Bradley has continually boasted a strong cross-country program for men’s and women’s teams in the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC). Even with head coach Andrew Carlson in his first year at the program’s helm, the Braves featured three runners in the NCAA Championships last season.
Now entering year two with the Braves, Carlson feels familiar with the process but knows each season is different.
“I feel a lot calmer at this time of the year than I did last year,” Carlson said. “Every year presents new challenges…Whether we’re facing injuries or people who had big improvements, we need to work on something. But I do feel a lot more confident in who we are and what we’re doing.”
After losing several key pieces from last year, Carlson and his staff continued their recruitment efforts to reload the roster. Wilma Nielsen, a two-time MVC Champion, was the most notable, who transferred to Washington in January.
“I’d say this past year was a huge test for our staff in terms of recruiting,” Carlson said. “One way that we’re staying consistent is that we’re recruiting at a really high level, and that ultimately comes from the culture that we have on the team.”
The Bradley women were picked as the preseason favorite in the MVC, with six first-place votes, matching Belmont. The men ranked second behind Drake, and the Braves received two first-place votes.
“I think the expectation on both sides is to win, and I think that that’s kind of been established here in the past,” Carlson said. “I think the women being ranked number one [in the MVC preseason poll] and tied with Belmont is a credit to the group. On the men’s side, I think we’re coming in as underdogs.”
Senior Abigail Hancock wants to see if the team can challenge for a conference championship after finishing second last year.
“I think we have a great team this year,” Hancock said. “We’re a lot healthier than we were last year. We’ve got a lot of good new recruits this year, so I think we have a great chance.”
In her junior season, Hancock finished eighth in the 2023 MVC Championship with a time of 21 minutes, 14.8 seconds, which was the fifth-fastest time by a Brave in conference championship history. She was named a first-team All-MVC and has a goal of repeating that.
Other names to know on the Women’s team are juniors Nadia Potgieter and Trixie Wraith. Potgeiter is coming off a stellar spring season as an All-MVC Honorable Mention, where she won the Western Illinois Alumni Cross Country Invitational and Bradley Intercollegiate. Potgeiter also placed 11th at the MVC Championship. Carlson complimented Wraith for her confidence entering the season and her progress.
“[Potgeiter] ran well over 5k and qualified for the NCAA first round,” Carlson said. “Last fall she dealt with some injury issues, so [she] never really quite got going at full strength.”
The Braves hope Potgeiter can pick up right where she left off at the end of last season.
Familiar faces will lead the men’s side with sophomore Jayde Rosslee and fifth-year senior Michael Rebello. They both finished top 10 at the MVC Championship and received All-MVC selections.
Freshman Travis Gaffney, a Canadian cross-country champion, will have an opportunity to shine as a newcomer on the team.
Rosslee had an outstanding freshman campaign with victories at the Western Illinois Alumni Cross Country Invitational and Bradley Intercollegiate. As for his upcoming season expectations, he’s looking to keep getting better, have fun and be the best that he can be for the team.
“Honestly, I think the best I can do is just keep working with Coach Carlson,” Rosslee said. “Trust his judgment, trust the process and keep going.”
Rosslee showed confidence that Carlson is doing great things for the current teams and the program’s future.
“I think Coach Carlson is doing a really great job,” Rosslee said. “He’s only been here [for] a year, but I think he’s building a really strong program… We will be one of the best running programs, at least in Bradley history.”
The Braves will begin their season on Aug. 30 at the Hawkeye Invite at the Ashton Cross Country Course in Iowa City, Iowa.
“It’s always interesting to see who rises to the occasion,” Carlson said. “Who outdoes what they’ve done in practice and then who comes in and needs to work on that mental and physical strength that it takes to run well on a given day… But ultimately, we’re going to come out of this weekend with more information than [what] we went in with.”