The Northern Michigan University women’s track and field team is ready for another year as the team starts the new season with a new head coach.

With former head coach Tom Barnes retiring at the end of last season, the Wildcats hired head coach Chereé Hicks on Thursday, Sept. 20. Hicks said she has some big shoes to fill, but she has been excited to take over the Wildcat track and field team.

“I can’t wait to see what these girls can do,” Hicks said. “I am very excited to get started with the GLIAC’s. I know we are going to do great. We are supportive of each other and I think that’s a good sign of what is to come.”

First year captain and junior Delaney Lovett said, while it has been a tough transition with the coaching changes, the upperclassmen on the team have been stepping up, both on and off the track.

“It has been tough,” Lovett said. “We are here to support each other. We all have our personal goals to accomplish. The girls on the roster are really the ones who want to stand out and be on the team.”

The team’s latest event was the UW-Elite, which took place on Saturday, Jan. 19. Sophomore Brittni Wirtz finished in third  during the 60-meter dash with a time of 7.84 seconds after finishing first in the preliminary round.

In the 600-hundred meter dash, senior Colby West placed ninth with a time of 1:46.34. Sophomore Caitlin Keskey followed just behind West to place 10th with 1:51.40. In the one-mile run, freshman Catherine Swiderski ran a 6:05:61, taking ninth place in the event. Swiderski also competed in the 4×400 meter relay, in which the Wildcats finished sixth place.

In the 800-meter run, sophomore Katie Granquist placed sixth with a time of 2:25.29. Freshman Abby Roche and freshman Jaylee Brown both competed in the event as well. Roche finished in eighth place with a time of 2:33.70 and Brown placed ninth with a time of of 2:38.67.

In the 3000-meter dash, sophomore Chelsea Farquhar came in 17th out of 34 competitors with a time of 10:57.13. Junior Mallory Celaya followed closely with a time of 11:01.66.

Freshman Megan Strait competed in the weight throw event and placed 14th with a throw of 11.12 meters. Fellow freshman Victoria Freeman threw for a distance of 10.34 meters, placing 15th.

Seniors Brooke Granquist and Mariah Beaman participated in the long jump competition. Granquist placed eighth with a jump of 5.00 meters while Beaman made a jump of 4.51 meters, placing 11th.  Hicks said she was pleased with the outcome of the meet.

“The girls competed very hard,” Hicks said. “We have a good team, and as the season moves along we are only going to get better.”

Last season, the Wildcats finished with three All-American athletes. Bailey Franklin earned All-American honors in the high jump, while junior Jaime Roberts was an All-American in pole vaulting. In the triple jump Sherice Hewett, a redshirt freshman, earned her All-American honors while breaking a conference and school record.

The Wildcats will be on the road for the next few weeks as they will head to Steven’s Point, Wisc. for the Pointer Invitational on Saturday, Feb. 2.