TSR Collaboration
Nov 27, 201919 min
Updated: Jan 13, 2020
Written by Maura Beattie + Sam Ivanecky
Was not ranked the week before.
First number indicates how much the individual has moved in the rankings.
The second number indicates where they were ranked the week before.
Tutt had a great first showing at NCAA's. After winning the MAC and finishing 4th at the Midwest Regional Championships, Tutt had shown that she had enough potential to finish as a potential All-American. Unfortunately, Tutt fell mid-race in the mud, but got back up and finished in 50th. The Northern Illinois junior will be able to show what she is made of this track season and next fall.
Malaspina was the surprising top scorer for NAU with Taryn O’Neill having another off day at NCAA's. Malaspina finished just outside of All-American honors (42nd) in her first and only NCAA meet. The senior ran about as expected based on her 18th place finish at the Mountain regional meet and looks primed to set new personal bests during indoors and outdoors.
Williams had an off-day in Terre Haute where she finished 107th. The Ute dropped back 29 places in the last two kilometers, but that shouldn't tarnish the success that she has had throughout the entire season. Williams competed well throughout the fall and was instrumental in the resurgence of the Utah program. Next fall should see Williams put the pieces together and finally earn the coveted All-American honor.
Norris had been right on the edge of our rankings all season long and capped her season with an All-American finish to secure a spot in the top 50. Norris finished 39th, only three places behind teammate Maria Mettler, and helped propel Air Force to a surprising 8th place team finish. Only a junior, Norris should come into 2020 again on the bubble for All-American honors after a strong finish to her best cross country season to date.
Rice flew somewhat under the radar this season until the postseason. The UCLA Bruin was 48th at Nuttycombe, but she did not start to turn heads until the PAC-12 Championships. She was 17th at her conference meet behind a slew of talented Stanford, Washington, and Utah athletes. At the West Regional Championships, she secured an 8th place finish set her up nicely for NCAA's. Rice finished 37th in Terre Haute, moving up 25 spots in the final two kilometers to secure her first All-American honor.
Freix had high hopes coming into her first NCAA meet after back-to-back breakout runs at ACC's and the Southeast regional meet. She put herself in position early, coming through two kilometers in 58th, but faded to 95th by four kilometers and was not able to regain much ground in the final moments of the race.
The Virginia Tech senior ultimately finished 91st which was a disappointing end after being considered a fringe All-American heading into the weekend. Even so, based on her performances this fall, Freix looks set up well to run big personal bests on the track in her final collegiate seasons.
Nuttall ran a phenomenal race and helped New Mexico land on the podium. The Lobo had an average season leading up to NCAA's. She was 48th at Joe Piane, 77th at Nuttycombe, 5th at the Mountain West Championships, and 25th at her regional meet...all before her 35th place finish at Nationals. Nuttall moved up 25 places in the last two kilometers to take home her first All-American honor. Her finish this past weekend was 36 spots higher than her 2018 result.
Tank never really got herself into the race on Saturday and ended up finishing only 74th after looking like a contender for a top 40 finish during the regular season. The Utah junior still put together her best collegiate season yet which was highlighted by a 6th place finish in a deep field at the PAC-12 Championships. Tank could be a sleeper for indoor track as she comes into the season with personal bests of 9:16 for 3k and 16:07 for 5k.
Oakes had an off-day at Nationals when she finished 95th. Her final two kilometers saw her fade 29 spots, but if she had been on her game, Oakes could have challenged for a top 40 finish. Despite her NCAA performance, Oakes had a strong 2019 season. The Stanford junior was 30th at Nuttycombe, 8th at PAC-12’s, and 5th at the West Regional Championships. Oakes will have one more season to contend for a cross country All-American honor in 2020.
Nichols was one of the few runners to match her finish and ranking on Saturday, missing out on All-American honors by only one spot. The surprise star for Ohio State had never finished better than 47th at a regional meet prior to this year and was able to better that by six spots in a much stronger field at NCAA's. After her resounding success this season, Nichols will head into 2020 as one to watch next fall and should carry this momentum into the track season.
Hoj falls back in the rankings this weekend after her 56th place finish in Terre Haute. We had projected Hoj to finish in the top 40, but she still improved 30 spots from her 2018 NCAA finish. In the final two kilometers at Nationals, the Cougar senior fell back 19 places.
Aside from NCAA's, Hoj had a solid senior season for BYU and was instrumental in the team’s success. At the bigger meets, Hoj was 14th at Pre-Nationals, 5th at WCC's, and 7th at the Mountain regional meet.
Mettler was another woman who bounced in and out of the rankings this season before capping her season with an All-American finish. The Air Force junior was 36th at her first NCAA Championships to close out her best season yet. Mettler was only 24th in the region last fall, but made big improvements over the year and improved to 8th this season. She also jumped from 14th to 3rd at the Mountain West Championships and should be an integral part of a surging Air Force team in 2020.
Poe was consistent all fall for the Spartans and found herself walking away with her first cross country All-American honor. Over the course of four years, Poe went from 181st (2016), 99th (2017), 88th (2018), and 32nd (2019) at NCAA's during her collegiate career. In Terre Haute, Poe led Michigan State to a 6th place finish and over the course of the entire race, she was on the move. Although she may be out of cross country eligibility, the track season should be a good one for Poe.
After having her best season heading into NCAA's, Koskei ultimately fell short of her goals on Saturday where she finished 47th. Last fall, Koskei finished 35th in her first trip to NCAA's and came into the weekend looking like a top 30 runner if things went her way.
Despite missing out on All-American honors, Koskei still had a very strong 2019 which included a 7th place finish at Pre-Nationals and 3rd place finish in the Midwest region. Her personal best of 16:05 in the 5k should be in jeopardy this indoor season.
It was an off-day for Florida’s Pascoe at NCAA's as the senior finished 86th. For someone who had placed within the top seven of every race this season, 86th was not expected. Pascoe was in good position through the four kilometers, but over the last two kilometers, the Florida Gator faded back 54 spots.
Even so, her early-season results should not be overlooked. Pascoe won her first three meets, finished 7th at SEC’s, and was runner-up in the South region. Even though she is done with cross country, the track seasons should see Pascoe bounce back with vengeance.
Although Drop didn’t quite have the day she was likely expecting, she managed to keep things together enough to hang on for a 40th place finish and earn All-American honors in her final collegiate cross country season.
It was nice to see Drop finish off her year well after having similar marks in 2018, but ultimately fading to 77th at Nationals. The Georgia senior ends her cross country career having earned All-American honors twice (‘17, ‘19) and should be a contender in the 5k comes the indoor track season.
Morenaite started the fall ranked, but she dropped out after not competing until mid-October at Pre-Nationals. Her 2nd place finish went unnoticed because she competed in the “B Race,” but that race prepared her to contend for a top 40 finish come late November.
At the MAAC Championships, the Iona junior was 1st and then backed that performance up with a 5th place finish on the roads at the Northeast Regional Championships. Morenaite entered NCAA's unranked and leaves boasting a 24th place finish and a TSR #34 ranking.
Hertenstein didn’t quite match expectations on Saturday, but she still ran a solid race and earned her first collegiate All-American honors with a 31st place finish.
Hertenstein made big strides at every race this season (compared to last year), improving 39 places at Nuttycombe, 26 places at BIG 10's, 41 place at Great Lakes and 96 at NCAAs. Only a sophomore, Hertenstein looks to have a lot of potential over the next two to three years at Indiana and is set up well for a big track season.
Fuller had a solid season leading up to NCAA's, but November 23rd was her only a subpar day in Terre Haute. The Michigan State ace was expected to challenge others for a top 20 finish, but she ended up finishing 34th overall. Her 34th place finish may have been disappointing after placing 3rd at B1G 10’s and 2nd in the Great Lakes region, but it still earned the Spartan All-American honors for the second consecutive year.
Noe was one of the bigger surprises of 2019 and finished as the fourth freshman at the NCAA meet, coming across the line in 30th place. The redshirt freshman quietly put together quite a season, finishing 24th at Pre-Nationals and winning the BIG Sky Championships. After putting together a 5th place fun at the Mountain regional meet, Noe proved that she was a legitimate contender for All-American honors and backed up that run with a great day at NCAA's. Noe could be a future contender if she can continue to build on this season.
Olivere entered the rankings after her win at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships and she did not disappoint at NCAA's. The Villanova sophomore was 178th in 2018 at Nationals, but this year she shot up in the results to 29th. Her 68th place finish at Nuttycombe does not reflect her latter season results, such as her win at the BIG East Championships. Olivere will be back next season and will surely see more improvement.
Despite almost matching her ranking with a 25th place run, VanderLende dropped in our final rankings due to performances from other top runners. VanderLende’s first season in the NCAA was nothing but a resounding success. Her lowest finish outside of NCAA's was a 6th place run at BIG 10's, and she posted top five marks at both Pre-Nationals and John McNichols.
VanderLende was a very strong track runner in high school and owns personal bests of 4:41 for 1600 meters and 9:53 for two miles. Those times, along with her cross country season, should put her in the conversation for a potential national meet qualifier come the indoor track season.
Steelman’s season did not see her compete at some of the top meets in the nation, but that does not mean she did not post strong results before NCAA's. The Wofford junior began the cross country season after a stellar ending to her outdoor track season.
Her first three meets of the fall saw her finish 1st (twice) and 2nd (once). At the Southeast Regional Championships, Steelman picked up a 5th place finish behind an NC State duo and Furman duo. In Terre Haute, she earned her first cross country All-American honor after placing 23rd.
With track starting soon, Steelman will get the chance to prove why she is one of the nation’s best yet again.
After two years of finishing just outside the top 40, Davis put together a great day and finished 26th to close out her collegiate cross country career with All-American honors. The Badger senior was a key part of Wisconsin’s team success this fall and provided a great 1-2 duo with Alicia Monson.
Heading into track, Davis should continue to be thinking about All-American honors after finishing 8th in the 10k last spring.
Richardson made the biggest jump in our rankings this week and rightfully so. The San Francisco junior ran in her second NCAA meet and picked up a 19th place finish in Terre Haute.
In October, Richardson won the “B Race” at Pre-Nationals and then finished 4th behind three BYU women at WCC's. Her 4th place showing at the Mountain regional meet further solidified that Richardson was ready for something big at Nationals.
Chmiel was the second true freshman in the field behind Melany Smart of Washington. In her first national championship meet, Chmiel exceeded expectations and finished 22nd overall, thanks to a strong middle two kilometers where she moved up from 38th to 24th. The NC State freshman was the top American recruit coming into 2019 (depending on who you ask) and showed why on Saturday. With Henes graduating after track season, Chmiel will be looked at to lead am NC State team that could be a podium contender in 2020 yet again.
Arkansas’s Viljoen earned her first cross country All-American honor after finishing 28th in Terre Haute over the weekend. Viljeon is best known for her speed in the 1500 meters, but this fall she proved that she has range up to the 6k. The Razorback produced five top 10 finishes before NCAA's, highlighted by a 9th place finish at Nuttycombe and a 4th place finish at SEC’s. Viljeon’s 28th place finish at Nationals provided Arkansas with key points necessary to beat out BYU for the team title.
Although Jennings had a fairly strong 2018, she came into this season a bit underrated as a result of finishing 141st at NCAA's last year. Things quickly turned around this season as she finished as Furman’s top runner at a handful of competitions and finished inside the top 10 of every race except NCAA's. She capped off her senior season with a 20th place finish at Nationals which was 40 places higher than her next best finish (from 2016).
A national qualifier in the steeplechase, Jennings has never made it to the Indoor National Championships, but could be a dark horse after her strong fall season.
Clark really came on strong this season for Arkansas and helped her team win multiple races and titles. The Razorback senior earned her first career cross country All-American honor after placing 21st in a deep field.
Earlier in the season, Clark had not finished outside the top seven. She was 7th at Nuttycombe and 5th at SEC’s, always finishing near teammate Viljeon. Her showing at Nationals gave Arkansas 16 points and those 16 points helped hold off BYU from ruining the Razorbacks’ title dreams.
Last fall, Somers was 137th at NCAA's after finishing in the top 10 at only one meet. This year, she placed 18th and finished in the top 10 at every meet except NCAA's. The Oklahoma State junior looked like a completely different runner from 2018 to 2019 and had an incredible season which was highlighted by runner-up finishes at BIG 12's and the Midwest regional meet. Based on this fall, Somers could be a dark horse to finish inside the top 10 next season if she continues to stay healthy.
All I have to say is “Wow!” Born’s 16th place finish in Terre Haute was a 170 place improvement from where she finished last fall at NCAA's. The Cowgirl did not begin her season until October’s Chile Pepper Festival, so she had plenty of time to get into racing form.
Born’s 8th place finish at Pre-Nationals catapulted her into our rankings and she later made her presence known after finishing 3rd at BIG 12’s. For only being a sophomore, Born has two more chances to improve upon her 16th place showing from Saturday.
If I had to make two bets heading into NCAAs, they would have been that 1) Anna Rohrer would finish top 20 and 2) Rohrer would lead the race at some point. She did both - leading the race through two kilometers and coming across the line in 17th. The Notre Dame senior has been one of the most consistent runners over the past four years, finishing near the top 10 of every race she has run.
The last time Rohrer ran indoors was 2017 where she finished 3rd in the 5k. With nothing to lose this track season, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Rohrer run gutsy from the front and take a swing at her 15:29 personal best.
Rainsberger was four-for-four in cross country All-American honors. The Washington senior’s 33rd place finish in Terre Haute was further back than expected, not only for the individual, but also for the team. Prior to NCAA's, Rainsberger had steadily been moving forward in our rankings.
Even so, her early season results should not be forgotten because Rainsberger did finish 6th at Pre-Nationals, 4th at PAC-12’s, and 6th at the West Regional Championships.
Heading into NCAA's, it was challenging to know exactly what to think of Hurta. She had finished around 10th at every race except Pre-Nationals where she had a stellar day to finish 3rd. Was she a top 10 contender at NCAA's? Based on Saturday, the short answer was no.
Hurta finished 38th, just good enough to go four-for-four on All-American honors in cross country over her collegiate career. Hurta was inside the top 30 heading into the last two kilometers but dropped 10 spots before finishing in 38th.
The redshirt senior has never run an individual event at the Indoor National Championships, but after running 2:00 in the 800 meters while competing unattached last spring, she could be a major contender this season.
Logue really redeemed herself after her 25th place finish at Nuttycombe. In the postseason, Logue posted solid results at BIG 12’s, as well as the regional and national meets. Logue finished 15th on Saturday and pick up her first All-American honor in cross country.
Carnahan put everything together when it mattered most. The Furman senior placed 20th at NCAA's a year ago, but didn’t look quite as strong when she started this fall. For much of the season, Carnahan was finishing as the #2 Paladin behind Gabrielle Jennings.
Luckily for Carnahan, she was able to put together her best race of the season on Saturday and secure her best NCAA finish by crossing the line in 13th place. It was a stellar way for the senior to end her collegiate cross country career as was an essential part of Furman’s surprise 9th place team finish.
The “Top True Freshman” award in the NCAA goes to Smart after her 12th place showing in Terre Haute. Smart was consistent all fall, posting four top five finishes in her first year in the NCAA. At Nationals, Smart was only four seconds shy of the top 10. The Washington freshman will be one to watch as her collegiate career continues. If she can continue along this path, big things could happen.
One year after missing All-American honors by only four places, Lawson put together a run that left no doubt that she had arrived as a force in the NCAA. The Stanford junior placed 11th on Saturday and capped off a huge 2019 that saw her make big jumps at every meet this season. Stanford came into the season as a podium contender, but unknowns surrounding everyone outside of O’Keeffe left us wondering how the Cardinal would fare this fall. Lawson was a huge reason for the team’s success and leaves her as a dark horse heading into 2020.
For a runner that does not have a teammate near her, Kimeli does well on her own and at NCAA's, she picked up her first cross country All-American honor. The Auburn junior placed 14th at Nationals after a strong season where she mixed it up with the top women in the nation.
Kimeli was a contender for a top 10 finish after four top three finishes prior to the Big Dance. Her 14th place result was a 92 spot improvement from 2018 and Kimeli still has another year of eligibility.
Henes capped off a stellar season with a 10th place finish at NCAA's to improve six places from 2018. During her 2019 season, Henes won three different meets and finished inside the top 10 at two others. Her only finish outside the top 10 was a 14th place result at Nuttycombe.
Despite her success in cross country, Henes has only been an All-American once (indoor 5k in 2018) on the track. She qualified for Nationals in both the 3k and 5k last year and looks to have a good shot at repeating that feat in 2020.
In her final cross country season, Kurgat picked up her fourth All-American honor in Terre Haute. In 2015, while competing for Liberty, Kurgat was 12th at NCAA's. At New Mexico, Kurgat finished 1st in 2017, 5th in 2018, and now 9th in 2019.
Although she was not able to replicate her 2017 individual championship, Kurgat was a part of three podium finishes for the Lobos. Her 2019 season only saw her falter at Nuttycombe with a 18th place finish, but she bounced back well with two runner-up performances at her conference and regional meets.
Donaghu’s lowest finish at any meet this fall was her 8th place at NCAA's this past weekend. The Stanford junior made one of the biggest jumps between 2018 and 2019 of any runner out there and was a key factor for Stanford getting on the podium. After only finishing in the top 20 in one race in 2018, Donaghu opened this fall with a huge 6th place run at John McNichols and only got better. She was runner-up at the PAC-12 Championships and should be a contender in cross country next fall.
Wayment ran the race of her life in Terre Haute and came away with a 5th place finish in an extremely front-heavy NCAA field. The BYU senior was 23rd in 2018 and greatly improved upon that finish. Wayment consistently put up strong performances meet after meet, never finishing outside the top four. She crossed the line with two teammates and helped lead the Cougars to a 2nd place team finish, only six points away from the team title.
Orton had been one of the biggest mysteries in NCAA cross country over the past two years. In 2018, she ran two races, finishing runner-up in both meets to teammate Erica Birk-Jarvis. In 2019, she ran a total of three meets leading up to NCAA's - winning all three. However, she sat out of notable meets during this season including Pre-Nationals and the Mountain Regional Championships, leaving us to wonder why she wasn’t racing.
Orton returned to the lineup for BYU at NCAA's and put together her best Nationals performance since joining BYU, finishing 7th to help put BYU back on the podium.
Orton will be a name to watch on the track after qualifying for NCAAs in the mile/1500 in 2019.
Birk-Jarvis never finished higher than 6th this fall and earned her third cross country All-American honor. The senior crossed the line in 6th place on Saturday, sandwiched in between two teammates, Wayment and Orton. Birk-Jarvis used the Mountain Regional Championships as a tempo run and did enough to qualify for NCAA's before putting all her energy into Nationals. She has been a steady star low-stick for this team for a few years now.
While O’Keeffe was only 27th at NCAA's, she only drops one spot as it was known that she raced with some degree of back injury.
The Stanford senior earned All-American honors in each of her four cross country seasons with her best finish coming in 2017 when she was 13th. Prior to her injury, O’Keeffe looked like a dark horse candidate to challenge Weini Kelati and Alicia Monson for the individual title. She finished just back of that pair at Nuttycombe earlier this season and then crushed a strong PAC-12 field a couple weeks later.
Had she been healthy, Stanford likely would have come very close to taking down Arkansas and BYU on Saturday. Hopefully O’Keeffe is able to recover quickly and return for indoors with no lasting effects.
From 82nd at NCAAs in 2018 to 3rd in 2019, Izzo made great strides after transferring from Cal Poly to Arkansas. Izzo was instrumental in helping the Razorbacks earn their first cross country NCAA team title. The senior came out of nowhere this fall and ended her final cross country race with a bronze medal. She was two seconds shy of 2nd place, but 3rd is still a great result for an athlete who was essentially unknown before the season started.
The only runners to beat Werner this fall were teammate Katie Izzo and the two women ranked ahead of her. The Arkansas senior had a very solid year in 2018, but really made a name for herself last spring.
After finishing 4th in the 10k, Arkansas was in a tight team battle with only the 5k and 4x400 left to run. Werner ran possibly the best race of her life to finish runner-up to Dani Jones with only a second separating the two.
This fall she continued her dominance and collected three individual wins en route to a 4th place finish at NCAA's which also helped Arkansas take the team title. It will be very exciting to see what Werner can do during indoors and outdoors.
Monson was in the mix right from the beginning and was primed to contend for the individual title. However, when Kelati threw in her mid-race surge, Monson did not follow and began to race for 2nd. The Wisconsin senior held off Katie Izzo and was crowned runner-up. Monson had a great senior season, finishing in the top two on five occasions, losing only to Kelati.
The New Mexico junior claimed her first cross country title on Saturday, closing out a year that was only 9.4 seconds away from perfection. Kelati won all but one race this season, finishing runner-up to Alicia Monson at Nuttycombe back in October.
Outside of that race, Kelati looked absolutely dominant and crushed her competition in the Mountain West conference and the Mountain regional by almost a minute each. There’s a chance she goes professional after this year, but if not, she will be the easy favorite to win it again in 2020.
Mikayla Malaspina (Northern Arizona)
Mahala Norris (Air Force)
Christina Rice (UCLA)
Hannah Nuttall (New Mexico)
Maria Mettler (Air Force)
Jeralyn Poe (Michigan State)
Egle Morenaite (Iona)
Hannah Reinhardt (Albany)
Kathryn Munks (Penn State)
Susan Ejore (Oregon)
Lauren Gregory (Arkansas)
Maudie Skyring (Florida State)
Tabor Scholl (Colorado)
Maddy Denner (Notre Dame)
Anastasia Korzenowski (Minnesota)
Holly Bent (Colorado)
Jenna Magness (Michigan State)
Samantha Drop (Georgia)
Allison Pray (Southern Utah)
Allison McGrath (Illinois)
Paige Hofstad (UNC)
Kathryn Munks (Penn State)
Susan Ejore (Oregon)
Lauren Gregory (Arkansas)
Maudie Skyring (Florida State)
Tabor Scholl (Colorado)
Maddy Denner (Notre Dame)
Alissa Niggemann (Wisconsin)
Anna West (Michigan)
Alison Pray (Southern Utah)
Dominique Clairmonte (NC State)
Sarah Schmitt (Indiana)
Kelby Anderson (North Dakota State)
Caitlin Klopfer (Tulsa)
Lotte Black (Rhode Island)
Lynsie Gram (Michigan State)
Lucinda Crouch (Wisconsin)
Adva Cohen (New Mexico)
Hannah Reinhardt (Albany)
Yukino Parle (Boise State)
- Remember, this is a gauge of how an athlete performed throughout the season. This is not a reflection of the National Championships results nor is this supposed to emulate any kind of prediction. There were many tough decisions that we had to make when establishing the order of these rankings.