Kora Malecek
Nov 5, 20229 min
Written by Kora Malecek, additional commentary and edits by Garrett Zatlin
Our high school recruiting specialist, Kora Malecek, has returned with some additional insight and analysis! Below, Kora highlighted four of the top middle and long distance recruits in the nation who remain unsigned while offering her predictions on where they could land.
We should note that this article was crafted on Thursday, November 3rd and is being published on Saturday, November 5th. It is possible that one of these four athletes will have already made their college commitment by the time this article is released.
Additionally, unless noted otherwise, these predictions are being made with no inside information, leaving us to make educated guesses.
Let's begin...
Friendly Suggestions / Commitment Guesses: Colorado, Colorado State, Utah
NOTE: Following the publication of this article, The Stride Report has been informed that Emily Lamontagne has recently committed to North Carolina which occurred at the same time that this article was being crafted.
Emily Lamontagne (TSR #17 recruit) has wasted no time building upon her breakout 2022 outdoor track season, a spring campaign that was highlighted by her 10:14 two-mile effort at the NSAF Outdoor Championships.
Throughout the fall months, Lamontagne has continued to establish herself as one of the absolute best young women in the senior class with a blistering-fast time of 16:05 over three miles at the Woodbridge XC Classic and a 9th place finish at the 5A Colorado State XC Championships.
Lamontagne's long distance prowess suggests that she may not have to look any further than the in-state powerhouses when it comes to honing her still-rising talent.
The Colorado Buffaloes have long been the gold standard for success in the NCAA distance events, securing an infinite number of All-American finishes over the years and most recently having Emily Covert, India Johnson. Madison Boreman and Abby Nichols represent the Buffs at last year's outdoor national meet in events like the 5000 meters, 10,000 meters and steeplechase.
Colorado also just won the PAC-12 cross country title earlier this fall.
However, maybe more importantly, Lamontagne would be joining a stellar Class of 2023 recruiting group which features top-tier talents like Karrie Baloga and Abbey Nechanicky, two similar distance-centric athletes.
On paper, everything suggests that the Buffaloes are the perfect spot for this Colorado native. Adding Lamontagne to this already-outstanding group of recruits would also position the Boulder-based women for exciting long-term success.
Similarly, the Colorado State women are a more recent, but still impressive, distance running stalwart. After an excellent 2022 outdoor track season where they had eight women run under 16:30 for 5000 meters, and more recently snagged a 2nd place finish at the Mountain West XC Championships, Lamontagne would no doubt fit the Rams' roster identity.
If she were to commit to the Rams, then Lamontagne would act as a crucial building block for the long-terms success of this program. Being a figurehead recruit would theoretically give a depth-laden roster a much-needed low-stick and a true identity at the front of their cross country lineup.
A final option that could suit Lamontagne may lie out of the state of Colorado via the University of Utah. Th Utes may not be located in the state of Colorado, but they are a distance-first program that can be found at altitude. On paper, they're not all that different from Colorado or Colorado State.
Headlined by the recent success of 2022 outdoor national qualifier, Cara Woolnough, the breakout season of Simone Plourde this fall and the meteoric comeback of Emily Venters, who just finished runner-up at the PAC-12 XC Championships, the Utes are a program that continually produce excellent cross country results as well as a handful of national-caliber individuals.
Few recruits throughout the country have as many geographically ideal distance programs to choose from than Lamontagne does.
Friendly Suggestions / Commitment Guesses: Oregon, Washington, Iowa State
Devan Kipyego (TSR #5 recruit) is one of the most versatile talents in the high school circuit, boasting a bevy of nationally competitive bests across the board.
While primarily a shorter-distance leaning athlete via his top-tier marks of 1:51 (800) and 4:00 (mile), his 14:57 PR (5k XC) showcases jaw-dropping value that very few recruits of the last decade have been able to mimic.
Slated to commit per his Instagram on November 10th, Kipyego is currently considering Oregon, Washington, Kentucky, Iowa State and Villanova. However, if we had to guess, we would say that either Oregon, Washington or Iowa State will be his final choice.
PAC-12 powers Oregon and Washington would both easily fit the bill for Kipyego given the dynamic and versatile talents who have historically been scattered throughout their rosters.
The Huskies had Joe Waskom claim the national title in the 1500 meters at the NCAA Outdoor Championships this past spring, a race in which Washington had three total men earn All-American honors.
That display of elite mile prowess has to be a very appealing aspect for a 4:00 miler like Kipyego who would instantly be training with the best men in the NCAA. UW is also a dynamic program that has proven to be competitive in all three seasons of competition and all kinds of different distances on the track.
And then there's Oregon whose recent head coaching change to Jerry Schumacher has already attracted high-level out-of-state recruits this year such as sub-four miler, Connor Burns. The appeal of training under a superstar coach, running alongside numerous sub-four minute milers and simply racing for the most historic program in the NCAA may be too much for this Rhode Island native to ignore.
However, for as good as Washington and Oregon are, the Iowa State men may be the most obvious choice. Sure, they're a middle distance juggernaut, but the Cyclones are also home to Darius Kipyego, a former high school superstar and Devan's older brother.
Last spring, we saw Jason Gomez place 4th in the 800 meters at the NCAA Outdoor Championships while teammate Nehemia Too qualified for the same national meet in the 1500 meters. And truthfully, there was likely potential for additional Cyclones to advance to that national stage.
But let's also not forget that Iowa State was the runner-up team at the NCAA XC Championships last fall. That is extremely rare to have seven men run under 1:50 for 800 meters during the winter and spring months while also having your team emerge as a clear-cut podium squad on the grass.
That level of elite versatility, paired with the fact that his brother is currently in his second-year with the program, makes Iowa State an overwhelmingly obvious choice for Devan Kipyego.
Friendly Suggestions / Commitment Guesses: Texas, Tennessee, Arkansas
Another long distance ace, Ava Bushaw has recently gone on a spree of earning personal bests throughout the 2022 cross country season. The Texas native posted a time of 16:20 for three miles and has also run 16:43 for 5000 meters on the grass.
Bushaw's cross country talent makes her a major threat in the fall, and she should be looking forward to expanding on her recent breakthrough campaign on the track as well.
When considering Bushaw’s cross country prowess and the proximity to home, multiple programs within the SEC, and one BIG 12 powerhouse who will soon join the Southeastern Conference, come to mind. These rosters need additional scoring reinforcements, greater depth and a long-term low-stick who can lead a team throughout their college career.
In-state track powerhouse, Texas, is in need of women's distance runners and Bushaw’s profile as a true distance athlete would make her a perfect fit for the Longhorns. The Carroll High School ace could immediately compete for the Texas women on the grass and even earn conference meet points in the longer track events during her first year or two.
The Longhorns have admittedly struggled in recent seasons on the grass and the need to land a superstar recruit of Bushaw's caliber has never been so important. In our, eyes she could be a somewhat immediate replacement for former Longhorns such as Monica Hebner and Isabel Hebner, with room to be even better in the future.
Similarly, the Tennessee women are a distance program that is in a somewhat unique rebuild of sorts under the direction of new coach Sean Carlson, the former Notre Dame men's coach.
While Tennessee has recently produced 5000 meter outdoor national qualifier Sydney Seymour and distance standout Katie Thronson, both women have opted to go elsewhere as graduate transfers this year.
And while there are certainly a handful of respectable talents still on this roster, the need for a greater long-term foundation of elite, young talent is likely the main priority for this team.
Ava Bushaw’s high-octane cross country prowess would mesh beautifully alongside recent Vol commits such as Lily Garrett and Lily Baker. Together, they could help form the cornerstone for a new era in Knoxville, Tennessee.
However, maybe more importantly, Bushaw would be Tennessee's first true megastar commit on the women's side. And as this team tries to build over the next couple of years, being able to have a building block as strong as this Texas native would be huge for Coach Sean Carlson.
And how about the women from Fayetteville?
If Ava Bushaw were to commit to Arkansas, then she would be joining a historically powerful cross country program that would greatly benefit from her prowess on the grass. The Razorbacks have a strong team that is once again nationally ranked this fall, but it's clear that they are not the same juggernaut that they have been in year's past.
But with Bushaw theoretically joining this team, she would bring some much-needed depth and scoring support to a group that has seen a few scoring drop-offs in their lineup this fall. And when you consider how young this team already is, adding this Texas native to their future roster would make this Razorback group a true team of the future.
There are plenty of other programs that could be fantastic fits for this rising high school star who we didn't mention. Oklahoma State, Alabama and Iowa State are just a few. But at the end of the day, Ava Bushaw will make a massive impact wherever she ends up committing to.
Friendly Suggestions / Commitment Guess: Oregon, Cal Poly, Northern Arizona
Simeon Birnbaum (TSR #6 recruit) has enjoyed the highest level of success in high school track and field and cross country. And no, that's not an exaggeration.
At the 2022 Brooks PR Invitational, the South Dakota native won the mile in emphatic fashion by bursting into the most elite of amateur athlete clubs -- running a sub-four-minute mile in a time of 3:59.
With an excellent cross country resume to boot, including a 14:47 personal best over 5000 meters and four-straight wins this fall, Birnbaum is poised to have his pick of elite programs whenever his time for a college commitment arrives.
It also doesn't hurt that he has flexed elite range with personal bests of 1:51 for 800 meters and 8:55 over 3200 meters.
Cal Poly, while usually an afterthought in NCAA competition, has recently risen to the national spotlight thanks to the hiring of former Ole Miss coach, Ryan Vanhoy, who produced elite superstars with the Rebels such as Craig Engels, Waleed Suliman, Robert Domanic, Sintayehu Vissa and Mario Garcia Romo.
Should he commit to the Mustangs, Birnbaum would theoretically become the face of the program’s new relevancy. The mile-centric, versatile distance talent would perfectly mirror the kind of athletes who have most often thrived under Vanhoy.
The opportunity to jump-start a program from the ground up, while maybe even teaming up with Chris Caudillo depending on where he commits to, could be an enticing (and thrilling) challenge.
And maybe more importantly, Birnbaum could very well be the piece who pushes other talented recruits to Cal Poly and begins the program’s national rise sooner than expected (although they're already having a great season).
On paper, everything matches up very well.
Back in the PAC-12, the Oregon men could greatly benefit from Birnbaum’s talents as well, especially with another megastar recruit already making his commitment to the Ducks.
If this South Dakota native chooses the men from Eugene, Oregon, then Birnbaum would be enjoying the company of Connor Burns, another sub-four high school miler with an overwhelmingly elite resume.
The jaw-dropping one-two punch that could arise from that pairing feels potentially reminiscent of Cooper Teare and Cole Hocker, two similarly elite talents who pushed each other to thrive in the longer distance talents will specializing in the mile.
We also can't ignore the pull of a new, elite coaching staff, either. Working under Jerry Schumacher would be hard to ignore, especially for an elite recruit who is probably one of the high schoolers who are best suited for the rigors of Schumacher's training regiment.
Similarly, out in the BIG Sky conference, another sub-four high school miler, Colin Sahlman, could be a future training partner for Birnbaum.
Admittedly, the Lumberjacks may not place as much of an emphasis on the mile and the 1500 meters as a few other programs do. Although, at the same time, the mid-major, high-altitude identity of Northern Arizona seemingly shares some similarities with Rapid City, South Dakota.
However, after missing out on landing Lex Young and Leo Young, and plenty of uncertainty remaining as to whether or not Chris Caudillo and Aaron Sahlman will become Lumberjacks, it feels like NAU would be able to salvage a huge recruiting year by landing Birnbaum.