Blogs : NCAA Division III Blog

Interviews: Katie Wieferich of The College of Wooster

(Photo courtesy of The College of Wooster athletics website and Tom Strickland)

Wieferich is a senior at The College of Wooster.  This past outdoor track and field season she finished 3^rd in the 10,000m with a time of 35:53.55 and 5^th in the 5,000m with a time of 17:21.54 at the 2006 NCAA Division III Women’s Outdoor Track & Field Championships.  Wieferich won the All-Ohio Intercollegiate Cross Country Championships individual title on October 6^th, becoming the first College of Wooster individual All-Ohio champion and first non-division I winner since 2000.  She became just the fourth repeat winner in NCAC league history after taking the individual title at the NCAC Cross Country Championships on October 28^th, helping her team to a fifth place finish. 

By: Derick Lawrence (11/03/2006)

Could you tell us a little bit about yourself (where you’re from, what high school you went to, how you got started running)?

I am from Marietta, OH, and graduated from Marietta High School.  I started running cross country in 8^th grade.  I didn’t really know what I was getting involved with, but I heard that it involved running in the woods on trails so I decided to give it a try.  That year, I both ran xc and played soccer, but when I started high school I gave up soccer to focus on xc.

What were your PR's in high school (cross country and track)?

My cross country pr was around 19 minutes flat (I don’t remember exactly).  My track pr’s were 5:24 for the mile, 11:35 for the 3200, and 2:23 for the 800.

What are your current PR's (cross country and track)?

Currently, my xc pr is 17:50.  In track I have run 35:53 for the 10K, 17:07 for the 5K, and 4:46 for the 1500.

How has your training progressed over the years from high school to now (cross country and track)?

The biggest change from high school to now is the amount of mileage I run.  Through most of high school I ran very low mileage, and very rarely did any longer runs.  In college, I began doing a long run of at least 10 miles each week, put in a lot more training during the summers, and gradually increased the pace of my runs in general.

What made you choose The College of Wooster?

(Photo courtesy of The College of Wooster website)

I actually never intended to run in college.  I chose Wooster for its academics, size, and location.  Then, the summer before I started my freshman year, I decided to give xc a try, so I emailed the coach (who I had never even met) and joined the team.

What was your training like this past summer?

I took several weeks off after track nationals, so I didn’t start training until late in June.  Once I got started though, I built up the mileage fairly quickly, reaching roughly 60 miles per week by the time school started in August.

What is your favorite workout(s) during the cross country season and what does it include?

I really enjoy tempo runs.  We do these several times throughout the season, usually running between 20 minutes and 4 miles at a hard, yet controlled, effort.

What are your goals for this cross country season (individual and team)?

Our team ran really well at our conference meet, placing 5^th, which was a big accomplishment for us.  Individually, I would like to qualify again for the national meet.

Do you walk, bike, or drive to class and/or practice? If you bike or drive, what kind of bike or car do you have?

Our campus is pretty small, so I normally walk everywhere I go on campus.  I occasionally do bike around though, and I have a Trek mountain bike.  I have an old car on campus (a 1985 Tercel), but it’s usually too much of a hassle to drive around campus due to limited parking, so I reserve it for off campus trips.

This past outdoor track season you finished 3^rd in the 10,000m with a time of 35:53.55 and 5^th in the 5,000m with a time of 17:21.54 at the 2006 Division III Women’s Outdoor Track & Field Championships.  Could you tell us a little bit about this experience and your thoughts looking back at these races?

Just getting to compete at the national meet was an awesome experience.  It was a lot of fun to be able to compete against the best athletes in Division III, and to meet people from all over the country.  Placing 3^rd and 5^th in my events just made the weekend even more exciting, and was a great way to finish out the season.

You recently won the All-Ohio Intercollegiate Cross Country Championships individual title becoming the first College of Wooster individual All-Ohio champion and first non-division I winner since 2000.  Could you tell us a little bit about this race and how it unfolded?

This race, as usual, was crazy simply because of the number of runners competing.  I definitely tried to get out quick at the start because I knew if I got stuck farther back I would never be able to catch up.  I hung with the lead pack for the first couple miles, then surged down a hill right before the 2-mile mark to take the lead.  After that, I just tried to keep pushing it as hard as I could to the finish.

What’s your major?  Favorite professor?  Most memorable class?

I’m a chemistry major.  I don’t really have a most memorable class, although I’m really enjoying biochemistry right now (despite the fact that it’s one of the toughest classes I have taken here at college).

What are your plans after college?

I’m going to try to find a job and work for a year, then go back to school.  And continue to run…of course.

What's the running environment like at The College of Wooster?  Where does the team train? 

L.C. Boles Memorial Golf Course

(Photo courtesy of The College of Wooster's athletics website)

We do most of our training around town and on country roads surrounding the town.  We do a lot of our workouts on the golf course, although we use the track a lot too (ugh!).  My favorite place to run is actually at Mohican State Park, which is only a half hour drive from campus.  There are some great trails there, and I love going out there to do my long runs in the fall.

Mohican State Park

(Photo courtesy of the Mohican State Park website)

Thanks to Katie for a great interview.

Katie is the real deal

4:02 AM, November 14, 2006 .. Posted by Anonymous

I can definitely see Katie winning Nationals in both XC and Track (10k and 5k). My school (Denison University) runs against Wooster all the time so I've had the privilege to watch her run on many occasions. She's incredible.