TSR Collaboration
Apr 22, 202113 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.
One of the best freshmen in D2, Shane Cohen looks like a real threat in the 800 this season. After putting down a 1:49 in the early meets of the spring, Cohen has leveled off a bit, running 1:53 and 1:51 since. Even so, both of those races were wins where he went relatively unchallenged.
Cohen also ran 48.56 for 400 and 23.08 for 200, clearly focusing on that top-end speed. Unlike many 800 runners who we see compete in the 1500, Cohen appears dedicated to the two-lap tango and should be a dark horse come June. He has a top-level time and plenty of consistency which has resulted in multiple wins. On paper, he checks off a lot of our boxes.
After a pair of impressive runs over the past month, Tai Smith now sits in the top-10 on the D2 national leaderboard for both the 5k and 10k. The Wingate junior had previously clocked 29:33 for 10,000 meters, but cemented his status amongst the elites with a very solid 14:00 effort for 5000 meters on April 9th. That mark is listed at NCAA #8 for the distance and is only 13-seconds off the top mark.
Sitting in the top-10 of two events puts Smith is some outstanding company and sets him up for a potential double at the NCAA Championships. Sitting just outside of auto-qualifying marks in both events, we may see Smith chase even faster times over the coming weeks. He's been a solid talent for a while, but has really taken advantage of the past year when it comes to his stamina base.
Since his big performance in the 800 meters, Groendyk has only raced once, clocking a time of 3:50 for 1500 meters. That mark was a personal best by two seconds and a season best by four seconds, giving Groendyk a strong pair of performances so far this season.
Despite having raced the 1500 twice this season, it’s clear that Groendyk will be all-in for the 800. He is a middle distance specialist who sits less than a second out of the NCAA-lead in the event. The next target for him should be running under 1:49 before the NCAA Championships, although his development of tactics and high-pressure end-of-race scenarios will be the bigger thing to watch with him.
Two weeks after a mediocre performance for 5000 meters, Kimutai established himself as a true contender. The Missouri Southern sophomore ran a personal best of 13:57 for 5000 meters at the UCM Mule Relays, finishing runner-up behind teammate Ryan Riddle and earning the NCAA #6 mark in D2.
Despite a history of strong results in cross country and indoor track, Kimutai has never run at a national meet on the outdoor oval. That, however, is now all but certain to change this season. His 5k mark should earn him a trip in the postseason, but his best event may be the one he has yet to run.
With how strong his cross country racing has been in the past, Kimutai is due for a big 10k performance on the track. With competition really heating up, look for him to lower his current personal best of 30:54. We truly believe that is far better than that, and truthfully, he'll have to be if he wants to contend with this year's field.
The current NCAA #2 runner in the steeplechase put down a 5k personal best at the East Texas Invitational, coming in at 14:14 to improve on his previous best by six seconds. He took another swing at the 5k only a week later but came up short of a PR, running 14:22.
Rotich has run personal bests in three of his last four races and is quickly rising among the D2 ranks. With so little experience at the NCAA level, Rotich is the wildcard of this year’s competition. His steeple debut was incredible and it forces us to wonder just how good he can. With plenty of racing still on the calendar, Rotich will be a fun name to track, no pun intended.
Sweeney has not competed since the last rankings update.
In a nail-biter of a 10k, Jones took Grand Valley State's Enael Woldemichael all the way to the line, coming up just short of the victory in a mark of 29:14. That result was still good enough to put Jones at NCAA #5 for this distance and earn an auto-qualifier for the National Championships in June.
Jones is one of a handful of runners who could go for the 5k/10k double at the NCAA Championships, although it may be worth focusing on one event. He is only 12 seconds outside of the 10k lead right now and depending on who opts to focus on the event, there may be a door open to win a national title.
It’s still too early to know much, but expect Jones to put down a 5k in the coming weeks and at least earn a qualifying mark. He has been having a massive breakout year and has simply not slowed down between cross country, indoor track and outdoor track. His momentum between seasons has been wildly impressive.
Becker made his NCAA steeplechase debut on April 9th, running an excellent time of 8:57 to move into the NCAA #7 position for the event. Not only was that his season debut in the event, but he had never run a steeplechase since coming to Queens. It almost sounds too good to be true…because sort of is.
While this race was his NCAA debut, Becker actually owns a personal best of 8:47 for the event, set all the way back in 2015 at the Merksem Antwerp Athletics Gala. At least on paper, that kind of mark makes Becker a title contender in this event. His personal best would have him at NCAA #2 at this distance, and considering he has already bettered some of his times from that era in other events, it’s not outlandish to think he could do the same in the steeplechase later this season.
Ahl has set personal bests in all three of his races in 2021. After an extended hiatus going back all the way to the fall of 2019, Ahl burst back onto the scene in a big way and has only gotten better. At the second meet in the SFU Spring Series, Ahl set a personal best in the 1500 by four seconds, clocking a time of 3:47. Only a week later, he shattered that mark, posting an outstanding time of 3:42.
With no true favorite in the 1500 this year, Ahl has quickly inserted himself into the title conversation...if Simon Fraser was allowed to venture outside of Canada and go to the NCAA Championships (which they aren't).
Even so, given how quickly he has progressed in only three races this spring, it’s hard to say just how high his ceiling might be. He does not appear to be slowing down any time soon, although we don't know what the rest of his season will even look like.
Stack has not raced since our last rankings update.
It seems that the Enael Woldemichael we remember has made his way back into the D2 world. The Laker athlete made his season debut in the 10k this past weekend and he ran a major time of 29:12 to take home the victory at the Bellarmine Jim Vargo Invitational.
Woldemichael held off a solid D2 field with the likes of Blake Jones, Carlee Stimpfel, Dayton Brown and Titus Winders all finishing behind him. Woldemichael had already run 14:03 for 5000 meters this season and this effort only tells us that he’s likely to improve upon that in the coming weeks.
Also, with this effort, he’s re-entered the national title conversation and it’s in a race that he's only ever run once. His history of championship racing also has us believing that he’ll only get better as he continues to race, especially since Woldemichael ran relatively better in his 10k than he did his 5k.
Warren got off to a hot start and that’s why he found himself at TSR #11 in our initial rankings. In fact, Warren hasn’t missed a weekend of racing since March 20th...and he raced again this past weekend!
Warren tackled a 1500/800 double which saw him run 3:48 and then come back and run 1:54. When you compare his time at Embry-Riddle, this actually wasn't one of his better doubles. The one thing we can make out of this? It seems more likely that he has opted for at the very least for the 1500 meters when it comes to the NCAA meet.
Obviously, he still has his choice of events when it’s all said and done, but you could argue that the 1500 is Warren’s best event and his times indicate a level of strength that could give him the ability to make a run at the NCAA title.
Either way, we love how dynamic he has been between both events and in theory, his ability to double, especially on a consistent basis, is super encouraging. That should benefit him at the national meet when it comes to the prelims.
Altitude conversions can be a touchy subject. Ko was the recipient of a massive one after running 14:15 for 5000 meters at the Mines Kit Mayer Classic -- a mark that converted down to an NCAA-leading time of 13:47. That would also be a three-second personal best if it was a raw mark.
Regardless of where you stand on conversions, Ko will be a legitimate contender in the longer races this season. He finished 4th in the 5000 meters at the indoor national meet and just put his name into the outdoor title conversation. Considering he placed 9th in the 10k during the 2019 season, Ko could be set to try the 5k/10k double come the NCAA Championships. He's certainly strong enough to attempt it, but effectively pulling off the double? Well, that's another question.
It seems Bix just needed a return to a familiar place in order for him to perform at a high level. But in all honesty, it’s nice to see Bix get closer to the form that we saw from him back in early December.
Bix traveled with the Adams State team to the Sound Collegiate Invite and ran 13:58 for 5000 meters giving him the NCAA #7 time in the 5k on the national leaderboard. That’s the second-fastest time Bix has ever run, and the fastest he’s run in a Grizzly uniform which bodes well for the future. The next weekend, Bix took home the victory in the 1500 meters at the Maverick Multi & Open, running a personal best of 3:49 for 1500 meters. After conversion, it’s now the NCAA #4 time on the descending order list and sits at 3:44.
Bix also ran 1:54 after that 3:49 in Grand Junction, but it seems clear that he’ll focus on the 1500 and 5000 meter races when the NCAA meet. He has suddenly found the spark that made him the exciting distance threat that we've seen from him in past seasons.
Anthony continues to improve his stock, and to be frank, he continues to surprise us. After debating whether or not Anthony would ever be more than an 800 runner in our last set of rankings, Anthony ran another 1500 at the Flames Invitational, clocking a time of 3:44 and setting his personal best by five seconds.
That’s currently the NCAA #5 time in the country and his 800 meter time gives him his second top-five mark of the outdoor track season (so far). The Queens athlete has turned himself into one of the best middle distance athletes in the country with a legitimate shot at winning a national title in either event. His experience and momentum is clearly benefitting him in a major way, maybe more so than anyone else at the D2 level.
Rugenerwa has not raced since our last update.
Mastandrea drops to our TSR #9 spot this week, partially because of his performances and partially because of others’ performances. He still has the NCAA #1 time in the 10k this season, so it was expected that we’d maybe see him clip off a quick 5k.
He did run a 5k, but crossed the line in 14:16, matching his outdoor personal best from nearly two years ago on the same weekend. Mastandrea has run 14:08 before, but that was during the indoor season before the year turned to 2020. Given how quick he ran over the course of a 10k, there was an expectation we’d see a breakout on the track in a 5k as well, potentially under the 14 minute barrier.
The season isn’t over just yet, so we could very well see Mastandrea improve upon that time, and he’ll need to do so in order to make the NCAA meet in both of his events.
Say hello your newest sub-14:00 5k runner from the D 2 ranks. Yep, you read that right. In his most recent outing, Riddle cracked the 14:00 barrier as he took home the victory at the UCM Mule Relays in a time of 13:54. That’s the third-fastest time this season in D2 behind Marcelo Laguera and Dylan Ko.
This came on the heels of Riddle running 3:47 (1500) and 1:52 (800), both personal bests in those events. Riddle has raced four times this season and hasn’t come away with a blemish yet. In fact, he's won all of his races.
The idea that we haven’t seen the best of Riddle yet is almost too crazy to think about. Riddle won this most recent 5k by three seconds over his teammate Gidieon Kimutai, and the next runner was 25 seconds behind him. When he won his 1500 and ran 3:47, the next runner was eight seconds back of him. Even in the 800, Riddle finished nearly a second ahead of his teammate Gabe McClain.
Riddle has surprisingly become one of the most well-rounded athletes in D2 and he’s got a chance to put that versatility on display at the NCAA Championships in May.
Chada and Harding have not raced since our last update.
Laguera has only raced once since he ran his 5k at the Spank Blasing Open and that was another 1500 at the WTAMU Joe Meaker Classic. His time of 3:56 doesn’t really move the needle, but Laguera won’t be focusing on that event when it comes to the NCAA meet.
If anything, that was a nice opportunity to work on his leg speed in case his postseason races turn tactical. Expect Laguera to race a 10k here shortly. Once he does, we’ll likely be talking about him as a potential title favorite in two events.
Torres stepped up in distance to take a stab at the 5k, and it turns out that he’s just as capable in that event as he is in the 1500 meters. Torres ran 14:29 and edged out Colorado Christian’s Josh Pierantoni for the win in his debut.
That time converts down to 14:09 and he currently sits at NCAA #16 on the national leaderboard. It’s more than likely that we will see him take another crack at this race when the time is right. In his most recent effort, Torres ran 1:51 for 800 meters giving him his third straight PR in as many races.
He’s still a heavy favorite in the 1500 meters, but he’s become a viable All-American contender in either the 5000 or 800 if he chooses to pursue either event as more than just a one off. We're not really sure that's actually going to happen, but either way, his recent display of speed and endurance has surprisingly made Torres more than just a miler. In fact, he seems like more of the dynamic distance talents in D2 so far this spring.
Mbuta debuted in the 1500 meters at the EKU Rick Erdmann Twilight meet this past weekend and he walked away with a small personal best as well. It’s only a single-second improvement, but it’s the second time this season that he’s walked off the track with a new personal best.
Mbuta had the best indoor track season of his life...or at least the best finish, and he’s currently following that up with an impressive outdoor season. His 3:45.18 mark sits as the NCAA #7 time in D2 and that’s a fast enough time to qualify him for the national meet in his second event. It also means that Mbuta can chase one more fast time if he so chooses before the conference meet.
Bravo, James Young. Bravo. Young ran 3:37.72 for 1500 meters and clocked the second-fastest time in D2 history at the Bryan Clay Invitational. He’s the only D2 athlete under the 3:40 barrier and has turned into the runaway favorite at 1500 meters. But Young also displayed two very important qualities in that race.
First, he showed us the ability to race tactically in a race that gets out fast. Second, he showed us he has the ability to run with anyone, and I mean anyone as his time is the fourth-fastest time across all NCAA divisions this season. We haven’t even mentioned the fact that Young ran his first 5k the weekend prior to Bryan Clay and ran 14:09.
Young is part of a recent line of Academy of Art athletes (Valentin Pepiot, Freddie Hessian, Victor Moreau) to be massively successful at the 1500 and 5k distances. He’ll likely look for another 5000 attempt to ensure a qualifying mark for the future. Or, if he takes a different approach, may see what he can do in the 800 meters to better refine his speed.
Noble ran 13:55 at his home meet to take home the victory, but we can’t help but feel like it was an "off" day for the Lee athlete. Whether it was or not, it’s hard to argue that Noble anyone but Noble should be at the top of our rankings.
His 5k is the fourth-fastest time this season and the second-fastest raw time behind Ryan Riddle. He’s the defending indoor 5k champion and ran 13:37 on the indoor oval. Just because of that, Noble should be able to run that fast on an outdoor track. Obviously, until we see it, we can only speculate.
It wouldn’t surprise us either way if Noble opted for another fast 5k in the near future or if he opts to wait until his conference meet before racing again. Whatever he decides to do, he’ll be a force to be reckoned with come May.
Aaron Ahl (Simon Fraser)
Blake Jones (Illinois-Springfield)
Gideon Kimutai (Missouri Southern)
Jonathan Groendyk (Grand Valley State)
Tai Smith (Wingate)
Shane Cohen (Tampa)
Ezra Mutai (American International)
Afewerki Zeru (UC-Colorado Springs)
Miguel Coca (Adams State)
Nate Beamer (Western Washington)
Leakey Kipkosgei (American International)
Loic Scomparin (Colorado Mines)
Luke Julian (Colorado Mines)
Caleb Futter (Grand Valley State)
Davonte Jett-Reynolds (Adams State)
Ezekiel Kipchirchir (West Texas A&M)
David Cardenas (Adams State)
Ezra Mutai (American International)
Afewerki Zeru (UC-Colorado Springs)
Miguel Coca (Adams State)
Dillon Powell (Colorado Mines)
CarLee Stimpfel (Saginaw Valley)
Jason Weitzel (Concord)
Elliot Slade (Academy of Art)
Nate Beamer (Western Washington)
Leakey Kipkosgei (American International)
Loic Scomparin (Colorado Mines)