Senior Cobi Warstler is Wooster's top returnee in the middle-distance events. Photo by Abbi Tarburton '22.

The College of Wooster women's track and field team graduated one of the top scorers in the North Coast Athletic Conference in Carolyn Webster, but head coach Dennis Rice has plenty of optimism that the Fighting Scots have the ability to challenge some of the top teams within the conference this year. Wooster's potential to have a more balanced cast of conference scorers will be the ultimate key to the Scots' success.

"This is an exciting, balanced group of women heading into the 2020 season, and it's a reloading year," summed up Rice. "We have potential within a variety of areas within the program to build off of into the future, and we have some strong leadership. We're excited about this group."

While Wooster's scoring balance will be a central theme throughout the season, the Scots have several student-athletes in their ranks with the ability to be major scorers come championship time. Senior Akwia Tilton is chief among that group. Tilton earned a remarkable eight all-conference certificates last year, and will provide an instant boost to the Scots' relays, jumps, and sprints upon the conclusion of basketball season.

"Akwia is a very well-balanced student-athlete, who shows great potential in a lot of different areas," summed up Rice when talking about one of Wooster's talented multi-sport student-athletes. "She switched from the 100 and 200 meters to the 200 and 400 meters and gained valuable experience in the 400 last spring. We're looking forward to Akwia having a major breakout season this year. We're confident she's capable of doing big things, especially in the 400 meters."

Wooster projects to score well in the heptathlon and pentathlon, thanks to having proven conference contributors Jena Copley and Maya Vasta back in the fold. Copley, a junior, traditionally has a bigger impact come outdoor season, due in large part to her abilities in the javelin. Vasta provided a big boost to the Scots' relays, sprints, and hurdles ranks last year, evidenced by five all-conference performances.

"Maya and Jena did a nice job for us last season," said Rice. "Now, they're really ready to take that next step and challenge the top three in the conference in the multis. The spotlight is on them now."

A major infusion of new talent last year rapidly built up the Scots ranks within the distance crew. Sophomores Kayla Bertholf, Isabelle Hoover, and Marian Overfield, plus junior Emma Busch, give Rice plenty of capable options come the championship meets.

"This is a really strong area," summed up Rice. "We had great success last spring, and then in the fall during cross country. If we can continue to get stronger aerobically with this group, they show great potential from the steeplechase, to the 5K, to the 10K. We're excited to see the impact this group can make. They're capable of being in the mix of things at the conference level."

Wooster's scored significant points in the jumps in recent years, and more of the same could be in store this year. Tilton's one of the leaders within the conference in the long jump, while the likes of sophomores Claudia Partridge and Saralee Renick are working toward that in the high jump and triple jump, respectively. In the pole vault, junior Georgia Hopps-Weber and sophomore Morgan Kromer are both capable scorers at the conference level.

"We should be very strong in all areas of the jumps," added Rice. "We had great success with the pole vault last indoor season, and we were excited to see that carry over for this upcoming season. We feel Claudia is ready to take the next jump to compete at the conference level and hopefully be able to compete at the national level in the high jump."

Plenty of senior leadership is at the forefront of the Scots' ranks in the sprints and hurdles, thanks to Audrey Cordova, Korri Palmer, and Tilton.

"Korri is a strong team leader for us in the sprints," summed up Rice. "Korri's really set the tone for this group in the past and has a strong commitment to the program and competing at the highest possible level through the season."

Junior Christine Weber leads Wooster's up-and-coming throwers, and "she'll be challenging the school records this year," per Rice.

Senior Cobi Warstler is the top returnee in the middle-distance events, an area the Scots will be looking to build up as the season progresses.

Wooster also has a good mix of returning non-letterwinners and first-years looking to make their mark on the program.

The Scots open the season at Oberlin College's Crimson and Gold January Kick-Off on January 10. Wooster then hosts three straight meets: a tri-meet on January 18, the Fighting Scots Invitational on January 25, and a dual meet against Denison University on January 30. Come outdoor season, the program's annual Wooster Invitational is set for March 27-28.