WOMEN'S: Conference championship on the line

It's hunting season, and the IU women's cross country team has a group of Wolverines in its cross-hairs. The Hoosiers will attempt to win their first Big Ten title in 14 years when they travel to the University of Iowa for the Big Ten Championships.\nThe Wolverines of Michigan, who currently rank fourth in the nation, stand in the way of the Hoosiers' title hopes. \n"Michigan is top dog, but I think that they definitely have weaknesses," said IU head coach Judy Wilson. "If we come home any lower than second, (IU runners) should be disappointed." \nThe team also expects competition from No. 11 Michigan State and No. 27 Illinois. \nIn the latest FinishLynx poll released Monday, the IU women rank No. 21 in the nation, marking the first time the team has been ranked all season. \n"It's nice to be ranked, but we knew we should have been ranked all year," said sophomore Jessica Gall. \nBefore the 2002 season, IU had not been ranked nationally since 1990.\nTwo weekends ago, the team's strong eighth-place finish in the NCAA Pre--National meet helped get them into the top 30 in the country.\n"Our race at Pre--Nationals showed that we can compete with a lot of the top teams," said senior and veteran member of the Hoosiers' top five runners Mindy Peterson.\nThe women will have the challenge of running on an unfamiliar course at Iowa. \n"We've never run there, but it's a golf course so it shouldn't be anything too surprising," Peterson said. \nThe team will fly to Iowa Saturday morning and then have a chance to run the course before Sunday's meet.\nSome members of the squad cut back on mileage during this week by about 25 percent, from 60 miles to 45 miles, in preparation for the meet. Coach Wilson hopes her large group of returning runners from previous seasons will lead to success at the championships. \n"It pays to have experience," Wilson said. "We have eight girls who have run at the national meet, which says a lot about this group." \nTo achieve first team All-Big Ten status, a runner must finish in one of the first seven spots. Second team All-Big Ten awards are handed out to runners in the eight to 14 positions. \n"I think we can have four in the top 15," Wilson said.\nIn the past couple of years, teams from the Great Lakes state have dominated the winners circle at the Big Ten Championships. Michigan has won the title the past two years. In 2001, Michigan State won the event, and in 2002, it was second to Michigan.\nRace time is set for 10:30 a.m. Sunday.\n-- Contact staff writer Ryan Corazza at rcorazza@indiana.edu.