• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Home
  • Main News
  • Competitions
    • Diamond League
    • World Championships
    • Combine Challenge
    • IAAF World Challenge
    • Olympic Games
    • World Athletics Final
    • Marathon News
    • Indoor News
    • World Juniors
    • World Youth
  • More News
    • Just In
    • Featured
    • College
    • Press Releases
    • Workouts
  • Results
    • Cross Country
    • Upcoming Meets
  • Stats
    • World Rankings
  • List
    • Records by Discipline
    • Records By Category
    • Standard
    • Multi-Media
    • Event Disciplines
World-Track.org-Logo

World-Track and Field Website

Track and Field News and Results Resource

  • About
  • Contact Us
  • Links
  • Writers
  • Photos
  • Contribute To World-Track

Michigan State Women’s Cross Country Repeats As Big Ten Champions

January 30, 2021 by world track Leave a Comment

SHELBYVILLE, Ind. – Despite abbreviated practice time due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Michigan State women’s cross country team opened the 2021 season, capturing its second-straight Big Ten title. With 48 points, the Spartans defended their title from the fall of 2019, Saturday at the Blue River XC Course in Shelbyville, Indiana.

“I knew we had a shot without a doubt. We have a great group of seniors right now with a ton of experience, and I knew we have some younger athletes that were racing with one another and racing for one another. So I knew they could do really well,” Interim Director of Cross Country and Track & Field Lisa Breznau said. “This weekend, the leadership from India Johnson, Jenna Magness, Lynsie Gram and Casey Mossholder has been really phenomenal. I think they have a huge part in what happened today. It was amazing to see Makayla Perez and Katie Osika run as well as they did and battle, really the entire race.”

The Michigan State men also had a strong showing, finishing fourth with 97 points. On the men’s side, Wisconsin took home the trophy with 40 points.

“I am so happy that both teams did well because I know that we are making Coach (Walt) Drenth proud. It is important to me that we carry on his legacy, and know that he is proud of us,” Breznau concluded.

The No. 9-ranked Spartans finished with 47 points in the women’s 6k, with Minnesota finishing second with 76 points and Illinois ending third with 79.

This is the eighth Big Ten title for the Spartans in program history and the third time that Michigan State has won back-to-back titles. MSU repeated in 2010-11 and 2013-14.

Three Spartans captured personal bests as Michigan State returned to the awards stand. Junior Jenna Magness was the top finisher for Michigan State, coming in third place with a time of 20.30.1. Senior India Johnson register a PR time of 20.34.9 to take fourth place. Both Magness and Johnson garnered first-team All-Big Ten honors for their efforts. Johnson had earned second-team honors last season.

Senior Lynsie Gram crossed the finish line with a time 20.48.4 to collect 11th. Sophomores Makayla Perez (21.01.02) and Katie Osika (21.03.3) both set personal bests to finish 14th and 16th, respectively. Gram and Perez nabbed second-team All-Big Ten honors for their efforts.

“Our women’s team had a meeting on their own on Sunday to set the tone for the week ahead. They set behavioral expectations to keep each other accountable. They have done a really good job of staying calm. Of course there were moments of intense nerves, so to speak, but they did an excellent job of managing themselves,” Breznau said.

The Spartan men improved on last season’s seventh-place finish to take fourth this season, all without last year’s third-place finisher Morgan Beadlescomb who was unable to compete Saturday. Sophomore James Uhlenberg had a fantastic start to the cross country season, finishing seventh with a time of 21.13.2. Freshman Brendan Favazza had a stellar debut for MSU, using a time of 24:24.4 to finish 14th.

Uhlenberg earned first-team All-Big Ten honors in his cross country debut, while Favazza was named to the second team.

Senior Joe Riordan (24:38.3), junior Steven Stine (24:45.8) and senior Brayden Law (24:45.8) turned in scores for the Spartans. Stine’s time was a personal best for the junior.

“Our men’s depth was incredible today. We had all 12 in the top 50 and a lot of our guys are really young, which is super exciting for the future,” Breznau added. “Our guys that are seniors did a great job of keeping things organized. It was a huge loss to not have Morgan here, but we know we are going to get him back soon. The men did a great job of managing themselves today. I am just really proud of both teams today. Coach (Aaron) Simoneau is doing a fantastic job with that group. I am hoping that both groups get a chance to race again at the NCAA Nationals in March.”

Spartan indoor track & field season will continue on Saturday, Feb. 6 at the Hoosier Hills in Bloomington, Indiana.

Filed Under: College

To send email correction, new ideas and result links or further classifications, please contact us or Lorraine Cummings email here

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Latest Headlines

  • Drake Relays Heat Sheets, Live Stream And Schedule: Day 2
  • How To Watch Live Fighting Illini Big Ten Relays Stream
  • Olympic Champs Carter, Taylor Lead USATF Grand Prix at Oregon Relays Field Lineups
  • Drake Relays 2021: Day 1 Heat Sheet, Schedule, Watch Live
  • How To Watch 2021 Drake Relays Live Stream
  • How To Watch 2021 John McDonnell Invitational Live!
  • How To Watch USATF Grand Prix at Oregon Relays & 2021 Oregon Relays
  • How To Follow 2021 LSU Alumni Gold Live Results!
  • How To Watch 2021 USATF 1 Mile Road Championships
  • Carifta Games 2021 Under Threat Again?
  • [Video] Laird Grabs A Pair Of Wins At LSU Boots Garland Invitational

World-Track Polls

Predicted most outstanding college athletes this outdoor season?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...
  • Polls Archive

Important Links

  • About
  • Contact Us
  • Contribute To World-Track
  • Links
  • Photos
  • Writers and Contributors

Trending

Allyson Felix asafa powell Auto beijing berlin bolt Boys and Girls Championships Champion College College Indoor Conference Championships Dafne Schippers Draft dwain chambers Elaine Thompson gary smith iaaf IAAF Diamond League iaaf world championships jamaica Justin Gatlin Lashawn merritt latest track and field news live results live stream NYRR Millrose Games olympic champion olympic games olympics Penn Relays prefontaine classic record result Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce times track track and field track and field news tyson gay usain bolt veronica campbell-brown world champion World Championships world record world record holder yohan blake

©2003-Present World-Track and Field Website. All rights reserved.