What a difference a year makes. At this time a year ago, redshirt freshman Emily Brown couldn't even run. This year, she's setting the pace.

In the winter of 2002, while training for her senior track season at Nathan Hale High School in West Allis, Wis., Brown slipped on a patch of ice and sprained her left foot. Treating it like a minor injury, Emily continued running. A month passed but she still felt pain.

"Nothing showed up on the x-rays, but the pain didn't go away," said Brown. "I knew there had to be something else wrong."

Doctors confirmed her instincts. Further examinations indicated that Brown had an accessory navicular bone on both of her feet. When she rolled her ankle, the bone displaced, causing friction with her tendon. Because of the severity and unique nature of this injury, Brown was forced to sit out her senior track season. Coming off such a successful cross country season as the WIAA Division I runner-up with the fifth-fastest time on the state championship course in Wisconsin history, followed by her earning a scholarship with the University of Minnesota, Brown was frustrated by not being able to compete.

"I had hoped my senior track season was going to go just as well as cross country, if not better. I had a lot of goals, was excited about running at the U, and then all of the sudden, it was taken away from me."

In July of 2002, after her senior year concluded, Brown underwent surgery on her left foot. The access navicular bone was removed, the navicular bone was shaved down, and the tendon was reattached.

Brown came to her first year at Minnesota on crutches, carrying some feelings of doubt and anxiety along for the ride. "Surgery is scary because doctors warn you about the possibility of not being able to recover from it," said Brown. "I worried that maybe I wouldn't run as well as I had before."

During fall and into winter, Brown committed much of her time to cross training to maintain her cardiovascular endurance. A typical week for her during her rehab included: weight lifting, strengthening exercises, repeats in the pool, workouts on the elliptical machine, and two-hour bike rides.

Looking back, Brown can joke about her cross-training experience, "I haven't been on one (elliptical machine) this year and hope not to be. We're not friends."

By the time the 2003 outdoor track season came around, Brown was working out regularly with the rest of the distance team. Through Brown's dedication to workouts and time trials, she had overcome doubts and anxiety and was proving that she was prepared to compete at the Division I level.

During the summer, Brown was back to her normal mileage and routine. That was a crucial training time for her upcoming debut as a Golden Gopher.

Upon returning to school in the fall, Brown was ready to take on her first collegiate season of cross country. What she didn't count on was such a successful start.

"I aimed to make the traveling team, and week by week assess where I was, and each week, try to do better than the week before." Brown made an immediate impact on the success of the cross country team, finishing as their number-one runner in the first three races of the season.

Head coach Gary Wilson recognizes Brown's assets, "The thing that impresses me the most about Emily is how even-keeled she is. She is very mature and if she makes a mistake she simply admits it and moves on. She doesn't make excuses."

Brown has worked hard and it is in meets such as this weekend's Big Ten Championships that she receives her payoff. Last year, Brown wished her teammates good luck as they left for the meet. This year, she'll be one of the nine at the starting line.

For Brown, it is not necessarily the year that made a difference, but what she did in that year. Brown knew it would take hard work and commitment to regain her health and get back to her beloved sport of running. What she discovered along the way was it is those same things, hard work and commitment, that will make her a successful collegiate athlete.

Written by Annie Wells, a junior on the 2003 Golden Gopher women's cross country team.

What a difference a year makes. At this time a year ago, redshirt freshman Emily Brown couldn't even run. This year, she's setting the pace.

In the winter of 2002, while training for her senior track season at Nathan Hale High School in West Allis, Wis., Brown slipped on a patch of ice and sprained her left foot. Treating it like a minor injury, Emily continued running. A month passed but she still felt pain.

"Nothing showed up on the x-rays, but the pain didn't go away," said Brown. "I knew there had to be something else wrong."

Doctors confirmed her instincts. Further examinations indicated that Brown had an accessory navicular bone on both of her feet. When she rolled her ankle, the bone displaced, causing friction with her tendon. Because of the severity and unique nature of this injury, Brown was forced to sit out her senior track season. Coming off such a successful cross country season as the WIAA Division I runner-up with the fifth-fastest time on the state championship course in Wisconsin history, followed by her earning a scholarship with the University of Minnesota, Brown was frustrated by not being able to compete.

"I had hoped my senior track season was going to go just as well as cross country, if not better. I had a lot of goals, was excited about running at the U, and then all of the sudden, it was taken away from me."

In July of 2002, after her senior year concluded, Brown underwent surgery on her left foot. The access navicular bone was removed, the navicular bone was shaved down, and the tendon was reattached.

Brown came to her first year at Minnesota on crutches, carrying some feelings of doubt and anxiety along for the ride. "Surgery is scary because doctors warn you about the possibility of not being able to recover from it," said Brown. "I worried that maybe I wouldn't run as well as I had before."

During fall and into winter, Brown committed much of her time to cross training to maintain her cardiovascular endurance. A typical week for her during her rehab included: weight lifting, strengthening exercises, repeats in the pool, workouts on the elliptical machine, and two-hour bike rides.

Looking back, Brown can joke about her cross-training experience, "I haven't been on one (elliptical machine) this year and hope not to be. We're not friends."

By the time the 2003 outdoor track season came around, Brown was working out regularly with the rest of the distance team. Through Brown's dedication to workouts and time trials, she had overcome doubts and anxiety and was proving that she was prepared to compete at the Division I level.

During the summer, Brown was back to her normal mileage and routine. That was a crucial training time for her upcoming debut as a Golden Gopher.

Upon returning to school in the fall, Brown was ready to take on her first collegiate season of cross country. What she didn't count on was such a successful start.

"I aimed to make the traveling team, and week by week assess where I was, and each week, try to do better than the week before." Brown made an immediate impact on the success of the cross country team, finishing as their number-one runner in the first three races of the season.

Head coach Gary Wilson recognizes Brown's assets, "The thing that impresses me the most about Emily is how even-keeled she is. She is very mature and if she makes a mistake she simply admits it and moves on. She doesn't make excuses."

Brown has worked hard and it is in meets such as this weekend's Big Ten Championships that she receives her payoff. Last year, Brown wished her teammates good luck as they left for the meet. This year, she'll be one of the nine at the starting line.

For Brown, it is not necessarily the year that made a difference, but what she did in that year. Brown knew it would take hard work and commitment to regain her health and get back to her beloved sport of running. What she discovered along the way was it is those same things, hard work and commitment, that will make her a successful collegiate athlete.

Written by Annie Wells, a junior on the 2003 Golden Gopher women's cross country team.