Even fresh off its highest NCAA Midwest Regionals finish in two decades, Northwestern cross country might have improved this offseason. The team’s success in its first two meets — the First State Bank Huskie Challenge at Northern Illinois and the Big Ten Preview — certainly seem to suggest so.
The ‘Cats kicked off their season with the Huskie Challenge on Sep. 2. It was a dual meet, meaning Northwestern only raced against Northern Illinois. That likely played a factor in head coach Jill Miller not putting top runners Rachel McCardell and Ari Marks on the starting line.
That didn’t take away from the fun at all, though.