The Butler women's cross country team is back in action as they begin an abbreviated season in Nashville, Tenn. at Lipscomb University this Saturday, Feb. 6.
 
The Bulldogs will face strong competition at the Lipscomb Winter Classic, with championship-level teams from the Missouri Valley Conference competing. The 2019 MVC Championships saw the Loyola University Ramblers take home the title, with the Bradley University Braves finishing as the runners-up. Both of them will be competing in Nashville on Saturday. Rounding out the list of competitors in addition to Loyola and Bradley will be Belmont, Bellarmine, and North Alabama.
 
The Bulldog women are coming off of a season in which they won their first BIG EAST Championship in program history. Key members of last year's team are returning, and fresh faces are set to make an impact to help Butler defend their title as the best in the BIG EAST.

Roe on the 2021 Team
"Our women's group is coming off a strong season last year, and we have continued to improve and gain momentum." said head coach Matt Roe. "They have trained extremely well together, and the bond they have as a unit is special. I am excited for our new additions as well and how they will impact our success."
 
Bulldog Veterans
Senior Emily Royston will lead the way as she enters her second season as a Bulldog. In her first season with Butler, Royston was sensational, qualifying for the 2019 NCAA Cross Country Championships. Royston also placed 17th at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional with a time of 20:50.4, receiving USTFCCCA All-Region Honors for her performance. Her fifth-place finish at the BIG EAST Championships was the highest finish for the title-winning team and earned her All-BIG EAST First Team honors.
 
Angelina Ellis, Camille Hines, and Maddie McLain will all be top scorers returning for Butler as well.
 
Ellis is coming off a breakout junior season in which she earned All-BIG EAST First Team honors with a seventh-place finish at the BIG EAST Championships. Ellis narrowly missed All-Region honors with a 34th place finish at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional with a time of 21:11.2.
 
McLain and Hines each claimed all-conference second-team honors after finishing 14th and 17th respectively, at the BIG EAST Championships. The duo would each place in the top 60 of the NCAA Great Lakes Regional. With McLain finishing with a time of 21:39.0 for 55th and Hines finished in 58th after running a time of 21:40.2.
 
Juniors Mia Beckham, Margo Hornocker, and Corinna Pena will return in scoring roles for the Bulldog women.
 
Hornocker and Beckham each competed in the NCAA Great Lakes Regional, finishing 70th and 147th with times of 21:50.5 and 23:04.5, respectively. Hornocker and Beckham also each finished in the top 30 of the BIG EAST Championships, with Hornocker placing 23rd (22:52.6) and Beckham placing 30th (23:17.6).
 
Pena looks to build off a strong sophomore campaign in which she helped win the conference title with a 69th place finishing time of 24:56.6 in the Championships.
 
Other Bulldogs returning for Butler include senior Emma Bailey, redshirt junior Allison Miller, and sophomore Morgan Walsh who will also make an impact and provide depth.
 
Butler Debuts
As a graduate transfer from Oklahoma State, joining Butler and making her Butler debut this weekend is Kami Hankins. Hankins was a contributor on the 2018 Big 12 Cross Country Championship runner-up team. Her 6k personal best is 20:42.2, and she will be an important scorer for the Bulldogs this season.
 
Redshirt freshman Katherine Olsen will run the course for the first time as a Bulldog this weekend in Nashville. Olsen had a standout high school career before redshirting her first year with a top time of 17:21.20 on a 3-mile cross country course.
 
Four true freshmen will also be on the roster this season, Abby Fostveit, Abby Olsen, Renate Toldo, and Morgan Werner. Olson and Werner are both running for the first time in a Butler uniform this weekend.
 
Olson was a 4x All-Conference and All-Region Cross Country selection and helped West Ottawa High School win the 2019 cross country conference championship and 2019 regional championship.
 
Werner's standout high school career included being a 4x South Carolina State Cross Country Qualifier, 2019 State, Region, and County Championship Runner-Up. She posted top-10 finishes at the county and regional championships all four years.
 
Fostveit and Toldo had impressive high school careers of their own, with Fostveit being a 2x All-Conference selection and Toldo holding a school record in the indoor 800-meter (2:28.46).
 
A Look Ahead
The Butler Invite on Feb. 19 will be the second and final meet before the BIG EAST Championships in Cary, N.C on Mar. 5.