Editor’s note: The Daily Illini sports desk sits down Sunday nights and decides which Illinois athlete or coach is our Illini of the Week. Student-athletes and coaches are evaluated by individual performance and contribution to team success.

Illinois men’s cross-country runners Jannis Toepfer and Hunter Mickow don’t get caught up in the moment.

For the season’s biggest meets, the upperclassmen simply go about their routines and clear their minds to succeed in the most crucial races. It is as if the 10K races at the Big Ten Championships and the NCAA Midwest Regional are just another Wednesday afternoon workout at the Armory.

“There is no question that we understand the importance of doing well at the biggest meets of the season,” Toepfer said. “With that said, the pressure of the season’s most important meets doesn’t really cross my mind. Once I get running, I’m only thinking about what I have to do to finish strong.”

Mickow added to his teammate’s sentiment: “I don’t worry about anything when I’m out on the course, I try not to get stressed out. All I do is just run and do what I know. Pressure doesn’t get to me, I guess.”

Maintaining focus on the task at hand and keeping a worry-free mindset has allowed the two to become the team’s top-two runners. Last Friday in Springfield, Mo., the duo’s tenacious focus allowed them to run a successful 10K race in the regionals, sending them to their first national meet. This marked the second consecutive year in which Illinois sent two runners to the NCAA Championships.

Mickow recorded the highest finish for an Illinois runner in a regional meet since 2007, when Trent Hoerr won the race. The senior led the way for the Illini with a sixth-place finish last Friday — the fifth time this season Mickow led the team. He has finished first for the Illini at the Wisconsin adidas Invitational and the Notre Dame Invitational, and second at the Big Ten Championships.

Toepfer finished 13th overall at regionals. Unlike Mickow, who was expected to be one of Illinois’ top runners, Toepfer emerged as one of the team’s lead runners. “I have gained a lot of confidence since the season began,” the graduate student from Germany said. “I know I can be near the top in every race I run. I no longer feel awkward running with the leaders, since now I know I belong there.”

The duo’s performances earned them all-region honors and a trip to Saturday’s NCAA Championships in Louisville, Ky.

“The success that Hunter and Jannis had at the regionals is a huge step forward for us as a program,” head coach Jake Stewart said. “They have both trained extremely hard all season and have grown tremendously. The fact that they were able to build a solid lead and sustain it throughout the race at regionals is a testament on how they have grown since August.”

The modest and soft spoken Mickow said he sees sending two runners to nationals as “not a big deal” and something most Big Ten programs should consistently do. He added that he wants to redeem the team after it barely missed out on nationals.

“It was really disappointing to find out that we wouldn’t make it as a team. We definitely thought we deserved it,” he said. “Obviously, I want to do well for the sake of the team, but I am just as motivated as I would be for any other meet.”

For the duo, running in the big races is no new challenge or experience. It’s something both have been through many times over the last few months. After beginning their collegiate long-distance running careers in a unconventional way — Mickow as a walk-on and Toepfer as a foreign-exchange student — they know what it has taken to earn a trip to the season’s biggest meet.

Come Saturday, the pressure won’t faze them.

Dan can be reached at [email protected].