponents is No. 9 Carthage College, whom the Bears have faced and swept four times since the 2009 season, including a 3-0 win on Sept. 9 of this season.

With the cross country teams having another strong year, as both the men’s and women’s squads are in the top five of the US Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches’ Association (USTFCCCA) Poll, both have high aspirations heading into the regional meet on Saturday morning. The men’s team enters the race as the Midwest region’s No. 2 team, behind only defending regional champion and USTFCCCA No. 1 overall North Central College. The team will look to improve on its fourth-place regional finish in 2010, and will be facing some of the country’s best in North Central, No. 5 Wheaton, and No. 8 Wisconsin-Oshkosh.

The women’s team, which trails only Williams College in the overall national rankings, enters the weekend as the Midwest’s No. 1 team. The team will be looking to take the Midwest regional title from No. 7 overall Wisconsin-Eau Claire, which won the regional title in 2010.

On a sunny day with temperatures in the high 40s, Burnstein claimed his second straight first-place finish in the men’s 8K race, with a time of 25:29.80.

“I was fairly nervous about getting beaten during the race just because I didn’t run that smart,” Burnstein said. “I pulled away from the pack too early, so I was kind of exposed, just running by myself. Then [Carnegie Mellon’s Evan Gates] was just trailing behind me the entire race—I just couldn’t seem to drop him—and then the last mile or so I just pulled away from him.”

Jackey’s 22:08.82 time paced the women’s 6K field, which included five Bears in the top eight.

The No. 2 women’s team had little trouble outdistancing its competition; the aggregate time of the Bears’ top five runners was over a half-minute faster than that of second-place New York University.

Freshman Lucy Cheadle (22:23.75) earned UAA Rookie of the Year honors for her third-place finish. A pack of Wash. U. runners claimed the sixth through eighth spots, including senior Liz Phillips (22:37.62), senior Jessica Londeree (22:38.67) and sophomore Sarah Fisher (22:40.52).

Three Bears on the No. 3 men’s team after Burnstein placed in the top 10—senior Tucker Hartley (7th place, 25:50.51), junior David Hamm (8th place, 25:56.39) and freshman Ryan Senci (10th place, 26:05.24), who won male UAA Rookie of the Year.

Sophomore Elliott Petterson (20th place, 26:33.23) was the Bears’ fifth runner.

Head coach Jeff Stiles and his assistants took home a second consecutive Coaching Staff of the Year Award.

Stiles credited the back-to-back UAA titles to a “trickle-down” of senior leadership.

“I think that every year we have good senior leadership. Good things happen, whether it be the ones that are racing in the championship meet or just the ones who have put in sweat the last four years,” Stiles said.

A large contingent of the squad that was not racing made the trip to Chicago to cheer on teammates, which helped motivate Londeree, previously the Bears’ number three runner at 2010 nationals. She had slumped this season until running her best mile-split time of the year.

“I know our team has the ability to do amazing at nationals, and I really want to be a part of it,” Londeree said. “I think it was more just overcoming that mental roadblock during races. We call it ‘[going to] the well.’ There’s a certain point in your race where you make a decision—inside you’re hurt so bad that you have to make a decision—‘Am I going to take it to the extra level?’”

Stiles said he could not pick out one reason for the individual successes of Burnstein and Jackey, calling their improvements over the years a process.

“It’s just maturation as a person, maturation as a runner, confidence as a runner, which comes with the maturation process,” he said.

Heading into its final two meets, the women’s team is ranked behind only Williams College. The Bears would like to change that trend at nationals.

“If we don’t get first, our season is not a failure,” Londeree said. “But we definitely, I think, would want to get first.”

The men’s team faces a steep uphill climb to unseat No. 1 North Central and No. 2 Haverford.

“I don’t really want to put a number goal on the season just because there’s kind of a risk of doing that,” Burnstein said. “You don’t want to have one bad day at nationals, and suddenly the whole season seems like a disappointment, when it’s been an amazing season overall so far. We just want to be ready to run well at nationals and…establish ourselves as one of the best teams in the country.”

The Bears will compete in the NCAA Midwest Regional Nov. 12 in Rock Island, Ill. Placing in the top five at regionals would make them eligible for berths at nationals, and cracking the top two would guarantee spots.

Stiles does not know for sure whether he will choose the same seven runners that ran on the UAA championship squads to represent Wash. U. at regionals and nationals.

Burnstein claimed first place for the second straight year in the men’s 8K race with a time of 25.29.80. Jackey’s 22.08.82 time paced the women’s 6K field, which included five Bears in the top eight.

The No. 2 women’s team had little trouble outdistancing its competition; the aggregate time of the Bears’ top five runners was over a half-minute faster than that of second-place NYU.

Freshman Lucy Cheadle (22:23.75) earned UAA Rookie of the Year honors for her third place finish. A pack of Wash. U. runners claimed the sixth through eighth spots, including senior Liz Phillips (22:37.62), senior Jess Londeree (22:38.67) and sophomore Sarah Fisher (22:40.52).

Three Bears on the No. 3 men’s team after Burnstein placed in the top ten—senior Tucker Hartley (7^th place, 25:50.51), junior David Hamm (8^th place, 25:56.39) and freshman Ryan Senci (10^th place, 26:05.24), who won male UAA Rookie of the Year.

Sophomore Elliot Peterson (20^th place, 26:33.23) was the Bears fifth runner.

See Monday’s edition of Student Life for full coverage of the UAA Championships.

That was on Sept. 3 at the Washington University Big River Running Early Bird Meet. Fast forward to Cheadle’s second race, Oct. 15 at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh Brooks Invitational, the Bears’ most important meet of the season to date. She fell to the back of the pack to start out, presumably a sign of rust after missing three races with a minor calf injury.

But it was just strategy, evidence of the intangibles that head coach Jeff Stiles raves about. Soon enough, Cheadle surged ahead, finishing third for the Bears and 15th among a field of nearly 400 top Division III runners. Cheadle started conservatively and finished strong, just as Stiles always instructs his runners to do.

“A lot of people have talent,” Stiles said. “That doesn’t mean that you do well or that you do well right away.”

Cheadle has managed to perform well immediately, though, and she is a crucial part of the No. 2 women’s cross-country team heading into its most important races of the year. The Bears are favored over No. 19 Emory and No. 26 NYU in the University Athletic Association Championships on Saturday.

Despite the expectations for herself and the team, Cheadle maintains an uncanny calmness through it all.

“If you just enjoy competing and don’t worry too much about the results and just push yourself, you’re in control of how you do,” she said. “Worrying about it isn’t going to do any good. I don’t set a goal [time] where if I don’t hit it I’m just devastated, so there’s really no failing as long as you’re giving it your 100 percent for that day.”

Cheadle will run track in the spring; she competed in the 800m, 1600m, and 4×4 events in high school.

She chose Wash. U. over two Division I schools, University of Washington—the division’s No. 2 team—and the University of Portland. A chemical engineering major, she said the Division I time commitment often takes away from one’s enthusiasm for the sport. Because there is much less scholarship money for cross-country than in sports like football and basketball, athletes often feel more pressure to perform well and avoid injuries, or they risk losing financial aid. At Wash. U., Cheadle can let her love of the sport drive her.

As a senior at Roosevelt High in Seattle, Cheadle was the seventh-place runner in the Division 4A Washington state championship and led her team to a 13th place state finish. The bar has been raised another notch this year.

“It’s definitely new being on a team that’s pretty much going to go to Nationals as long as we don’t have any huge mess ups,” Cheadle said. “In high school, for my team the goal was just to make it to state, and doing that was so exciting.”

Stiles pointed to Cheadle’s maturity as the source of her quick success and potential to become a perennial All-American.

“She pretty much had the mindset of a college runner while she was a senior in high school…You can’t give that to someone—that’s not anything that I can take credit for—that’s something that she came to us with,” Stiles said. “As a coach you can appreciate and observe and know that’s absolutely a reason why she’ll do well. As well as she did in her first race…I think it’s just a good litmus test of what she’s capable of in the future.”

Cheadle is the most visible of several impact freshmen on both the women’s and men’s teams. Ryan Senci has been a consistent top-five presence for the men and is usually joined in the top seven by Drew Padgett and Garrett Patrick. Grace Bridwell and Beatrice Gantzer project as top-five runners for the women next year.

Cheadle is the bridge between the present and the future for the Bears. The team has all but one of its top-six runners, Taryn Surtees, back from last year’s national runner-up team. As easy as it is to wonder about Cheadle’s potential as an upperclassman, the Bears’ best chance at a national championship could be now, with three seniors—Liz Phillips, Erica Jackey and Molly Wawrzyniak—in their current top five.

“We want to do as well as possible at nationals, whatever that means,” Cheadle said. “We just want everybody to be on the line ready to have the race of her life and see what we can do together.”

With a score 62 points lower than Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which came in 2nd, the women’s team routed a field that included eight other ranked schools. Senior Erica Jackey followed up her breakout showing at the Oct. 1 Greater Louisville Classic with a personal record 6K time of 21:39, good for first place among all runners.

Only No. 1 North Central College ran faster than the men’s team, which faced 10 schools in the Top 25, including six of the top 13. The Bears edged No. 29 Wheaton College and No. 7 Calvin College, and senior Michael Burnstein finished second overall with an 8K time of 25:00.

Due to 30-40 mph winds in Oshkosh, Wis., most Wash. U. runners posted slower times at this year’s meet than they did last year. Burnstein ran 20 seconds slower, but Stiles said the two-time All-American “probably had the best race of his life.”

The difficult conditions make Jackey’s performance all the more impressive, considering she dropped nearly two minutes from last year’s Oshkosh time.

The weather did not seem to affect seniors Tucker Hartley and Molly Wawrzyniak either. The No. 2 men’s runner and 12th place overall finisher, Hartley cut 20 seconds from a year ago to run a 2011 personal record time of 25:20. Wawrzyniak’s 22:23 time was 30 seconds faster, and she placed second for the Bears and 10th overall.

Completing the Wash. U. men’s top five were junior David Hamm (25:46), senior Kwin Keuter (25:57) and freshman Ryan Senci (26:06). After Jackey and Wawrzyniak, the women’s top five consisted of freshman Lucy Cheadle (22:27), sophomore Sarah Fisher (22:31) and senior Liz Phillips (22:37).

After falling during her first Oshkosh race last year, Fisher had a much better experience this time around, running 30 seconds faster.

“If you don’t think about the wind going into it, you don’t think about how hard it is because every other runner is running against the same wind,” Fisher said. “So you can’t focus on that.”

The vigorous winds did manage to slow Phillips, who has been the top runner for the women’s team in every meet she has raced this season. According to Stiles, Phillips went out a bit too aggressive in the first two miles and wore down late in the race.

Cheadle, competing in her first race since a 4K on Sept. 3, was only a few seconds off that pace in Saturday’s 6K.

With Cheadle back and Jackey surging, Fisher is confident entering the final month of the season.

“We didn’t have [freshman Grace Bridwell running today]—she’s also in our top seven—so we haven’t had a race yet where our top runners are healthy, [are] ready to race and have their A-game,” Fisher said. “We’ve been doing so well despite that.”

Like Fisher, Cheadle is focused on getting herself and the team prepared for the NCAA Division III National Championship meet on Nov. 19, which will take place at the Oshkosh course.

“We’re trying to compete at the end of November, and everything else is kind of a stepping stone to get there,” Cheadle said. “I’m really confident in our training, and [Stiles] is confident, so I don’t really feel pressure at all just because we’re all in it together and we’re all working together.”

The only two teams ranked higher than the women’s team, Williams and Middlebury, did not race at Oshkosh on Saturday. The Bears dropped from No. 2 nationally to No. 3 in the past week because Williams jumped from No. 5 to No. 1.

On the men’s side, there were also two teams ranked higher than the Bears, No. 2 Haverford and No. 4 Middlebury, that did not participate. Looking forward to the men’s prospects at nationals, Stiles said the top two of Haverford and North Central will be hard to pass.

“Haverford and North Central are easily the two best teams,” Stiles said. “And we can run great, but if they run great, it’s probably not in the cards…We definitely have the room to get better, and you can’t control what other teams are doing, so we’re really not going to worry about them. They’ll do their thing, we’ll do our thing—however it stacks up, we’ll feel good about it.”

The Bears will race in the Univeristy Athletic Associate Championships Oct. 29, followed by the NCAA Midwest Championships and NCAA Championships in mid-November.