TSR Collaboration
May 1, 20204 min
Abbey D’Agostino made it to the Sweet 16 after beating two middle distance stars in our bracket - #8 seed Laura Roesler (Oregon ‘14) and #16 seed Katie Erdman (Michigan '07). D’Agostino won seven national titles during her time at Dartmouth and her collegiate bests make her an all-time great.
Going up against the #1 seed in the Blue Region is #4 seed Kara Goucher (Colorado ‘01). Goucher made it to the Sweet 16 by receiving more votes than Kate Avery (Iona ‘15) and steeplechase star #12 Colleen Quigly (Florida State ‘15) in the first two rounds. The Colorado ace won three national titles in 2000 to leave her mark on the NCAA before going on to have a prosperous pro career.
This matchup includes two of the best distance runners of their respective decades, each with unique name recognition. Both runners have one NCAA cross country national title to their name and excelled in the 3k and 5k distances. In terms of popularity, both athletes are recognizable names in the sport, but D’Agostino’s recency could be a challenge for Goucher in the voting. However, the Colorado alum has a contingent of fans that may get her to the Elite 8.
This matchup is a tight battle between #6 seed Jessica Hull (Oregon '19) and #2 seed Shalane Flanagan (North Carolina '04). Both names are easily recognizable in the running world and their success puts them amongst an elite list of NCAA champions. Hull managed to beat #3 seed Lauren Fleshman (Stanford '03) in our last round as well as #11 seed Alice Schmidt (North Carolina '05) in the first round. Meanwhile, Flanagan took down #7 seed Courtney Frerichs (UMKC/New Mexico '16) and #15 seed Skylyn Webb (UC-Colorado Springs '19) on her way to the Sweet 16.
Hull’s recent success allowed her to take down Fleshman, but Flanagan is arguably the most famous American distance runner of the decade and her popularity could lead to Hull being outvoted.
On the other hand, Hull just graduated last year and went to Oregon, an iconic brand in the distance running community. Flanagan won three NCAA titles compared to Hull’s four, but Flanagan’s back-to-back cross country titles are arguably more impressive than Hull’s two DMR titles. This matchup could go either way.
With both stars recently graduating, this is a contest that has plenty of real-life matchups to look back on. Justyn Knight has the edge in terms NCAA titles (two to one), but Grant Fisher won his NCAA gold medal by beating Knight in the 5000 meters at the 2017 Outdoor National Championships.
Knight got his revenge in the fall of 2017 season when he won the 2017 NCAA Cross Country Championships, beating Fisher by 12 seconds (who finished 5th overall). The former Orange runner went on to win the indoor 5k national title in 2018 while Fisher finished 4th. Both Knight and Fisher were upset by Sean McGorty in the 2018 outdoor 5k, forcing them to settle for 2nd and 3rd, respectively.
Overall, Knight got the better of Fisher more often throughout their collegiate careers. However, Fisher owns the NCAA #3 all-time mark in the 3000 meters with his time of 7:42. As for Knight, he has faster times in the 1500 meters (3:36) and 5k (13:17).
Many of these April Anarchy matchups have been hypotheticals, but thankfully, this is one that we have seen many times.
Jorge Torres has entered the Sweet 16 after victories over Josh McDougal and Miles Batty. Torres stormed away in the Round of 32, with the largest margin of victory in the Blue region at 73% to 27%. Now, the Buffalo star will be up against his toughest opponent yet in Andrew Wheating. This will be Torres’ first time as an underdog in this tournament and his first matchup against a single-digit seed.
Wheating had a much more challenging path to the Sweet 16, barely edging out Lopez Lomong in the Round of 32 after blowing out Mason Ferlic in the first round. Torres will also be Wheating’s highest ranked opponent of this competition.
This matchup could also be viewed as a cross country vs track matchup. Torres excelled on the grass, earning an individual NCAA title, a team title and three top-three finishes at the NCAA XC Championships.
Wheating, on the other hand, was a master on the oval. The Oregon superstar had major success over the 800 meters and 1500 meters. The images of Wheating earning a place at the 2008 Olympics in an Oregon uniform is still one of the most recognizable NCAA moments of the late 2000's.
Of course, this battle of track vs cross country accolades does not limit Torres’ expertise on the oval. Torres grabbed a 2nd place in the 5000 meters in 2001, but was never able to emerge with an NCAA title on the track.