Women’s Season Preview Head Coach Guy Murray is excited for the start of the season as his athletes will be transitioning into a veteran team. “We made progress last year with a team that was predominantly freshmen and sophomores,” Murray explained. “We will continue to build this team by making improvements each day. There will be many opportunities for people to step up and take a larger role. Hopefully they take advantage, as they become veterans.” SPRINTS Detroit welcomes back the veteran leadership of Sequoyia Calhoun to highlight the sprints group. Calhoun was a star on the team a year ago winning the 400-meter finals during both the indoor and outdoor season. “Sequoyia is a top level performer that can set the tone for this team,” Murray said. “Winning the 400-meter dash with quality times during the indoor and outdoor season was huge for us. She will be missed when her eligibility runs out after the indoor season.” Nikia Duncan and Nicole Meisner will each have a larger role coming into the season as the two split the team’s Most Improved Runner Award a year ago. “Nikia and Nicole each made good progress and we hope that they will score at the Horizon League meet this year,” Murray said. “Nikia was a top 10 HL finisher in both the 100-meter and 200-meter dash, while Nicole made the HL outdoor 200-meter finals taking eighth overall.” Taylor Ragland, Lindsay Smetzler, and Elizabeth Arroyo are also returners who will look to score this season. Rounding out the group will be freshmen Malita Rutherford, Jacquelyne Zolynsky and Josephine Zolynsky. HURDLES The team’s Rookie of the Year during both the indoor and outdoor season highlights a talented group of hurdlers this year. Brandee Hart is a crossover to the sprints group as she made the 200-meter finals at the league meet as well as running in the 100-meter hurdle finals. “Brandee had a very good freshman year and we will need her to continue to run well,” Murray said. “Brandee’s experience will make her a better performer and we hope that she is one of our leading scorers this year.” Another hurdler that may take on a larger role is junior Olivia Smid. Smid scored at the HL meet last year, and she is coming off a very successful cross country season. “It will be interesting to see if Olivia’s endurance carries over to the track which would allow her to become a stronger runner,” Murray added. Rounding out this group is junior Sharonda Vesey and freshman Jasmine Greene. “Sharonda is yet another athlete that I believe is ready for a larger role now that she is entering her junior season,” Murray said. “I think that Jasmine Greene will be able to come in and help us right away.” MID-DISTANCE The loss of Kirstin Mooney hurts Detroit, yet Murray thinks that junior Sarah Martinez can fill the void. “We want Sarah to take a veteran role into this season,” Murray said. “She definitely has the ability to do that for us after showing potential in her first two seasons.” Rachel Hofsess also has the ability to contribute to this group although it won’t be at the start of the season as a cross country injury has sidelined her for the time being. With Hofsess on the mend it will be Shannon Marchant and Katie Weishaar stepping up for Detroit. Sara Taylor and the Zolynsky twins will also impact this group.
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DISTANCE Katrina Oberski will step into a veteran role for the distance group. “Katrina has improved over the last two seasons and we hope that she continues on this path,” Murray said. Newcomer Zeinab Baydoun had a very strong finish to the cross country season and also has experience in the steeplechase event which will benefit the Titans. “Zeinab was our top runner at the HL cross country meet, and we expect her to make an immediate impact with this group,” Murray said. JUMPS Susan Kalkstein and Whitney Rogers will be the top performers for the Titans in the horizontal jumps, while Stephanie Cuniberti will get a chance to score in the high jump. “Susan showed tremendous potential after a successful sophomore year, but it didn’t quite carry over to hear junior season,” Murray explained. “We hope that she puts it all together for her senior year.” Murray believes that Rogers will be more confident entering her junior after putting in hard work as a sophomore. “Whitney really improved a lot last year,” Murray explained. “She worked on her techniques and made great improvements.” Brianna Soule is another Titan that could contribute to this group if she is able to overcome some injury issues. “Bri is someone who has lots of potential,” Murray said. “She can make an impact when healthy.” Stephanie Cuniberti is Detroit’s high jump specialist. Cuniberti scored for the Titans during the indoor season and a year of collegiate jumping will only add to her experience. POLE VAULT Kayla Zauner will cover the pole vault event for the Titans. “Kayla learned a lot as a freshman and we hope that she can adjust and continue to improve,” Murray said. THROWS Lauren Berlin, Allyson Koglin and Stephanie Blanchard all return with a year of experience under their belts. “This group did a real nice job for us last year,” Murray said. “The year of experience with the collegiate implements can only help. The sophomore year is usually when you see nice improvements for throwers.” RELAYS The Titans have the chance to pick up some important points in multiple relay races this season. “We pose a large threat to the competition in the 4x400-meter relay, especially during the indoor season when we can have Sequoyia running as the anchor,” Murray said. “That race should be a lot of fun as we have a nice returning group to go along with some talented freshmen.” The 4x100 meter relay team will also be battling for points. “We should have a pretty good team with Nikia, Nicole, and Brandee coming back,” Murray explained. “We will just need to find that last leg to see how things come together.” MULTI Amanda Campbell will be joined by rookie Hanna Hunt to compete in the combined events. Campbell’s aim will be to score points at the HL meet, while Hunt could be in the mix due to her all-around athletic ability. OVERALL “I am optimistic for the year ahead,” Murray stated. “We have athletes steadily developing and ready to make their mark. The past few seasons we have had athletes make breakthroughs and this team has many candidates to be the next in line.”
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