D2 XC Top 20: Week 2 (9/19)

Updated: Sep 27, 2018

By: John Cusick

Week three of cross country has finished. Although we haven’t seen all of our ranked individuals, there are still some performances that have shown us that the individual battle this fall is going to be worth the watch.

Some of these athletes still haven't debuted, but that doesn’t mean they won’t have exceptional performances when the time matters. As for now, our rankings have been shaken up a tiny bit. We also have a new athlete that entered the Top 20 for the first time this year. Check it out below...

20. Dustin Nading | Previously: 20 | Movement: None

Western Oregon did not race this weekend.

19. Gidieon Kumatai | Previously: N/A | Movement: N/A

Kumatai was the surprise athlete of the week. He went head-to-head with Jacob Klemz at the Southern Stampede Invite to give us the best battle of the weekend. While he didn’t win, his 2nd place effort was very impressive. It looks like Missouri Southern has another potential stud on their hands, especially if he keeps this up throughout the season.

18. Nadir Yusuf | Previously: 18 | Movement: None

MSU-Moorhead did not race this weekend. We’ll come back to Yusuf next week.

17. Kale Adams | Previously: 10 | Movement: Down 7

Adams was the lead man for the Grizzlies at Gunnison, but it felt like another down week results wise. Adams was 9th overall, but compared to last year it just doesn’t seem like he is in the same kind of shape (at least not yet).

16. Bashir Aidrus | Previously: 14 | Movement: Down 2

Aidrus is still absent from SW Minnesota State’s roster forcing us to question if he is redshirting or simply waiting until the right time to debut. Stay tuned...

15. Ross Husch | Previously: 17 | Movement: Up 2

Husch was 4th at the Mountaineer Open behind some of the nation's top talent. With everyone’s season still very young, Husch should only improve over the next couple of months. We’ll continue to monitor how he races as he could rapidly rise.

14. Ricardo Ocampo | Previously: 13 | Movement: Down 1

Colorado School of Mines did not race this weekend.

13. Logan Ramlet | Previously: 12 | Movement: Down 1

Ramlet still hasn’t raced. The season is still relatively young, so expect the Adams State top lineup to be out soon.

12. Andrew Curry | Previously: 12 | Movement: Up 3

Dallas Baptist was idle this weekend giving us no new update on Curry. However, we’ve decided to move him up since he has debuted and the Mines' team has not.

11. Jacob Klemz | Previously: 17 | Movement: Up 6

Klemz had an outstanding weekend as he took down an impressive field at the Southern Stampede which included Mason Phillips and now ranked Gidieon Kumatai. He’s quickly becoming a household name that will be worth watching. He’s clearly in good shape to begin the season and should only progress once we get to October.

10. Joshua Joseph | Previously: 9 | Movement: Down 1

Joseph didn't race with Adams State this past weekend

9. Taylor Stack | Previously: 8 | Movement: Down 1

Stack really only moves down here because Laguera jumped up to the 7th spot after a strong weekend performance. Stack was runner-up in that race, still ahead of teammates Ross Husch and Ahmed Jama (who ran unattached). The Western State men will have a couple weeks off before they toe the line for another big race.

8. Grant Colligan | Previously: 7 | Movement: Down 1

Colorado School of Mines has not yet fielded their top lineup.

7. Marcelo Laguera | Previously: 11 | Movement: Up 4

We talked about how impressive Laguera looked at the Colorado College Invite and after this weekend it's safe to say that he should be considered for the top spot. He ran away from the likes of other top runners at the Mountaineer Open on his way to an 18 second victory.

6. Mason Phillips | Previously: 6| Movement: None

We mentioned the battle between Klemz and Phillips earlier this week. Despite Phillips not running as well as we thought he would, that shouldn't affect his ranking right now. He's still a top talent and someone who shouldn't be defined by one race.

5. Elias Gedyon | Previously: 5 | Movement: None

Gedyon did not run with team at Mountaineer Open.

4. Enael Woldemichael | Previously: 4 | Movement: None

At the MSU Spartan Invite, Woldemichael ran with Panning virtually the entire meet. The sophomore finished just a second behind his teammate, securing the top two spots. He looks to be in prime shape early in the season. With an effort like this, the Lakers’ chances of knocking off Adams State goes up quite a bit.

3. Leakey Kipkosgei | Previously: 3 | Movement: None

American International also raced this weekend at the UMass Dartmouth Invitational and saw success as a team. However, Kipkosgei wasn't apart of their effort this weekend as he was likely resting. We’re sure to see him in the coming weeks.

2. Sydney Gidabuday | Previously: 2 | Movement: None

While Adams State ran at the Mountaineer Open, it was essentially a trial to see how deep they were. Gidabuday didn't participate this time around, so he’ll stand pat this week.

1. Zach Panning | Previously: 1 | Movement: None

Talk about holding down the number one spot. Panning took home the individual title at the MSU Spartan Invite with a time of 24:45. He was a second ahead of teammate Enael Woldemichael and 27 seconds ahead of Morgan Beadlescomb (TSR #46). Panning looks to be in top form already and we're not even a month into the season.

Falling Out: Josh Hoskinson

Week four will get started here very soon. With each week bringing new athletes and new performances, we'll be sure to determine which ones are going to be around for awhile.

Like always, praise or critique our rankings. We promise our feelings won't get hurt.