Laura Nicholson (left) will compete for Ireland and Andrea Grove-McDonough will serve as a Team USA distance coach at the World University Games in Germany.
Laura Nicholson, Andrea Grove-McDonough to Represent Toledo at World University Games
7/18/2025 2:53:00 PM | Women's Track and Field
Nicholson to run 1500m for her native Ireland while Grove-McDonough to serve at Team USA distance coach
TOLEDO, Ohio – Toledo women's track & field student-athlete Laura Nicholson and Director of Cross Country and Track & Field Andrea Grove-McDonough will represent the program on the world stage at the FISU Summer World University Games in Germany next week.
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Nicholson will run for Team Ireland while Grove-McDonough will serve as the distance coach for Team USA. Grove-McDonough represented Toledo at the 2021 games, held in Chengdu, China in 2023.
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"I am so proud of Laura for earning this opportunity to represent Ireland and Toledo on the world stage," said Grove-McDonough. "She's more than capable of competing at this level and I can't wait to see what she does with this opportunity."
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Nicholson will run in the 1500m, where she qualified with a time of 4:07.17 at the Wake Forest Invitational in April 2025, marking the 17th-fastest time in NCAA history. Her time also qualifies for the World Championships 2025, which will be held in Tokyo in September.
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In her senior season, Nicholson was named the MAC Most Outstanding Track Performer in the indoor season, was a four-time MAC Track Athlete of the Week across indoor and outdoor competition and qualified for the NCAA East Regional for the second-straight season in the 1500m.
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Grove-McDonough has led Toledo to four-straight MAC cross country championships and is the four-time Coach of the Year for cross country. She led Toledo to four individual MAC outdoor championships in 2024, with two from Nicholson.
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The World University Games is one of the premier events on the world stage, drawing over 10,000 student-athletes from around the world. The event is held every two years and totals 18 sports including archery, artistic gymnastics, athletics (track & field), badminton, basketball, diving, fencing, judo, rhythmic gymnastics, swimming, taekwondo, tennis, table tennis, volleyball, and water polo.
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Nicholson will run for Team Ireland while Grove-McDonough will serve as the distance coach for Team USA. Grove-McDonough represented Toledo at the 2021 games, held in Chengdu, China in 2023.
Â
"I am so proud of Laura for earning this opportunity to represent Ireland and Toledo on the world stage," said Grove-McDonough. "She's more than capable of competing at this level and I can't wait to see what she does with this opportunity."
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Nicholson will run in the 1500m, where she qualified with a time of 4:07.17 at the Wake Forest Invitational in April 2025, marking the 17th-fastest time in NCAA history. Her time also qualifies for the World Championships 2025, which will be held in Tokyo in September.
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In her senior season, Nicholson was named the MAC Most Outstanding Track Performer in the indoor season, was a four-time MAC Track Athlete of the Week across indoor and outdoor competition and qualified for the NCAA East Regional for the second-straight season in the 1500m.
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Grove-McDonough has led Toledo to four-straight MAC cross country championships and is the four-time Coach of the Year for cross country. She led Toledo to four individual MAC outdoor championships in 2024, with two from Nicholson.
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The World University Games is one of the premier events on the world stage, drawing over 10,000 student-athletes from around the world. The event is held every two years and totals 18 sports including archery, artistic gymnastics, athletics (track & field), badminton, basketball, diving, fencing, judo, rhythmic gymnastics, swimming, taekwondo, tennis, table tennis, volleyball, and water polo.
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