Huskies Welcome Six Highly-Accomplished Transfers
September 13, 2018 | Cross Country, Track & Field
SEATTLE – A stellar group of six track and field athletes have arrived in Seattle over the past couple months to join the Husky program, bringing with them a wealth of championships and All-America honors, and seeking to add more at Washington.
The new Dawgs have combined to earn three NCAA individual or relay titles and twenty-one USTFCCCA All-America honors including thirteen First Team honors.
The group features four women: two-time NCAA pole vault champion Olivia Gruver from Kentucky, multiple All-American distance runners Katie Rainsberger and Lilli Burdon from Oregon, and 800-meter Pac-12 finalist Nicole Goecke from Oregon State. The two men coming aboard are Tanner Anderson and Mick Stanovsek, also from Oregon, who have combined for six All-America honors between them.
"We're thrilled to welcome a group of exceptionally talented student-athletes who are also gifted leaders, phenomenal students, and gritty competitors," said Maurica Powell, Washington's Director of Track & Field and Cross Country. "We are humbled by their individual decisions to come to Washington and help us move forward with our vision for the program."
Gruver can add quite a bit to Washington's historic strength in the pole vault. Working with Toby Stevenson over the past three years, Gruver has become one of the best vaulters in NCAA history. She became just the second woman to repeat as NCAA Outdoor pole vault champion this past June, and the first since 2009-10, as she cleared 14-11 in Eugene for the title. A native of Reisterstown, Maryland, Gruver made 15-3 ¾ during the 2018 indoor season, ranking her third in NCAA history indoors or out. She will have one season
Rainsberger led Oregon to the NCAA cross country team title with a fourth-place finish as just a freshman. She then went on to take third in the NCAA Indoor 3,000-meters and run on the third-place DMR and ended her freshman year taking fourth in the NCAA Outdoor 1,500-meter final. Rainsberger was the 2017 Pac-12 cross country runner-up, and was 16th at NCAAs a year ago. Coming out of Colorado Springs, Colo., she was the Gatorade Cross Country National Athlete of the Year, and holds PRs of 4:09.08 for 1,500-meters, 4:35.60 in the mile, and 9:01.21 in the 3,000-meters.
Burdon reached the top of the podium last year at NCAA Indoors as the anchor on the Oregon distance medley relay, battling to the line and leaning for the dramatic win by .03 seconds. She was also on the third-place DMR the previous year along with Rainsberger on a team that set the collegiate record. Burdon's first full cross country season last year resulted in a 21st-place finish and an All-America honor, and she earned her seventh All-America honor on the track last spring with a third-place finish at NCAA Outdoors in the 5,000-meters. Hailing from Auckland, New Zealand, Burdon will have one year of track and two for cross country available. She owns PRs of 4:11.19 for 1,500-meters, 4:32.30 for the mile, 8:59.18 for 3k, and 15:34.44 for 5,000-meters.
Strengthening the mid-distance group will be Goecke, who scored for the Beavers at the Pac-12 Championships last year at 800-meters. A Washington native from Brush Prairie, Goecke had a breakthrough 2018 season, dropping her 800-meters PR from 2:12.74 down to 2:06.59, the second-fastest in OSU history. Goecke qualified for the NCAA West Preliminaries and advanced through the first round to the quarterfinals. She has one full year of eligibility remaining.
Anderson, another Washingtonian from Spokane, was Oregon's top men's finisher at the 2017 NCAA Cross Country Championships, placing 41st. He was the Pac-12 10k runner-up on the track last year and qualified for the 2018 NCAA Indoor Championships in the 5,000-meters and was 13th in the 10k at the 2017 NCAA Outdoor meet. A winner of the Nike Cross Nationals in high school in 2014, Anderson has personal-best times of 13:43.74 for the 5k and 29:07.39 for the 10k. Anderson will have two years of track and one of cross country.
The final transfer, Stanovsek, is a four-time All-American, reaching the NCAA podium twice on the Duck DMR indoors, and reaching the 1,500-meter NCAA final outdoors this past spring. He has helped Oregon's DMR finish third in 2018 and fourth in 2017. He dropped down to 800-meters and was fifth in the Pac-12 final last year. After finishing his 2018 collegiate season in the 1,500-meter NCAA final, Stanovsek competed several times in Europe this summer, where he ran a mile PR of 3:56.90. The Cleveland, Ohio native also owns a 1,500-meter best of 3:39.82. Stanovsek has two full years available as a Dawg.
New Dawgs At A Glance
Tanner Anderson
Hometown: Spokane, Wash.
2x All-American
5000m PR: 13:43.74
10000m PR: 29:07.39
Lilli Burdon
Hometown: Auckland, New Zealand
7x All-American
NCAA DMR Champ
1500m PR: 4:11.19
Mile PR: 4:32.30
3000m PR: 8:59.18
5000m PR: 15:34.44
Nicole Goecke
Hometown: Brush Prairie, Wash.
NCAA 800m Quarterfinalist
800m PR: 2:06.59
Olivia Gruver
Hometown: Reisterstown, Md.
2x NCAA Pole Vault Champ
No. 3 NCAA Vaulter All-Time
Pole Vault PR: 15-3 3/4
Katie Rainsberger
Hometown: Colorado Springs, Colo.
5x All-American
NCAA XC Team Champ
1500m PR: 4:09.08
Mile PR: 4:35.60
3000m PR: 9:01.21
Mick Stanovsek
Hometown: Cleveland, Ohio
NCAA 1500m Finalist
1500m PR: 3:39.82
Mile PR: 3:56.90
The new Dawgs have combined to earn three NCAA individual or relay titles and twenty-one USTFCCCA All-America honors including thirteen First Team honors.
The group features four women: two-time NCAA pole vault champion Olivia Gruver from Kentucky, multiple All-American distance runners Katie Rainsberger and Lilli Burdon from Oregon, and 800-meter Pac-12 finalist Nicole Goecke from Oregon State. The two men coming aboard are Tanner Anderson and Mick Stanovsek, also from Oregon, who have combined for six All-America honors between them.
"We're thrilled to welcome a group of exceptionally talented student-athletes who are also gifted leaders, phenomenal students, and gritty competitors," said Maurica Powell, Washington's Director of Track & Field and Cross Country. "We are humbled by their individual decisions to come to Washington and help us move forward with our vision for the program."
Gruver can add quite a bit to Washington's historic strength in the pole vault. Working with Toby Stevenson over the past three years, Gruver has become one of the best vaulters in NCAA history. She became just the second woman to repeat as NCAA Outdoor pole vault champion this past June, and the first since 2009-10, as she cleared 14-11 in Eugene for the title. A native of Reisterstown, Maryland, Gruver made 15-3 ¾ during the 2018 indoor season, ranking her third in NCAA history indoors or out. She will have one season
Rainsberger led Oregon to the NCAA cross country team title with a fourth-place finish as just a freshman. She then went on to take third in the NCAA Indoor 3,000-meters and run on the third-place DMR and ended her freshman year taking fourth in the NCAA Outdoor 1,500-meter final. Rainsberger was the 2017 Pac-12 cross country runner-up, and was 16th at NCAAs a year ago. Coming out of Colorado Springs, Colo., she was the Gatorade Cross Country National Athlete of the Year, and holds PRs of 4:09.08 for 1,500-meters, 4:35.60 in the mile, and 9:01.21 in the 3,000-meters.
Burdon reached the top of the podium last year at NCAA Indoors as the anchor on the Oregon distance medley relay, battling to the line and leaning for the dramatic win by .03 seconds. She was also on the third-place DMR the previous year along with Rainsberger on a team that set the collegiate record. Burdon's first full cross country season last year resulted in a 21st-place finish and an All-America honor, and she earned her seventh All-America honor on the track last spring with a third-place finish at NCAA Outdoors in the 5,000-meters. Hailing from Auckland, New Zealand, Burdon will have one year of track and two for cross country available. She owns PRs of 4:11.19 for 1,500-meters, 4:32.30 for the mile, 8:59.18 for 3k, and 15:34.44 for 5,000-meters.
Strengthening the mid-distance group will be Goecke, who scored for the Beavers at the Pac-12 Championships last year at 800-meters. A Washington native from Brush Prairie, Goecke had a breakthrough 2018 season, dropping her 800-meters PR from 2:12.74 down to 2:06.59, the second-fastest in OSU history. Goecke qualified for the NCAA West Preliminaries and advanced through the first round to the quarterfinals. She has one full year of eligibility remaining.
Anderson, another Washingtonian from Spokane, was Oregon's top men's finisher at the 2017 NCAA Cross Country Championships, placing 41st. He was the Pac-12 10k runner-up on the track last year and qualified for the 2018 NCAA Indoor Championships in the 5,000-meters and was 13th in the 10k at the 2017 NCAA Outdoor meet. A winner of the Nike Cross Nationals in high school in 2014, Anderson has personal-best times of 13:43.74 for the 5k and 29:07.39 for the 10k. Anderson will have two years of track and one of cross country.
The final transfer, Stanovsek, is a four-time All-American, reaching the NCAA podium twice on the Duck DMR indoors, and reaching the 1,500-meter NCAA final outdoors this past spring. He has helped Oregon's DMR finish third in 2018 and fourth in 2017. He dropped down to 800-meters and was fifth in the Pac-12 final last year. After finishing his 2018 collegiate season in the 1,500-meter NCAA final, Stanovsek competed several times in Europe this summer, where he ran a mile PR of 3:56.90. The Cleveland, Ohio native also owns a 1,500-meter best of 3:39.82. Stanovsek has two full years available as a Dawg.
New Dawgs At A Glance
Tanner Anderson
Hometown: Spokane, Wash.
2x All-American
5000m PR: 13:43.74
10000m PR: 29:07.39
Lilli Burdon
Hometown: Auckland, New Zealand
7x All-American
NCAA DMR Champ
1500m PR: 4:11.19
Mile PR: 4:32.30
3000m PR: 8:59.18
5000m PR: 15:34.44
Nicole Goecke
Hometown: Brush Prairie, Wash.
NCAA 800m Quarterfinalist
800m PR: 2:06.59
Olivia Gruver
Hometown: Reisterstown, Md.
2x NCAA Pole Vault Champ
No. 3 NCAA Vaulter All-Time
Pole Vault PR: 15-3 3/4
Katie Rainsberger
Hometown: Colorado Springs, Colo.
5x All-American
NCAA XC Team Champ
1500m PR: 4:09.08
Mile PR: 4:35.60
3000m PR: 9:01.21
Mick Stanovsek
Hometown: Cleveland, Ohio
NCAA 1500m Finalist
1500m PR: 3:39.82
Mile PR: 3:56.90
Players Mentioned
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