Last fall the Gophers went into the NCAA meet hoping for a top four finish so they could bring home a trophy. For some reason, the top four teams get trophies, not the top three or top five or top 10.

They finished 12th after placing ninth — their best ever — and 11th the previous two years.

So it was interesting when the this week’s first in-season rankings came out. The Gophers, fresh off a feel-good repeat title in the Griak Invitational on Saturday were ranked No. 4, moving up five spots from their No. 9 ranking in the preseason polls.

Veteran coach Gary Wilson, in his 24th season, said the right things when asked for his reaction.

“Obviously this No. 4 national ranking marks an exciting day for our program, but you don’t coach this long without knowing that a poll is just a poll,” Wilson said, according to a U of M release. “We have a veteran team though that understands this high of a national rank is a compliment to our program and that they have a lot of work to do this season to live up to it.”

Minnesota is one of five Big Ten teams in the nation’s top 15. Oregon, with Bria Wetch of Holy Family, is No. 1 rank, followed by Washington and Florida State.

The highest national ranking previously for the Gophers in their history was No. 5 before the 2007 NCAA Championships.

The Gophers will split its squad this weekend to compete in the UW-Eau Claire Blugold Open on Friday and the South Dakota State Invitational on Saturday.

Expect the U to do well at both. This is a deep, deep squad. The Gophers’ top five runners — the ones whose places counted in a low 31 total — finished in the top 11.

Junior Megan Duwell, emerging as the team’s top runner this fall, finished second. Gabriele Anderson, the only senior in the top seven for Minnesota, was fourth, only six seconds behind Duwell.

Jamie Cheever, another of the tough juniors on this team, was fifth, four second behind Anderson. Cheever was the team’s top runner last fall.

Heather Dorniden and Mallory Van Ness, two more junior, were nine and 11, one second apart. Dorniden is one of the nation’s top 800 meter runners. Van Ness is in her second year of running for the U after transferring from Missouri.

Van Ness used to cry a lot last season when Wilson ribbed her. Now she understands his offbeat sense of humor, Wilson said, and trades barbs with him. She also is running awfully well.

Amy Laskowske, another junior, was 13th, only five seconds behind Van Ness. And Nikki Swenson, a sophmore, was 20th.

Wilson sent 40 runners out, which gave the Gophers a slight advantage over other teams. If several of his top runners faltered, somebody else surely would not.

He said his team is 14-15 deep in quality runners and he’s going to have a hard time picking a top seven when the time comes.

Should be facinating to watch what this team does this year and next when the Gophers might be even stronger. But it’s way too early to think about 2009.

“I felt really happy about my race,” Duwell said, according to a U of M release. “I was hoping to go out there and stay confident. The fans helped a whole bunch and they
were amazing out there. They really cheered us on and motivated us. I
was able to work with my teammates and together we were able to push
up front and stay competitive.”

The Big Ten meet is Nov. 2 at Ann Arbor, Mich. The Midwest Region meet is Nov. 15 at Stillwater, Okla. The Gophers are defending champions in both. The NCAA meet is Nov. 24 at Terre Haute, Ind.

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