The Michigan Daily - SPORTSMonday - November 24, 1997 - 3B
Women's harriers ready for NCAAs
By Rick Freeman
Daily Sports W ritcr
Last Wednesday night, Michigan cross
country runners Julie Froud and Elizabeth
Kampfe studied together, trying perhaps to
maintain a semblance of normalcy in the
week before their No. 7 team traveled to
Greenville, S.C., to run in the NCAA
championships. Despite their efforts, they
found themselves reading and re-reading
lines several times, as distractions crept in.
Reporters' questions needed to be
answered, suitcases had to be packed,
visions of running in the South Carolina
sunshine had to be channeled, focused.,
saved for motivation.
Not that the Wolverines need any extra
motivation for today's race.
"I'm so pumped," Froud said. "We just
want to go down there and prove we're a
seventh-ranked team."
This is the first NCAA championship for
Froud, who redshirted last year, but she is
no stranger to big races.
The St. Mary's, Ontario, native competed
in the world championship cross country
skiing race when she was in "grade six" --
what they call sixth grade "across the
ditch."
Froud never began running competitive-
ly until high school, but was hig hly recruit-
ed by many southern schools. She turned
them down to come to Michigan, where she
felt more challenged, by books and weath-
er.
"It was just too easy there, I wanted to be
challenged," Froud said.
Froud likes being challenged more than
most people do. Challenges excite her, she
likes it when things are tough.
Several southern schools with strong
track programs expressed interest in her,
but Froud turned them all down because
she felt that life would be harder at
Michigan.
Having a hard, cold winter appealed to
Froud, as did location, but what really
turned her off about the southern schools
was how their athletic departments seemed
to do everything for athletes, she wanted to
have as normal, as diffcult a time as she
could.
As much as Froud enjoys a good battle
aginst adversity, she loves running, any
time, any place, even more.
"You just grab your shoes, and you go
and run, that's what I love about it," Froud
said.
Running is the fundamental sport,
though, and in such a straightforward
sport, athletes can easily overanalyze their
own and others performances.
"As soon as you think too much, you
screw up" Froud said. "You've just got to
go out and run."
When she's not running, but only think-
"I'm so pumped. We
just want to go down
there and prove
we're a seventh-
ranked team."
- Julie Froud
Michigan runner
ing about running, Froud admits that she
looks to teammate Katie McGregor as an
example of a good mindset for a runner.
"I love her mental outlook on things,"
Froud said. "She's just 'To hell with every-
thing, I'm Katie McGregor, I rock, I'm
gonna go and race."'
"Thats what we all need."
Froud wishes she could erase the small,
scattered pockets of self doubt she still car-
ries and adopt more of McGregor's out-
look.
"Its all about confidence and just know-
ing you can do it," Froud said. "That's the
kind of attitude she has."
While Froud may appreciate her team-
mate's tough attitude, she certainly has a
similar approach to racing.
"I like the competition and I like trying
to beat people" Froud said.
LOUIS BROWN/Daily
Vilzabeth Kampfe and her teammate, Katie McGregor, tried to keep their lives as normal as possible
while preparing for the NCAA championships, which will be held today In South Carolina. But as the
meet approached and their adrenaline kicked in, all they could think about was running.
NCAAs
Continued from Page 1B
and he was diagnosed with a pulled
calf muscle.
"I ran on it for the first time
,hursday and it feels pretty good,"
'cLaughlin said. "It will definitely
be ready for Monday."
Another member of the team final-
ly got over a month-long illness.
Junior Todd Snyder battled bronchitis
and other flu-like symptoms during
October and November and finally
was able to overcome them last week.
Snyder had been consistently fin-
ishing as the third or fourth
*Volverine, but was several seconds
behind the leaders. Last week, he
finished as the fourth-place runner
in the entire field and finished only a
couple of seconds behind his team-
mates of Sullivan and John
Mortimer.
Now that the Wolverines are back
to 100 percent, their chances of
accomplishing their final goal is
foreseeable.
In fact, the Wolverines believe that
with the motivation to prove their
doubters wrong accompanied by
their excitement and experience, the
results could exceed their original
goals.
"We've got a chance to win this
thing," Bunt said.
READ DAILY SPORTS FOR THE BEST
COVERAGE OF THE MEN'S AND WOMEN'S
CROSS COUNTRY TEAMS AS THEY COM-
PETE FOR THE NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP
THIS WEEK.
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