Dec. 11, 2006

Detroit, Mich. - The 2006 Wayne State women's cross country team finished the season with five top-five finishes and six top-10s.

Leading the squad was sophomore Rachelle Malette (Windsor, Ontario/Holy Names), who finished in first place three times: the Tommy Titan Invitational, the Paul Short Invitational, and the Michigan Intercollegiate. Prior to the 2006 season, the two-year runner had never won a race, let alone three. She led the team in every race.

The Warriors started rough, a last-place finish at the UP Collegiate Opener on Sept. 1, but rolled from then on, finishing in the top-five in the team's next four races, including a first-place completion at the Tommy Titan Invitational the following weekend.

Wayne State ended the season with two top-10 finishes at the GLIAC Championships (7th) and the NCAA Great Lakes Regional (t9th).

Earning a spot at Nationals, Malette came in 14th place, the second-best finish in Wayne State women's cross country history behind Shelley Vickery's 12th-place finish in 2002 and earning her first All-America honor.