Her adjustments seem to have paid off, as Bush capped a breakthrough season with a fifth-place finish at the Nov. 19 NCAA championships, setting a school record for highest placement at the event.

Starting over the summer, the senior made a commitment to doing the little things, such as getting more sleep and increasing her nutrient intake.

“I (started to do) more consistent training and made better decisions,” she said.

The Wyoming, Mich. native said she’s grown more comfortable with the learning curve that eluded her in the past seasons — a change her coaches noticed as well.

“The most obvious change was that she came in a lot more fit and paid attention to detail,” associate head coach Rita Arndt-Molis said.

Bush, who entered the 2007 campaign coming off back-to-back top-10 finishes at the NCAA track championships, said she possessed all the tools to put together a top finish at the cross country finals.

Not only has she stayed dialed in throughout the season, Bush has developed a reputation for being mentally ready to compete.

“She has great poise and great perspective,” Arndt-Molis said. “She instinctively knows what to do in a race.”

In Bush’s case, exercising mental toughness also means blocking out adverse racetrack conditions.

“I don’t really freak out about it being rainy and get excited about muddy conditions if that’s what I have to run in,” Bush said.

The senior, who still has one year of eligibility left due to a medical redshirt she received sophomore year, recently earned All-American honors in addition to being named First Team All-Big Ten.

“I look at the season as a whole,” Bush said. “Ultimately you want to do well in the NCAAs, but it takes time to reach that level.”

Now Bush can set her sights on the upcoming track season, where she’ll look to continue her top-10 finishing assault at the NCAAs.

“It’s fun to set goals,” Bush said. “You just have to be ready to make it through things and react physically.”