DEXTER — The stinging cold weather and slippery conditions at the EMU Classic weren't ideal for personal records.

But redshirt sophomore Rachel Severin knew the course too well to be bothered. The Chelsea High School graduate, returning to her high school home course, ran a personal best 5,000-meter time of 18:00 to win the meet for the Wolverines.

“I actually kind of like running in weather like this,” Severin said. “After you’re going and warm, it makes things a little more interesting when you have to think about not slipping in the mud.”

The No. 8 Michigan women’s cross country team returned to the Hudson Mills Metropark course for the second time this year to close its regular season in the non-scoring meet. Freshman Mary Grace Pellegrini finished second overall (18:18) and redshirt freshman Amanda McKenzie rounded out the top five (18:27). The Wolverines took six of the top ten spots.

Running a relaxed first mile, Severin, Pellegrini and McKenzie were joined by Michigan State and unattached runners in the front pack. Severin broke away from the field before the second mile. Deep in the trails and mud puddles for the second mile, without another runner or spectator around, she needed to stay sharp on the familiar course.

“The part where it’s really easy to fall asleep is back in the woods, especially when you’re by yourself,” Severin said. “The whole race was mostly just an exercise in mental focus. (I was) continuously pushing and not relaxing, even though I was by myself.”

Pellegrini, showing promise and confidence as a first-year runner, moved up to the front of the remaining pack. McKenzie, also running on her high school home course, tightly held on to her place at the edge of the pack.

Even in a non-scoring event, the Wolverines raced like a championship was on the line against No. 9 Michigan State. Michigan redshirt sophomore Alysha Valencia came out of the trail and caught fire on the finishing straightaway to catch a Spartan in the last 50 meters.

“She had a good kick,” Michigan coach Mike McGuire said. “She better have a good kick when she sees somebody in green. Cross country is winning races within a race, so she didn’t win the race but she won that race within the race. That is the essence of the sport.”

Like the Michigan Open — the Wolverines’ first meet of the season, which was also held at the Hudson Mills Metropark — the competition at the EMU Classic was largely between teammates. With nine slots available for next Sunday's Big Ten Championships, two spots remained open to the runners that were tested in the tough but typical cross country conditions.

“We’re sorting things out with this race,” Severin said. “Whoever steps on the line at Big Tens out of this group will be ready, because we’ve all had such a strong group together.”