Emma Wilson is coming back to the Hoosier State! After just 1 year with the Fighting Illini, Wilson has decided to take her talent from Illinois back to Indiana. Emma Wilson has decided to transfer schools, going from the University of Illinois to Huntington University. This is a big move as she will go from Division 1 athletics to NAIA, an uncommon move for talented athletes like herself.
Wilson wasted no time getting her name known at the collegiate level last fall competing at seven meets for the Illini, scoring points for the team at six of the meets including the NCAA Midwest Regional and NCAA Championships. In one of the biggest regular season NCAA XC meets, the John McNichols Invitational, Wilson ran 17:31 over 5K, which was good for 22nd. She capped off her freshman campaign at the national meet running 21:55 over 6K, finishing in 186th. The fighting Illini placed 22nd in the nation with 549pts.
We caught up with the soon to be Forester to chat about the decision to transfer and her future plans.
Wilson started by saying that the decision wasn't easy, "It was a really difficult decision. I went into college with a lot of mental struggles and I was extremely burned out on running. These issues made it really difficult for me to run well and adjust to college, I also put a lot of pressure on myself and really started to dislike running."
She sought out insight from friends and other athletes knew about transferring and what their opinions were on the situation. She did not want to make this so quickly without gathering more than just her own thoughts.
Wilson capped off her statement by saying "I decided that I needed to make a change to a smaller school where I can work on getting back to just enjoying running again and having a more balanced college experience."
The sophomore transfer will join the Foresters who are coming off a 10th place nationals finish last season, with the individual winner coming from their roster as well with Hannah Stoffel. This will be a major competition level shift for Wilson as well as she will be coming from competing her freshman year in the Big Ten, one of the most competitive conferences in the country. Her experience at the Division One level will help her in navigating the NAIA scene and likely become a top name in the athletic division. Wilson will be strong addition to the team and should help them get back to the national championships once again and potentially place higher than last year.
Related:
WATCH: Emma Wilson Earns US No. 1 In 3200 At SPIRE