After a two-week racing hiatus, the Cats are back this weekend to compete Saturday at the Pre-Nationals Invitational at the University of Louisville.

Coach ‘A Havahla Haynes said a couple of weeks of uninterrupted training has helped the Cats build their strength, stay healthy and mentally prepare for tough upcoming meets against other Big Ten competitors, like the Illini Open on Oct. 23 and the Big Ten Championships on Nov. 1.

“The past two weeks have been really good,” Haynes said. “The women have avoided sickness, avoided any type of major cold that’s been going around. They’ve gotten a little bit stronger and a little bit quicker.”

Even junior Jena Pianin, who has paced NU consistently this season, will continue to stay away from competition, skipping the meet this weekend to extend her training regimen going into Big Tens, which the Cats will host at the Sydney Marovitz Golf Course in Chicago.

Though Pianin’s absence will mean one fewer top-level time for the Cats, it will give her younger teammates the opportunity to move up into the top five and get used to scoring points and racing competitively at a higher level.

“I think it’s going to be a great opportunity for the rest of the members on the team to make an impact and develop their own ability to race within whatever race they’ve been placed in,” Haynes said.

Freshmen Hannah Anderson and Mary Orders are both expected to score points this weekend. Though they did not compete at the Notre Dame Invitational, Anderson and Orders placed fourth and fifth at the Roy Griak Invitational at the University of Minnesota in late September, only behind NU’s consistent top-three veterans, and Haynes expects the two freshmen to show improvement and post competitive times.

While Big Ten programs Michigan, Illinois and Purdue will compete in the seeded race, NU will race in the unseeded race as the only team from the Big Ten in that field. In the less competitive slot, Haynes said the Cats will focus on teams like San Fransisco, whom they struggled against at the Roy Griak Invitational, and will continue to race as an interactive unit, competing as a team rather than just as individuals.

“We’re going up against 41 other programs, so for us to make it into the top half would be a good sounding board,” Haynes said. “It means we’re being competitive and more competitive than we’ve been.”

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