Admin (Garrett Zatlin)
Jun 30, 20232 min
What? You thought the Florida women were done adding to their 2023 roster?
Well, think again.
Earlier today, the University of Florida announced that Elise Thorner, formerly of New Mexico, will be joining the Gators staring later this fall as a graduate transfer. She is expected to have one full year of eligibility remaining between all three seasons of competition.
Thorner now joins former New Mexico teammate Amelia Mazza-Downie as recent graduate transfers to leave the Lobos in favor for the Gators. Both moves stem from Coach Joe Franklin leaving the University of New Mexico earlier this month to take the Director role at Louisville.
Flomena Asekol is also joining the Gators at the beginning of the next academic calendar. She recently left Alabama to reunite with her former distance coach, Will Palmer, at Florida as a graduate transfer. She is a 4:32 miler and a two-time All-American on the grass.
In less than two weeks, the Florida women have gone from a team that may not qualify for the 2023 NCAA XC Championships to a team that could possibly win a national title later this fall.
Elise Thorner is one of the better steeplechase/cross country hybrid talents in the NCAA. The former Lobo runner holds a 9:32 personal best over the barriers, a mark that currently sits at NCAA #13 all-time. She has finished in the top-five on the national stage in that event twice throughout her career.
The British steeplechaser is also a standout talent on the grass, finishing 40th overall at the 2022 cross country national meet and earning All-American honors in the process. And while some of her results on the grass are better than others, it's undeniable that she'll be a candidate to finish among the top-30 women at the national meet come November.
The Florida women were already making major noise when it was announced yesterday that Amelia Mazza-Downie would be teaming up Parker Valby and Flomena Asekol on the grass.
On paper, that trio gave the Gators an elite megastar (Valby), two firmly established upper-tier All-American scorers (Asekol and Mazza-Downie) and a potentially underrated backend piece (Allison Wilson, a fellow transfer from Alabama).
But with the introduction of Thorner, the Florida women have may a complete top-five lineup loaded with overwhelming scoring potency via four proven All-Americans. On paper, that should put this team in the podium conversation and, in a world where everything goes perfectly, maybe even the national title conversation as well.
The "concerns" highlighted in yesterday's article remain somewhat true this morning, even with the addition of the Gators' newest graduate transfer.
Valby needs to remain healthy, Wilson needs to prove that she can be a reliable backend scorer, Thorner probably needs to be a bit better this fall (if the team wants to contend for a national title) and everyone needs to run well on the same day.
Of course, in comparison to juggernaut distance powerhouses such as NC State, Colorado and Oklahoma State, any critiques of this Florida team are no more significant than the weak points of their fellow national title contenders.