Disanza leads Badgers back to NCAA meet

BY AJ HARRISON
UW Athletic Communications

MADISON, Wis. – Two years ago, Wisconsin's Sarah Disanza blasted into the NCAA cross country scene, finishing second at the 2014 NCAA Cross Country Championship in Terre Haute, Indiana, to lead the Badgers to their best team finish in nearly a decade.

Less than two weeks later, Disanza broke the American junior women's 5000 meters record with a Big Ten record time of 15 minutes, 20.57 seconds to earn USATF Athlete of the Week Honors.

This week, Disanza leads the No. 25 Badgers back to Terre Haute for the 2016 NCAA Cross Country Championship. But many things have changed for the Wantage, New Jersey, native.

Since her historic performance in December of 2014, Disanza has dealt with multiple injuries that have caused her to miss both the 2015 outdoor track and cross country seasons and the 2016 indoor track season.

Those injuries stopped Disanza from lacing up her racing shoes until late October. Now back racing, she has shined for UW in two later races this season. She finished 24th at the 2016 Big Ten Cross Country Championship, her first cross country race since 2014, before taking 12th at the 2016 NCAA Great Lakes Regional.

"It's been a long and bumpy road," Disanza said. "But I think it has really made me appreciate not only the sport, but being able to get out and run with everyone on the team. So each race, I look at it in a completely different light now. I'm so thankful for each one that I'm able to get out and do. I put that much more heart and effort into each and every race that I actually have the privilege of running now."

Over the last 18 months, Disanza has adjusted many different aspects of her life on her road to recovery.

"I've really taken a step back and looked at what was really important," Disanza said. "Whether it was in my training, in my diet, in my recovery techniques, to truly optimize myself in any way, trying to find any other weaknesses and kind of shake those out.

"So now I'm to the point where I'm not quite where I was fitness-wise yet. I'm still just getting back into running, but I know that the muscle memory is there. I still have just as much determination and I'm going to just have to run that much tougher so that I can get back to where I was before."

In addition to her lifestyle changes, Disanza has evolved into a leader and a team player for the young Badgers, who have only three runners that have raced at the NCAA meet.

"It takes someone with an incredible heart to see herself through a situation like Sarah's," assistant coach Jill Miller said. "It was not easy, but her whole goal was to come back and contribute to the team. It had nothing to do with herself individually. She sat down with me earlier this season and said her only goal was to contribute to the team score.

"It wasn't to go out to win a Big Ten or NCAA title, that wasn't the focus. She was able to take herself out of it and see what the team needed out of her. That isn't just by her point score, but with her leadership, which we needed more than anything with such a young group."

After missing the team's first three meets of the year, Disanza has been the second Badger across the line in both postseason competitions. She finished behind redshirt freshman Amy Davis at the Big Ten meet before crossing the line just seconds after true freshman Alicia Monson at the regional competition.

"I can say with 100 percent certainty that the young guns like Amy and Alicia would never have run as well last Friday if it wasn't for Sarah Disanza," Miller said. "That came through practices, through her teaching them certain things about training, about recovery, about how to make it all work.

"At the end of the day, Sarah realized what it took to be a leader and what it took for her to be healthy over a sustained period of time to get herself back."

The Badgers were able to put together their best meet of the season at the 2016 NCAA Great Lakes Regional, as UW topped then-No. 13 Eastern Michigan and No. 22 Michigan State to finish third as a team. The third-place finish helped UW earn its 27th appearance at the NCAA meet.

"It was really incredible that we were all able to click on the same day," Disanza said. "We have been doing a really great job with feeding off of each other's energy. So if one of the girls in our group is feeling it, then they are really able to help motivate everyone else that's running around them. Just pull them along and make sure that everyone could really get 100 percent out of themselves."

One of three upperclassmen on UW's roster heading to Saturday's national championship, Disanza's main goal is to help the Badgers end their season on a high note.

"I think we are capable of a top-15 finish, especially after the showing that we had at the regional," Disanza said. "I think our team has a lot of potential and that we still haven't peaked yet.

"We are going to be tough and competitive with some of the top teams in the country."

The race starts at 10 a.m. CT in Terre Haute and will be live streamed on FloTrack Pro.

University of Wisconsin Athletics

Disanza leads Badgers back to NCAA meet

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