The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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SEPTEMBER 2023 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 57 BY ANTHONY BROOME U -M's fall sports output outside of football and field hockey had an up-and-down 2022 cam- paign, and those teams hope to get back to championship contention this season. There is a nice mixture of familiar faces, transfer portal additions, up-and-comers moving to bigger roles and freshman con- tributors entering Ann Arbor, so there is plenty of intrigue around this fall's slate. Here is a primer on each of the teams heading into the fall season and their re- spective campaigns: MEN'S CROSS COUNTRY First Event: Michigan Open (Dexter, Mich.), Sept. 1 Season Outlook: U-M finished the 2022 campaign ranked 25th in the nation with a 29th-place showing at the NCAA Cross Country Championships after a fourth-place effort in the Big Ten. Seniors Zach Stewart and Oli Raimond lead the way for the squad to help pace a program looking to take its contention status to the next level. Director of track and field/cross country Kevin Sullivan, in his third season with the program, has helmed U-M to steady improvement with signs that the best could still be on the way. TOP THREE ATHLETES Senior Zach Stewart — The sport management major and Brighton (Mich.) High alum finished eighth at the Big Ten Championships, running 24:06.3 over eight kilometers (4.97 miles) and finishing as the program's No. 2 runner in both the conference title race and NCAA Champi- onships. A 24th-place finish at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional also headlined his output during the 2022 season. Senior Oli Raimond — Raimond fin- ished 230th at the NCAA Championships, coming in as the fifth-best Wolverine at 31:37.4 over 10 kilometers (6.21 miles). His season-best finish was 47th at the Joe Piane Notre Dame Invitational, running eight kilometers in 24:10.4 and finishing as the team's No. 3 runner. Sophomore Luke Venhuizen — He ran 31:31.4 over 10 kilometers to finish 226th at the NCAA Championships, finishing as the team's No. 4 runner. A 35th-place finish in the 8K run was his season-best in full competition at the Big Ten Championships. Don't Miss: Big Ten Championships (Madison, Wis.), Oct. 27 WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY First Event: Michigan Open (Dexter, Mich.), Sept. 1 Season Outlook: U-M ended the 2022 campaign with a No. 19 ranking and a 22nd-place finish at the NCAA Cross Country Championships, its 21st straight trip to the NCAAs. The season was also headlined by a second-place finish at the Big Ten Championships, with the Wol- verines falling just eight points behind Michigan State for the conference crown. The Wolverines lose quite a handful of upperclassman performers, but the hope is that seniors Katelynne Hart and Lucy Petee can set a tone for continued success moving forward. TOP THREE ATHLETES Senior Katelynne Hart — A first- team All-American in 2021 with indoor track (distance medley relay), she finished 25th at the Big Ten Championships as the team's No. 4 runner in the six-kilometer (3.73-mile) race in 20:55.9. Hart also fin- ished 33rd at the NCAA Great Lakes Re- gional. Senior Lucy Petee — She ran 22:33.3 over six kilometers in a 116th-place finish at the Big Ten Championships last year. Petee also participated in the B Race at the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational to finish 81st in the six-kilometer event at 22:29.7. Junior Samantha Hastie — She fin- ished as the team's No. 5 runner (179th overall) in the NCAA Championships, coming in with a 21:09.5 time in the six- kilometer event. Hastie ran 21:02.2 in a 31st-place finish at the Big Ten Champi- onships. Don't Miss: Big Ten Championships (Madison, Wis.), Oct. 27 FIELD HOCKEY First Event: at North Carolina (ACC/ Big Ten Challenge in Chapel Hill, N.C.), Aug. 25 ❱ OLYMPIC SPORTS UPDATE Michigan field hockey enters the 2023 season as the defending Big Ten Tournament champion, and four of its top five scorers are returning. PHOTO COURTESY MICHIGAN PHOTOGRAPHY GEARING UP Fall Sports At Michigan Kick Into Overdrive For 2023 Season