TSR Collaboration
Dec 27, 20208 min
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Written by: Sam Ivanecky
Oklahoma State has long been known as a middle-distance powerhouse in the NCAA. Runners such as Kaela Edwards and Sinclaire Johnson are just two of the many talents to recently come through a program that is home to current national-caliber distance talents such as Molly Born and Taylor Somers.
And sure enough, sticking with what has worked, the Cowgirls are bringing in a talented recruiting class that focuses on that same middle-distance success.
Of the seven recruits in this 2020 class, four women have run 2:08 or faster for 800 meters. Of those four, Sivan Auerbach and Stephanie Moss are the most likely to have an immediate impact for Oklahoma State.
Auerbach has run 2:07 (800) and 4:25 (1500), respectively, and was the Israeli national champion in cross country. Not only that, but she also has experience in international competition, placing 8th in the 2017 IAAF U18 World Championships in the 800 meters.
Coupled with her success in both disciplines, Auerbach should find herself immediately competing for a lineup spot behind Somers and Born in cross country as well as potentially emerging as a top scorer on the track at a meet like the BIG 12 Championships.
Stephanie Moss is another name who should immediately come up when talking about this Oklahoma State recruiting class. The Great Britain athlete won the 800 meters at the English U20 Indoor Championships this past February and holds a personal best of 2:08 in the event.
Her 1500 personal best of 4:30 is another strong time that should translate well to the university level. Although Moss does not have the same cross country success of Auerbach, this Oklahoma State program has shown that they can translate middle distance success to the grass. Most middle distance oriented programs can't say the same.
Along with Auerbach and Moss, the Oklahoma State women have also brought in Mackenzie Michael and Lilly Lavier, two youngsters who have run 2:08 for 800 meters and could provide added depth to relay lineups.
It’s likely that those women will need a season or two before emerging as potential national qualifiers, but they do add to a deep talent pool for events such as the DMR. Plus, if we're thinking that one or two of these women only need a year or two qualify for the NCAA Championships, then the Oklahoma State coaching staff should feel very happy about the position they are in.
Now, admittedly, none of the incoming recruits have had overwhelming success on the cross country course. In fact, none of the seven have broken 18:00 for 5000 meters in cross country and outside of Auerbach, none have had any substantial results on a national level.
This isn’t to say they will not have success in the NCAA, but rather it will likely take a couple of developmental seasons to see where they land. It is more likely that this group of seven (Auerbach, Moss, Michael, Lavier, Molly Humes, Erin Donohue and Amelia Jauregui) will be competing for the 5-6-7 spots in cross country for the short-term.
Sticking with what they know, Oklahoma State brings in a recruiting class that looks strong on the track with some potential on the grass. Names like Auerbach, Moss, Lavier and Michael could all be ones to watch during the indoor season, with potential of snagging a coveted roster spot or even emerging as eventual national qualifiers.
Over the next few years, the Cowgirls' success in the longer races, be it track or cross country, will depend on the developmental path that this coaching staff takes.
Written by: Eric Baranoski
Seven fresh faces have arrived in Madison, Wisconsin to join a team that is consistently atop of the BIG 10 in the distance events. While some recruiting classes are headlined by a few select names, it feels like each of these Wisconsin freshmen have a significant performance on their resume or a clear event speciality that will bring immense value to this program.
Kate Jortberg is a top runner coming out of Illinois. She ended her high school career with personal bests of 5:06 (1600), 11:12 (3200) and 17:04 for three miles. Her top-10 finish at the Illinois state meet, paired with her 17:04 three mile personal best, indicates that there is plenty of potential.
Emma Watcke is also from Illinois, although she started her high school career at Minster High School in Ohio for her first two years and the fall of her junior year. During her time in Ohio, Watcke won a total of three state titles (two in the 1600 meters and one in cross country) while also finishing as the state runner-up in both cross country and the 3200 meters.
When she made the move to Illinois, her personal bests were thrown out the window as she set new PRs in the 1600 and 3200, securing times of 4:54 and 10:34, respectively. Will she be an immediate lineup contributor when she next toes the line? Well, it largely depends on how the rest of Wisconsin's returners perform, but Watcke looks like someone who could be a top scoring option two to three years from now.
We then come to Erinn Hill. She is someone who enters the NCAA with a TON of championship experience, racing at high-level meets such as the Brooks PR Invitational, the Foot Locker National Championships, the NXN Championships and the Portland Track Festival High Performance meet.
Hill also boasts strong personal bests of 4:58 (mile), 10:42 (3200) and 17:35 (5k XC). Although she never won any of the meets mentioned above, she did win the Washington state cross country title her sophomore year.
And how about Ashley Peterson? She is a well-rounded runner who could help the Badgers in a bunch of different ways. As an in-state runner, she has twice finished in the top-five at the Wisconsin state meet for the 1600 meters and 3200 meters while also turning in a 5k time of 18:35 on the grass.
Moving to Anna Petr, she capped off her senior year by securing the Michigan state title in cross country. She finished that season with a 5k time on the grass that went under 18 minutes, but her actual 5k personal best came on the track where she ran a very impressive time of 17:19.
When you tack on her other personal bests of 4:56 (1600) and 10:35 (3200), you begin to realize just how talented someone like Petr actually is. It feels plenty realistic that she could play a role in this cross country lineup as soon as this winter.
The middle distances and Anna Schoesser are two things that seem to go well together. Although Wisconsin isn’t known as a middle distance program, Schoesser will allow the Badgers to have a strong and consistent presence in the middle distances thanks to her personal best of 2:08 (800).
That's an important development, especially with Penn State also adding a handful of strong middle distance talents. Her personal best of 4:31 for 1500 meters also translates to a mark that is roughly around 4:50 for 1600 meters.
Last, but certainly not least, is Ellen Van Doorn from the Netherlands. She was a part of the Dutch team that competed at the 2019 U20 World Championships on the track. Van Doorn has entered Madison with personal bests of 2:11 (800) and 4:23 (1500), the latter mark being a quality time that could allow her to be immediately competitive in the BIG 10 on the track.
Oh, and did we mention that she has run 17:14 for 5000 meters? When it comes to being a true three-season threat, Van Doorn could be the missing piece who gives the Wisconsin women a surprising scoring spark. Or, at the very least, she can give them additional depth and scoring insurance.
Whether it be on the track or the grass, in the middle distances or longer distances, in the short term or long term, these current freshmen clearly make this Wisconsin team so much better. The Badgers are in good hands for the next few years.
Written by: Sam Ivanecky
It appears that Washington took the “quality over quantity” approach with their 2020 recruiting class, bringing in a grand total of three women. However, all three runners look like eventual NCAA stars. In fact, two of the three already have success at the national level and that added experience will surely give the Huskies an immediate boost.
Headlining this recruiting class is Sophie O’Sullivan, daughter of Irish Olympian Sonia O’Sullivan. Sophie has been stellar on the track thus far, having won the Australian national title in the 800 meters and securing runner-up honors in the 800 meters at the European U18 Championships.
O’Sullivan has dual citizenship between Ireland and Australia which is why she was able to compete at both the Australian Championships and European Championships. Along with her championship experience, O’Sullivan boasts nationally competitive with personal bests of 2:06 (800) and 4:22 (1500). Those times already put her on the edge of athletes in the conversation for national qualifiers.
Now, admittedly, those times (as they stand) likely would not get her to the national meet. However, almost any level of improvement would certainly put her into the NCAA Championships. We also have to consider that O'Sullivan is likely good enough to compete for a spot on the Huskies' DMR team, a group that frequently qualifies for the indoor national meet.
O’Sullivan, as of now, is largely a pure middle distance runner and may not be much of a factor in cross country. Kirstie Rae, however, very well should be.
Rae, a New Zealand native, was the 2019 Australia U20 cross country champion and went on to finish 17th at the World Junior XC Championships that same year. She also won the New Zealand XC Championships that same year.
Rae’s proven ability on the grass should allow her to immediately contend for a scoring spot at Washington. With Rainsberger graduating, the Huskies will be looking to bolster their varsity lineup a bit and Rae should fit in nicely. She also benefits from joining a program that has done a great job of developing Mel Smart, another top Oceania talent.
Rae, like Smart, should also be a strong talent on the track. She won both the New Zealand road and track 5k titles and owns a personal best of 16:44 in the event. Oh, and did we mention that she has also run 4:29 for 1500 meters and 9:38 for 3000 meters? Despite her youth, Rae is already bordering the line of becoming a top NCAA talent.
The only American recruit for Washington, Naomi Smith, is someone who could be a borderline scorer in cross country. Smith comes in having run 17:21 for 5000 meters in cross country and has also clocked a personal best of 10:14 for 3200 meters on the track.
Among preps, that 3200m time puts Smith in the upper-echelon and gives us confidence that Smith could be a factor during the cross country season. However, compared to her counterparts, we should expect her to have more of an impact in the longer term. Her times put her on the bubble for a top-seven spot in cross country, but she will likely need some time before becoming a scorer (or even a star) on the track.
That said, Washington already has solid depth which should keep pressure off of Smith, allowing her and the coaching staff to not rush her development.
Despite having only three recruits, Washington sets themselves up nicely for the future in both cross country and track. All three of these women should have major roles during both indoor track and outdoor track with O’Sullivan likely to be the biggest player in the immediate future.
Similarly, Rae could be an immediate scorer in cross country and could develop into a dynamic duo with Melany Smart over the coming seasons. Washington may be playing it risky by investing heavily into a small group, but all the same, this is a very talented group.