Michelle Matter '13 is one of the greatest long distance runners in Ripon College history. The school cross country record holder in the 6K with a time of 22:09, Matter also still holds seven school records for track & field (four indoor and three outdoor). An Academic All-American in both sports during her senior season, Matter qualified for the NCAA Division-III National Championships twice during her career, accomplishing that feat once in each sport.

"My Ripon College experience was life-changing. I made some of my closest lifelong friends on the track and cross country teams and a bunch of us still keep in touch and get together regularly," Matter said. "The bonds and memories that we formed during practice and races are incredibly valuable, and I wouldn't trade them for the world."

As a cross country runner, Matter was consistently one of the best student-athletes in the Midwest Conference from the day she stepped foot on Ripon's campus. She was a four-time All-State performer, earning First Team honors three times, which included a second-place finish among all individuals at the 2012 Wisconsin Private College Championships during her senior season. Matter also earned All-Conference honors three times during her career, finishing sixth, 10th, and 11th at the MWC Championships. When her career was said and done, Matter owned three of the top 10 times in school history, while also running a sub-24-minute time seven times during her career, which is more than anyone in program history.

"Michelle was as tough of an athlete as I've ever been around," former Ripon Head Cross Country and Track & Field Coach Robert Duley said. "She was a gifted runner, but it was her mental toughness that separated her from the rest of the competition. Her talent, toughness, and faith-driven focus to be the best came from her parents, who always supported her."

As great as her career was, Matter's most vivid memories don't come in the form of where she finished in a race or what times she ran. Instead, it's something bigger than herself that she remembers most about her Ripon College student-athlete experience.

"During my time at Ripon, I quickly realized that Red Hawk student-athletes support each other, and this was definitely the case when I qualified for Cross Country Nationals during my senior year. I can still see my teammates running across the course to cheer me on during Regionals, telling me who I needed to catch in order to qualify, then hollering like crazy to help me get there," Matter recalled. "Nationals was in Indiana that year and a group of my teammates drove all that way just to watch the meet and cheer me on, even bringing a Ripon College flag to make their presence known in a big way. Their support meant the world to me, and it reflected the sense of family that was and is still created among Ripon College student-athletes."

That moment was a microcosm of Matter's career, in which she appreciated everything along the way, leading up to her successful performances on a National level.

"Some of my fondest memories are just hanging out with my teammates during overnight track and cross country meets. We'd all pile into someone's hotel room to play cards and just enjoy each other's company," Matter said. "Under Coach Duley's direction, the cross country team even took a trip to Wisconsin Dells during Fall break one year where we had a blast running together around Mirror Lake and bonding with each other, while getting extra exercise by climbing stairs to the waterslides and walking around town to get ice cream."

As a track & field runner, Matter set and still holds school records in the Indoor Mile (5:11.00), Indoor 3K (10:19.97), Indoor 5K (17:37.54), Outdoor Steeplechase (10:28.84), Outdoor 5K (18:11.84), and Outdoor 10K (38:44.47), while also running a leg on Ripon's school record Distance Medley Relay team, along with Grace Winter, Arynn Martin, and Alaina Nesbitt (12:41.79). The 2013 conference champion in the Outdoor Steeplechase, Matter qualified for D-III Nationals in the event that same season, as she was named MWC Performer of the Meet at the 2013 MWC Outdoor Championships.

"Coaching Michelle was easy. I gave her structure and direction, and she did the rest," Duley said. "Not only did Michelle qualify for Nationals in the Steeplechase, but she did so with a stress fracture in her foot!"

As much as Coach Duley loved having Matter as part of his team for four years, Matter was just as appreciative of Coach Duley and his leadership during her time on each of his teams.

"Coach Duley was instrumental in my development as an athlete, student, and individual. During my four years, I experienced first-hand how much Coach Duley cares about his athletes and he aimed to provide an incredible Ripon College experience for everyone. Coach Duley, like many other Ripon coaches, really believed in the college's mission to provide a rich, personalized educational experience, and his kindness, flexibility, and student-focused nature of Ripon College allowed me to not only grow as an athlete, but also in my faith and musical interests as well," Matter said. "I was able to be part of the cross country and track teams while also participating in the College's symphonic wind ensemble and attending various church services and personal events. This was incredibly valuable to me as an individual, because I wasn't forced to choose just one path or area of interest to explore. Instead, Coach Duley and the Ripon College athletics department really supported students with diverse interests and encouraged growth in many areas of life. This contributed to a personalized athletic and educational experience like no other."

A native of Sussex, Wis., Matter graduated Phi Beta Kappa and summa cum laude with a degree in Communication and a minor in Psychology. She has written two research papers which have been published, both coming in 2013. The first, "Beer Commercials: A Contradiction in Communication," was published in the Midwest Journal of Undergraduate Research, while her paper entitled, "Gold, Silver, Bronze, Failure: The Marginalization of Fourth Place Olympians," was published in The Ripon College Journal of Ethics and Communication.

Upon graduation, Matter traveled to Russia to teach English and Communication at Tomsk Polytechnic University and two private English schools (English House and Interlang House of Languages), while also volunteering at a local church. She then spent three months in Germany as a short-term au-pair, before returning to the United States to join the workforce as a Communication Specialist and Events Coordinator at Simple Innovations near her hometown. She went on to earn her Master's degree in Communications Studies from Colorado State University.

"Competing as a student-athlete at Ripon helped me develop important life skills and a mentality that I still rely on to this day. My coaches always emphasized that we weren't just athletes — we were well-rounded student-athletes who are expected and encouraged to grow in many areas of our lives," Matter said. "Developing time management skills, staying motivated, and maintaining a high level of dedication in all areas of life were crucial for the success of the program. As a student-athlete, I was surrounded by a huge support network, which truly set us as students-athletes up for success. My experiences as a student-athlete are impossible to separate from the broader Ripon College experience, and the integrated nature of my four years as a Red Hawk truly made the entire college experience an outstanding one."


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