TSR Collaboration
Jan 3, 202113 min
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Written by Eric Baranoski
The Mavericks have brought in an incredibly deep class that is headlined by a handful of top recruits who could eventually make this team competitive against Northern Sun rivals U-Mary and Augustana.
After an underwhelming 2019, the women of Minnesota State will hope that these current rookies will be able to shake things up and make some noise in what has become a quietly competitive conference.
Kate Bucher is coming off of a two-season stretch where she was in the best shape of her life. The 2019 cross country and outdoor track seasons produced almost all of her personal bests. Those times were 2:29 (800), 5:26 (1600) and 18:40 (5k XC). If she was able to continue her momentum into her early collegiate training, then she should be in a fantastic position and potentially an immediate varsity contributor.
We then come to Marissa Ellenbecker who is a flat-out winner. She will only help elevate this program if nothing else. The Wisconsin native comes in with two state cross country titles as well as two titles on the track; one in the 800 meters and one in the 1600 meters.
Ellenbecker also has a total of four top-three finishes across the 800, 1600 and 3200 at the Wisconsin state meet. She is someone who has had her best performances running at top meets and she should (eventually) work her way up into the top of the Mavericks' lineup. She already has the fastest 5k personal best of this group with a time of 18:32.
Megan Narveson improved during every season of her high school career. If she can carry that momentum into the NCAA, then she will be another high-ceiling talent much like fellow recruit Kate Bucher.
She was a winner in the 1600 meters at the Minnesota 3AA Sectional during her junior year which gave her an automatic bid to the Minnesota State Championship where she finished 15th. On grass, she made it to the Minnesota state meet twice.
It's a bit difficult to pinpoint where Narveson is at her best, but she's consistent, has extensive championship experience and seems to be equally effective on both the grass and the track. When it comes to landing key recruits, those aspects are far more valuable than some people may realize.
And how about Ashlin Young? She has never run cross country before and her track times are admittedly modest, but running 5:04 for 1500 meters and a 11:06 for 3000 meters is fairly respectable given her inexperience. She has shown plenty of promise from those times alone and she even qualified for the Iowa state meet in the 1500 meters during her junior year.
She'll need to gain a lot more experience and get adjusted to running cross country, but she has a lot of scoring potential once she gets accustomed to competing on a three-season basis.
Other recruits such as Jayda Helget and Sena Uli will likely be developmental runners for the future. As for Daisy Korir, we're truthfully unsure what to expect from the Kenya native as we couldn't find any results for her. She could end up being an x-factor for what is already a very respectable recruiting class.
Battling for the top spot of the Northern Sun Conference will not be easy, but these recruits, in conjunction with the other distance runners already on this roster, will at least give the Mavericks a chance to contend.
In order to do that, they'll need to completely buy-in to Coach Jen Blue’s training philosophy as she have proven over the years that she knows how to produce strong distance talents.
Written by Nate Lopez
After taking 8th at the 2019 D2 West Regional Championships, the Cal State San Marcos women have brought in a class of six rookies which has the potential to become a strong pack-running unit and make the leap to the national stage (along with the help of current and future teammates).
All of these women come in with marks indicative of being able to handle the 6k relatively easily. Some of these freshmen have also shown signs of being threats in the middle distances, creating a well-balanced recruiting class worthy of being ranked in our top-five.
Emma Mills joins the San Marcos team with personal bests of 2:22 (800), 5:17 (1600) and 18:30 (3mi XC). Mills’ time for the half-mile shows that she can eventually develop into a legitimate scorer over the distance and her three mile PR suggest that she'll be able to contribute in a meaningful way when it comes to the 6k distance in cross country. It’s very possible that she ends up falling into the mold of a middle distance runner who contributes in cross, becoming more of a dual-threat.
Similarly to Mills, Carly Schuerger has shown off her potential in middle distance arena, but also flexes more strength over the longer distances.
Schuerger boasts personal bests of 2:24 (800), 5:08 (1600), 11:34 (3200) and 17:37 for three miles on the grass. The transition to 6k should come easily for her, not just because of her impressive three mile personal best, but because of how consistent she has been, breaking the 18-minute barrier on eight different occasions for three miles.
It’s also hard not to wonder what Schuerger could do in the middle distances with some training guided in that direction during the winter and spring seasons. After all, running a 1600 meter PR of 5:08 is nothing to scoff at.
Gianna Gonzales strays a bit from Mills and Schuerger when it comes to the middle distances. With personal bests of 2:31 (800), 5:20 (1600), 11:38 (3200) and 18:40 (5k XC), it's clear that Gonzales is better oriented for the longer distances.
Her 5k personal best is quietly very strong and it suggests that she’ll be able to handle the jump to the 6k and eventually become a key scorer. She’ll help reinforce the depth of the San Marcos women as they grow into a solid pack-running team.
Nadia Salcedo has joined the Cougars with personal bests of 2:33 (800), 5:26 (1600), 11:42 (3200), 18:49 (3mi XC) and 19:17 (5k XC). Meanwhile, fellow recruit Elise Ortiza has run 5:16 (1600), 11:46 (3200), 18:13 (3mi XC) and 19:24 (5k XC).
Much like Gonzales, we could look for both Salcedo and Ortiza to serve as a middle-of-the-pack runners for the Cougars in the coming years. They have respectable resumes and are clearly better suited for the longer distances. However, Ortiza's 1600 PR begs the question of whether or not she’ll see some action in the middle distances on the track.
Lastly for the San Marcos women is Jessica Schempp who is clearly at her best on the grass, running 18:28 for a cross country three mile and 19:35 for 5000 meters. Schempp is right in the mix with her classmates in the longer events. It’s possible that her slower marks in the shorter distances are misleading, however it seems fair to say that she will still most likely focus on the higher distance event groups.
There are very few recruiting classes where every recruit seems like an eventual contributor. While some youngsters may be better than others, this is a deep recruiting class that could really bolster this team in the long term.
Written by Eric Baranoski
Four women have made the journey to Sioux Falls, South Dakota to join the Augustana Vikings in 2020. They will look to add depth to an already-deep roster that always seems to fly under the radar until the NCAA Championships where they surprise people year after year.
Exhibit A? An improvement from 18th in 2018 to 6th in 2019.
Mallory Delmont is making the cross-state journey from the mountains to the flatlands of South Dakota. Who knew her hometown of Custer, South Dakota was situated at just over 5000 feet? She did very well in her Class A South Dakota classification as she finished 4th in cross country during her senior year as well as 2nd and 3rd during her junior year in the 1600 meters and 800 meters, respectively.
It will be interesting to see how Delmont responds to training at altitude that is far lower than where she grew up. With personal bests of 5:09 (1600) and 18:43 (5k XC), Delmont looks like a true three-season threat who could perfectly transition into a scoring role once the veterans of this team exit the program.
We then come to Taylor Melton who has joined the Vikings from Minnesota. Despite not having the most incredible personal bests on track, Melton looks like a key long-term piece when it comes cross country. With a personal best of 18:46 (5k XC), Melton could be a perfect fit for program that has historically been one of the most underrated in Division Two when it comes to developing young talent.
The final two women of this recruiting class are Caroline Sudbeck and Saylor Weiland, two youngsters who stayed in their hometown, opting to continue their running careers with Augustana. Their familiarity with Sioux Falls could allow for a seamless high school to college transition.
Despite their similarities, these are two very different runners. Weiland only started running cross country during her senior year while Sudbeck has run cross country during all four years of high school.
Weiland’s lack of experience is actually a good thing. If she was able to run 19:44 in only one season, what will she be able to do when she has multiple seasons, or even years, of training under her belt? She has a massive amount of upside and that cannot be overlooked when talking about the potential impact of this class.
Conversely, Sudbeck boasts a 5k personal best of 18:30, a time that clearly reflects her years of experience and gradual build-up of mileage. Augustana has often had success with younger runners and Sudbeck could very well be that rookie who comes in and has a notable impact on this team.
Augustana could use all of the help that they can get as they make a big push to earn a podium finish whenever a cross country season returns. Had competition resumed as normal this past fall, everyone from their 2019 varsity (which placed 6th at the NCAA Championships) would have returned.
With these four ladies, the Vikings of Augustana have a chance to fill any potential lineup gap that may become prevalent. They’ll be able to offer immediate depth, some additional assistance in the scoring and a long-term foundation for success.
They may only have four recruits, but few groups of freshmen fit the current situation of their respective teams better than this Augustana recruiting class does.
Written by Eric Baranoski
Seven girls committed to run for the Mountain Lions starting in 2020, giving the women of UC-Colorado Springs immediate scoring assistance as well as a promising future.
Kate Hedlund is the main headline talent in this group of signees. Hailing from the east coast, she brings some fast sea-level times to Colorado Springs which is situated at just over 6000 feet of elevation.
Her most impressive times came in both the 800 and 1600 where she ran 2:15 and 4:58, respectively. She also won two state titles during her senior year in (you guessed it) the 800 and 1600. Despite most of her success coming in the middle distances, it’s important that we don’t ignore Hedlund's potential cross country impact. She placed 9th at the very competitive New England XC Championships last fall, one of the better results in all of the Northeast region.
We then come to Rachel Richtman who is another sea-level athlete who has made the trek out west. She has a variety of different ways that she could help this UCCS team as her range is incredible.
Richtman finished top-10 at her state meet in cross country and made state championship appearances on the track in the 3200 meters and 800 meters. Not to be forgotten, the mile, has a case to be her best event as she took home the title at the 2019 Midwest Distance Classic. It’s tough to say what her focus will be at the collegiate level as she owns fairly equivalent personal bests of 2:20 (800), 5:09 (1600) and 19:21 (5k).
And how about Hannah Ray from the Badger state? The Wisconsin native has checked a lot of boxes in regards to breaking specific time barriers. She has broken 19 minutes in the 5000 meters and broke 5:20 in the 1600 meters. Even though she didn’t win a lot, Ray has a lot of potential to make key improvements and eventually develop into a solid scorer and contributor.
The second Rachel in this recruiting class, Rachel Goodrich, is used to the mountain air having gone to school at Golden High School in Golden, Colorado. She was the 2019 Jefferson County cross country champion while finishing up her season with a 24th place finish at the state meet.
On the track, she was just getting started as she shaved more than 40 seconds off of her 1600 meter and 3200 meter times from her freshman year to her junior year. Her times on the track are admittedly modest, but her 5k personal best of 18:05 certainly catches your eye and it tells us that she can be a weapon on the track on if she is able to translate her success from the grass to the oval.
Not too often do you see someone run exclusively the 200 and 400 and contribute to a cross country team…unless you’re Kelsey Rycenga. Coming in with an altitude background (having gone to Montrose High School near the Black Canyon of the Gunnison NP) she has already made her mark on the Mountain Lions, having slowly worked her way into the starting varsity lineup of this shortened 2020 season. Rycenga emerged as the team’s fifth runner at the RMAC Championship this past fall.
That’s extremely impressive when you consider how highly we thought of UC-Colorado Springs this past fall. It’s one thing to have range, but to have range and make such a big impact right away tell us that Rycenga has a bright future ahead of her.
Mason Ingallinera is going through a drastic change of scenery, making the transition from Florida to Colorado. Times of 5:31 for 1600 meters and 11:33 for 3200 meters were good enough to make the team, although she could benefit the most out of anyone in this UCCS recruiting class from the altitude change.
Here’s a fun fact: Nadine Almasri’s sister Layla is currently on the UCCS team and she will have the opportunity to run with her for two years in Colorado Springs. It will be just like old times as the sisters went to nearby Pine Creek High School.
Nadine is another unique case in regards to the events that she ran in high school, toeing the line in everything from the 100 hurdles, 300 hurdles and the 400 meters on the track in addition to competing in cross county. That, however, didn’t stop her from racing in the state finals in cross country as well as the 300 hurdles, running times of 20:28 and 46.73, respectively.
Like a few other D2 recruits, finding the right role and event specialty for the younger Almasri sister could prove to be beneficial in the long term. Plus, given the success that we have seen from Layla, it’s very possible that Nadine could eventually follow in her footsteps and have some sort of notable impact.
A fair mix of ladies who have experience running at altitude, as well as some who are making the trek out west, make up the Mountain Lions’ distance recruiting class. After an encouraging (and admittedly altered) 2020 cross country season, it was important for the Mountain Lions to bring in this recruiting class as they will aim to sustain some of the success that we saw this past fall.
Written by Eric Baranoski
Grand Valley State has been a mainstay at the top of the Division 2 ranks due in large part because of their recruiting and eventual development of those incoming talents. Why not be an All-American at an established D2 powerhouse that is always in the hunt for national titles? That’s likely a big part of the appeal when choosing to run for a program like GVSU.
That’s why it should come as no surprise that the Lakers’ women’s recruiting class enters our rankings at TSR #1 for the second-straight year.
Let’s chat about our first recruit who could have very easily gone the D1 route.
Taryn Chapko is the real deal having run personal bests of 2:09 (800), 4:55 (mile) and 17:57 (5k XC). Not only that, but she also captured a state title in the 800 meters.
Her half-mile PR, in particular, is better than many recruits that we mentioned in our D1 rankings. However, Chapko opted to stay in state and frankly, we don’t blame her for that choice as she has the potential to eventually win a national title in the middle distances. In fact, she could be a national qualifier and maybe even an All-American candidate as soon as this year.
Right behind Chapko in terms of potential and immediate impact is Gillian Fiene, another Michigan product. Fiene really broke out in a big way during her junior year as she was able to turn her fast personal bests into hardware as she won a state championship in the 1600 meters as well as the 4x400, while turning in a 4th place finish in the 800 meters. During her senior cross country season, she was able to shave off 30 seconds from her 5k time, lowering it to a new personal best of 18:19.
Only a handful of D2 recruits have had the same amount of success that Fiene has had during their high school days, but even fewer have the same versatility and promising rate of improvement.
Martha Shomsky is yet another Michigan talent who has since joined the GVSU roster. Having never run outdoor track, she is in for a treat as the Lakers have quite the competitive slate of outdoor meets on their schedule.
With indoor personal bests of 2:15 (800) and 5:06 (1600), Shomsky should be able to compete right away if she doesn’t get redshirted. She will be a key addition to the Lakers’ middle distance corps at GVSU which, despite being known as a long distance program, has produced a handful of top-ranked middle distance talents over the years. Her lack of experience on the outdoor track could also prove to be useful as her ceiling is likely much higher than some of these other recruits.
Let’s now chat about Leah Socks who is a Swiss army knife of sorts when it comes to the track.
She competed in five different events during the outdoor season, but has never toed the line for an indoor track race. Socks has recorded times in the 200 meters, 300 hurdles, 400 meters, 800 meters and 1600 meters with her best events being the latter two.
She also ran well during cross country, posting a very promising personal best of 17:53 (5k).
Is Socks a middle distance runner? A future hurdler? A true cross country runner? Maybe an all-around stud? Who knows! She can certainly find a role on this team and eventually contribute in a meaningful way.
Joining her sister Molly, Maggie McLaughlin has also joined this top-ranked Laker squad. Running mostly the 800 meters in high school, her personal best came out to be 2:21, although she was also able to break the 19:30 mark for 5000 meters on the grass. She could use more time to develop, but her range is promising and once she finds the right fit in terms of event specialty, McLaughlin could begin to find some serious momentum.
Paige McAloon is taking her talents from the Gopher state to Grand Rapids. She was the Mississippi 8 Conference champion (yes, that’s in Minnesota) where she produced a strong personal best of 2:19 800 to take the dub. She is another one who will slide into this quietly talented middle distance group.
Finally, we have Landyn Howell who is staying close to home and attending GVSU. She was a four-time state qualifier in cross country, most recently coming in 25th place during her senior year. She also qualified for the state meet in the 800 meets her junior year which complemented her personal best time of 2:24 which came at a different meet during the same season.
Howell resembles McLaughlin in a lot of ways. She’s talented, consistent and has some underrated range. It may take additional time for her to develop, but once she finds her niche at the collegiate level, she could make some notable improvements.
There’s a reason why the women of Grand Valley State are consistently ranked at the top of the D2 when it comes to the distance events. Not only is the coaching and development exceptional, but the never-ending pipeline of top-tier youngsters coming into this program on an annual basis makes it incredibly difficult to take down the Lakers.
And with this recruiting class, we shouldn’t expect the women in blue and white to falter any time soon…