TSR Collaboration
May 4, 202115 min
These rankings do take some indoor track performances from this past winter into account. However, the introduction of events like the 10k and the steeplechase, as well as the return of certain seniors who have not raced in over a year, has forced us to reshuffle our rankings and leave out some highly accomplished distance talents.
Was not ranked in our last update.
First number indicates how much the individual has moved in the rankings.
The second number indicates where they were ranked in our last update.
Riding a hot-streak of four personal bests in a row, Lexie Thompson earned her first appearance in our rankings this week. This spring has been a revelation of sorts for the Weber State senior as she has put together a season unlike any other. After a big 10k performance at the Hayward Premiere, which has her ranked at NCAA #5, Thompson stepped down in distance and reset her personal best for 5000 meters, clocking a time of 15:37 for the win at the OSU High Performance meet.
In 2021, Thompson has knocked off 1:02 from her personal best in the 5k and 1:23 from her personal best in the 10k. The next step is earning her first-ever trip to a national meet on the track. She has a ton of momentum and seems to be validating her rise into the upper-echelon of women's distance talents.
Boise State’s Clare O’Brien has been consistently putting up strong times this season. O’Brien turned heads when she ran 32:43 to win the 10k at the Hayward Premiere, taking down top talents like Carmela Cardama Baez and Lexie Thompson in the process.
After a few weeks of solid training, the Bronco distance ace again ran to a stellar time in the 5000 meters. O’Brien placed 2nd at the Oregon Relays in a new PR of 15:37, putting herself in the conversation for All-American honors, although she did falter to Cardama Baez who got the better of her in their last outing.
O’Brien has experience racing on the national stage and given her recent rise, big things could happen within this next month. She is clearly at a new level of fitness and seems to be capable of challenging some of the nation's top names.
Tanner drops one spot in our rankings this week after recording two DNF results at the Torrin Lawrence Memorial. That said, the Georgia Bulldog remains in our rankings as she still has her recent 2:01 PR which sits near the top of an already loaded national leaderboard.
Wilkinson is quickly rising in the middle distance ranks after notching another personal best in the 1500 meters at the North Florida Invite. The Florida sophomore finished in 4:14, moving her to the NCAA #24 spot on the national leaderboard and proving that she can run more than just the 800 meters.
Currently sitting at NCAA #5 in the 800 meters, Wilkinson will almost surely opt for that event when the regional meet rolls around. She has been running phenomenally in 2021 and will be a dark horse for a top-three finish at the National Championships if her form continues. The Florida ace has national meet experience from the winter and has been battling top talents throughout this spring, so she should be well prepared for the postseason.
Sometimes a result only tells half the story and that is certainly the case with Wasserman’s 1500 meter performance from the Drake Relays. She won the race in a time of 4:14, good enough for NCAA #23 on the national leaderboard, but it was the race execution that made her stand out.
With roughly 300 meters to go, Wasserman effortlessly pulled away from the field in what was ultimately the deciding move, gapping the field en route to the victory. For someone who has (recently) been pegged as a 5k runner, the dominance in the shorter distance bodes well for her heading into championship season.
Given her standing in the 5k, Wasserman looks poised to go all-in on the event at the NCAA Championships. While she could contest the 1500 as well, doubling would reduce her All-American chances in the 5k where she is a real contender.
Hasz may have dropped in this week’s rankings, but that was not a result of her own performances. Similar to many BIG 10 runners, Hasz is limited to in-conference competition which can make it difficult to find multiple challengers. The Minnesota senior remains undefeated this spring after nabbing victories in both the 1500 and the 5k over the past two weeks, running top times and clearly emerging as the class of both fields.
On paper, Hasz has put down modest marks compared to her counterparts, but when you consider that she is running away with most of these races, it’s clear that she will be ready when the postseason comes around.
The Clemson junior has been solid since finishing 2nd at the NCAA Indoor Championships in the 800 meters. In fact, she has recently been running new personal bests in the 400 meters and 1500 meters. At the North Florida Invitational, Barton ran a four-second PR in the 1500, finishing runner-up with a mark of 4:14.
Barton, a 2:01 half-miler, is a top favorite in the 800 meters, an event she will surely purse in the postseason. It would be a shock if she decided to go after anything other than the 800 meters, but we do think that the strength she has displayed in the 1500 bodes well for an aggressive pace that the Clemson runner may see in the postseason.
After running her 4:11 personal best a few weeks ago, Skyring picked up a new PR in the 800 at the North Florida Invitational. Skyring ran a strong mark of 2:05 for 6th place and was the third collegiate athlete overall, finishing behind two true 800 meter runners.
This 800 result will set up the Seminole star for her next 1500. This kind of speed will also come in handy in the postseason as the prelims may become tactical and require a fast finish. Plenty of 1500 meter specialists have a similar level of speed, so it's encouraging to see Skyring show that kind of turnover after emerging as more of a mile/3k specialist this past winter.
The results only seem to be getting better for Prouse as she continues her comeback in 2021. In one of the most bizarre races that was delayed due to a power outage, Prouse came within three seconds of her personal best in the 5k at the Fresno State West Coast Relays, running 15:29 for 3rd place. That mark has her listed at NCAA #4.
Yes, she is falling in the rankings, but that's more because other runners have blown us away. It's not necessarily based on Prouse's results.
This New Mexico veteran is known more as a steeplechaser and despite being listed at NCAA #12 in that event right now, there’s good reason to think that she will finish much higher than that in the postseason.
Coming off of a lengthy hiatus due to injury, Prouse was able to run 9:54 in her first go at the event and should easily better that mark based on her current form. Although the steeplechase is stacked with talent, Prouse should not be overlooked after finishing runner-up at the national meet in both 2018 and 2019. Her experience is the bigger asset rather than her current seasonal best.
One of the most consistent athletes this outdoor season has been Virginia’s Michaela Meyer. The Cavalier has been putting up strong results in the 800 meters and 1500 meters the past few weeks and just matched her 2:01 800 PR at the Virginia Grand Prix.
Meyer hasn’t lost an 800 meter race since February and is on pace to continue that at the ACC Outdoor Championships. She has yet to compete at a national meet, and that is a fairly minor concern, but given her recent successes since transferring from Delaware to Virginia, Meyer has the potential to challenge for a top-five finish at the NCAA Championships.
After narrowly missing her 1500 personal best in her season debut, Camp-Bennett demolished it in her second go at the distance. Coming off of a stellar cross country season, it was clear that this BYU senior was going to be resetting her personal record book. In one of the fastest 1500 races of the season, she finished 3rd at the Fresno State West Coast Relays in a time of 4:11, taking four seconds off of her previous best and moving into the NCAA #6 position.
Despite her focus on the middle distance races, it’s easy to think that the 5k might be Camp-Bennett’s best event. She has yet to contest one on the track, but is coming off of an 11th place finish at the NCAA XC Championships from March. Making the step up in distance is at least an intriguing possibility. When you consider that she is one of the most versatile distance runners in the country, a sub-15:40 effort in the 5k seems totally realistic.
In her first collegiate 5k on the track, Tyynismaa ran a stellar mark of 15:33 and currently sits within the top-10 on the NCAA leaderboard right now in both the 1500 and 5k. The Alabama sophomore ran her 15:33 at the John McDonnell Invitational and finished well ahead of 3rd place.
With a current 4:12 personal best for 1500 meters and her recent 5k effort, Tyynismaa has her choice of events to compete in as we reach the championship portion of the outdoor track season. It’s hard to determine where Tyynismaa could see more success, but we think the 1500 meters may be her best option. She has been super consistent at that distance.
However, maybe more importantly, Tyynismaa just hasn't faltered this year. She has never had a poor performance since her breakout 3k this past winter and that is beyond rare when you consider how big her leap in fitness has been.
While it may seem counterintuitive that someone running a personal best would drop in our rankings, it has a lot to do with our initial expectations. Donaghu was a top-ranked cross country runner heading into 2021 and figured to be the same on the track.
Although she ran 15:29 for 2nd place in the 5k at Fresno State, she was also well behind the winner, Elly Henes. For someone who was pegged to be a potential title favorite in the event, finishing 11 seconds back forces us to push back Donaghu in our rankings.
Of course, let's not act like this Stanford star is running poorly this season. Heading into postseason competition, Donaghu still figures to be a major factor. She has put down solid marks in the 1500 as well as the 5k and could contest both events at the regional meet. When you factor in her national meet success from 2019, Donaghu is still going to be a major problem for her competitors in the postseason.
It’s hard to drop Steelman this week given her 9:46 steeplechase and 15:30 (5k) personal bests that she has earned this season. At the West Coast Classic, Steelman again impressed with a 9:48 steeplechase finish, but she was 17-seconds behind winner Courtney Wayment.
Steelman is still in contention for a top-three finish in the steeplechase at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, but falls a bit back due to the recent performances by other women. Of course, the NC State senior is still one to watch no matter what event she is in. Her recent momentum has been beyond impressive and her experience will make her one of the most dangerous names in the country come late May and early June.
Jennings continues to roll in 2021, setting a new personal best in the steeplechase at the Drake Relays where she finished as the top collegian. Her mark of 9:43 is currently listed at the NCAA #3 spot and it positions her as one of the favorites for a national title...if something were to happen to Kimeli and/or Wayment.
Jennings also won the 1500 at the Southern Conference Outdoor Championships, finished runner-up in the 800 meters (with a PR of 2:04) and was also entered in the 4x400 relay.
Similar to someone like Camp-Bennett, Jennings has an interesting scenario coming up. Right now, she has run very well in both the 1500 and the steeplechase, but will only contest one event, likely the steeple, at the regional meet.
The 5k would be the logical double given it’s the last distance race at the NCAA Championships, but Jennings has yet to race one this season, meaning that her qualifying window is quickly closing. It would not be surprising if the Furman senior at least gave the event a go before the window closes, knowing she has multiple events locked down heading into regionals.
Either way, her elite-level versatility in multiple distance events is what allows her value in our rankings to remain sky-high.
Forbes continues to impress during this outdoor season and has won both races that she has contested this spring. After running her NCAA-leading mark of 32:24 (10k) in early April, Forbes laid low until the J. Fred Duckett Twilight Meet. Once she was there, the Rice Owl star won the 1500 meters in a mark of 4:14, winning the race by a jaw-dropping 13 seconds.
Although this is a great time for a 5k/10k runner, it isn’t likely that Forbes will put much focus on the 1500 as the season progresses towards the championship meets. She has yet to contest the 5k, but with her conference meet on the horizon and the fact that Forbes seems to have no problem running by herself, she will probably go for an NCAA qualifying time at that distance soon.
Overall, we love her 1500 meter speed as that could become a massive asset in her racing arsenal when it comes to championship settings. We're unsure how the women's 10k will unfold, but Forbes seems the most prepared for any race scenario.
Competing at the Trials of Miles Kansas City Qualifier over the weekend, it seemed almost certain that Kimeli would come somewhere close (or within striking distance) of her 15:37 personal best. After all, she is the reigning indoor national champion in the event.
Chalk it up to windy conditions, a bad day or maybe all of the above, but Kimeli came up short, running 16:17 for 9th place. She seemed set up for a big day, tucking into the lead pack early, but quickly started to fade as the field ratcheted up the pace, ultimately leading to the Auburn runner falling short of expectations.
In the grand scheme of things, Kimeli is still two for three this spring, having set massive personal bests in the 1500 and steeplechase. It seems almost certain that she will give the 5k another go at the regional meet where she should be a favorite in that event, as well as the steeple.
Miller hasn’t raced since the last update. She was entered to run in the 400 meters at the Texas A&M Alumni Muster, but the meet was cancelled due to weather.
Orton is high on our list of runners who you don’t want to face in the postseason this spring. Coming off of a minor injury this past winter, the BYU senior has raced sparingly (only twice this season), but is clearly getting better with each attempt.
This past weekend, she ran 4:09 for 1500 meters in a battle-to-the-line with Arkansas’ Krissy Gear. Although Orton finished runner-up, she established herself as a title favorite in whatever event(s) she opts to pursue at the regional meet.
The main purpose for coming back in 2021 was for Orton to chase national titles and right now, she appears to be in a great spot to do exactly that. Both the 1500 and 5k are events she could win and those odds only seem to be getting better with each passing week. Her rebound into top fitness may end up with her peaking at the NCAA Championships.
Henes makes a massive jump in our rankings after running a time of 15:18 (5k) at the West Coast Relays in Fresno, California on Friday evening. The NC State ace was expected to make a splash in the 5k after running 4:18 in the 1500 and pacing teammate Hannah Steelman to a 15:30 mark at the Virginia Challenge.
But to run as fast as she did? Well, that truthfully wasn't expected.
In California, Henes ran a nine-second personal best and won the race by 11 seconds over an elite field which featured some of the best distance runners in the country. On the NCAA leaderboard, Henes sits less than a second behind collegiate leader Mercy Chelangat.
Given her experience and quiet emphasis on speed development over the past few months, this NC State senior now seems to have the raw fitness that could allow her to take down Chelangat on the national stage. That's easier said than done, but it could happen.
Remember when Gear opened her outdoor track season with a 4:21 mark in the 1500 and everyone was concerned that she was falling off after a great indoor season? She clearly doesn’t remember that.
The Arkansas junior ran the NCAA #2 time in the 1500 meters this weekend with a win at the Fresno State West Coast Relays, coming across the line in a mark of 4:09. Gear is now listed in the top-five nationally in two events, the 1500 and the steeplechase, and looks just as dominant as she was this winter. In fact, she has never looked more versatile with recent marks of 2:04 (800), 9:45 (steeplechase) and 4:09 (1500).
The big question for Gear is...which event will she go for at the regional meet? It’s next-to-impossible to race both the 1500 and the steeplechase, forcing her to pick one. Given her current standing, the 1500 seems to be the more likely option as she is less than a second off the NCAA-lead, whereas she sits 14-seconds back of the leader (Wayment) in the steeplechase.
Moving up this week after running an NCAA-leading 5k time of 15:17 is Alabama's Mercy Chelangat. The Crimson Tide cross country national champion easily won the 5k at the John McDonnell Invitational by 16 seconds and ran a 20 second PR in the process.
Chelangat continues to solidify herself as the one to beat in the longer distance events. She sits near the top of the NCAA leaderboard in both the 5k and 10k and isn’t afraid to run by herself en route to fast times.
With the recent rise of competitors like Grace Forbes (Rice) and Elly Henes (NC State), Chelangat may finally have people who can challenge her for NCAA gold in the 5k and the 10k. However, she probably has the best raw fitness out of anyone in the longer distances right now (at least for those who have run those events).
Death, taxes and Sage Hurta running NCAA-leading times. That might not be the saying, but at this point, it very well could be. In her outdoor 1500 meter season debut, Hurta put down an NCAA-leading mark of 4:08 for 1500 meters at the Oregon Relays, establishing herself as the title favorite come June. She was slated to race an 800 at the Fresno State West Coast Relays, but did not end up competing.
Hurta currently sits at NCAA #1 in the 1500 and NCAA #2 in the 800, making her arguably the best true middle distance runner in the NCAA. Every time she competes, the Colorado senior executes her race plan with composure and tactical brilliance, similar to her volunteer coach, Jenny Simpson.
Despite Gear and Orton both running 4:09, Hurta remains the undisputed favorite in the 1500.
Wayment hadn’t contested the steeplechase since the 2017 season. However, given the fact that she ran 4:30 (mile) and 8:54 (3k) this past winter, it wasn’t shocking to see the BYU Cougar throw down a massive PR this past weekend at the West Coast Relays.
But to run the NCAA #5 all-time mark in an event that she has contested four years? Well, that's pretty shocking.
In her first race in almost a month, Wayment recorded a winning steeplechase time of 9:31, an eye-popping 33-second PR. This performance catapulted Wayment to the top of the NCAA leaderboard and immediately put her into contention for the national title.
Dare we ask...could Wayment break Courtney Frerichs’ 9:24 NCAA steeplechase record?
Mu has not competed individually since clocking 1:57 for 800 meters. She ran the anchor leg of the Aggies 4x400 relay at the LSU Alumni Gold meet with the group clocking a time of 3:27, good enough for the NCAA #3 mark (they also have the NCAA #2 mark). She was slated to run the open 400 meters at the Texas A&M Alumni Muster meet this past weekend, but the competition was canceled due to weather.
At this point, it really doesn't matter what Mu runs between now and the regional meet. She is the clear NCAA favorite in the 800 and unless she opts to not contest the event (again), she will be the unanimous favorite heading into the national meet.
Danae Rivers (Penn State)
Presley Weems (Auburn)
Shafiqua Maloney (Arkansas)
Lexie Thompson (Weber State)
Gabrielle Wilkinson (Florida)
Clare O’Brien (Boise State)
Danae Rivers (Penn State)
Presley Weems (Auburn)
Shafiqua Maloney (Arkansas)
Madison Boreman (Colorado)
Carmela Cardama Baez (Oregon)
Olivia Hoj (BYU)
Sarah Hendrick (Kennesaw State)
Kaley Richards (UMass Lowell)
Kennedy Thomson (Arkansas)
Imogen Barrett (Florida)
McKenna Keegan (Villanova)
Amanda Vestri (Syracuse)
Taryn O'Neill (Northern Arizona)
Bailey Hertenstein (Indiana)
Jenna Magness (Michigan State)
Grace Moore (Temple)
Elise Thorner (New Mexico)
Grace Mancini (La Salle)
Poppy Tank (Utah)
Katie Rainsberger (Washington)
Brooke Fazio (Richmond)
Katie Izzo (Arkansas)
Lindsey Butler (Virginia Tech)
Michaela Dengenero (Colorado)
Petronela Simiuc (Toledo)
Kayla Johnson (Miami)
Lotte Black (Rhode Island)
Savannah Shaw (NC State)
Mahala Norris (Air Force)
Annabelle Eastman (George Mason)
Alice Hill (Michigan)
Taylor Roe (Oklahoma State)
Claire Seymour (BYU)
Katie Camarena (UC Santa Barbara)
Jenna Magness (Michigan State)
Haley Herberg (Washington)
Amelia Mazza-Downie (New Mexico)
Nicole Fegans (Georgia Tech)
Gracie Hyde (Arkansas)
Jeralyn Poe (Northern Arizona)
Aoibhe Richardson (San Francisco)
Olivia Markezich (Notre Dame)
Kelsey Harris (Indiana)
Katelyn Tuohy (NC State)
Jessica Drop (Georgia)
Cailie Logue (Iowa State)
Aubrey Frentheway (BYU)
- Despite earning a win over Clare O'Brien we made the extremely difficult decision to leave Carmela Cardama Baez out of our rankings. We believe that the 5k marks from Lexie Thompson and O'Brien aren't that far off from the Oregon ace while their 10k marks are noticeably better than what we've seen out of Cardama Baez.