​PREDICTIONS & PREVIEWS: D2 Regional XC Championships

Written by Grace McLaughlin, Marissa Kuik & Gavin Struve

Questions, edits and additional commentary via Gavin Struve & Garrett Zatlin

After the conference championship weekend brought some significant and unexpected results across the Division Two landscape, teams are likely excited to see how they stack up to end the season at the NCAA XC Championships.

But first, they have to get through their regional meets.

While we don't traditionally place as much emphasis on the regional stage, these meets are still worth covering given their status as mid-postseason events with large collections of talent. We won't be able to hit on every single region, but we were able to round up our Division Two team to discuss the top storylines that we'll be monitoring the most closely...

Click here to see predictions

The Central region is quietly one of the more loaded and unpredictable of the eight Division Two women’s regions. Which team(s) could benefit the most from a strong showing this weekend?

Grace: With Winona State and Augustana (SD) going up against each other again after their matchup at the NSIC XC Championships, the Central region definitely has a spotlight on it. I think it's safe to assume that both of those teams will be auto-qualifiers for the cross country national meet, but the battle for 3rd place, the final automatic qualifying spot, is up for grabs.

U-Mary is my immediate assumption to land in that spot due to their history of success and based on the fact that they've had a fairly solid season thus far. However, Pittsburg State has been sneaky-good this fall and recently won the MIAA XC Championships in a close race against Missouri Southern.

The Marauders and Gorillas could both benefit from a strong showing this weekend, but Pittsburg State is a younger and more compact-scoring team that will need to be at 100% if they have a chance at taking down U-Mary’s low-stick scoring potency.

Marissa: The team that would benefit the most from a strong showing is U-Mary. The Marauders have been fairly strong this whole season and I think a lot of people are sleeping on them. They finished 2nd at Griak Invitational in the "Maroon" race, behind only Augustana (SD), and they finished 3rd at the NSIC XC Championships behind only Winona State and Augustana again.

The Marauders have a strong top-five spread, led by Alyssa Becker, who has previously been in our individual rankings. Their fifth scoring spot does limit their ceiling a little bit given the gap, but I still think that this team can snag an automatic qualifying spot.

I see Winona State and Augustana (SD) as locks for the top-two positions, but I really think U-Mary can place 3rd overall as a team.

Pittsburg State and Missouri Southern have run well all season long as well, but I think U-Mary has more firepower up front and will take that 3rd place spot which would further extend their historical excellence as a program.

Gavin: This is one of the more competent of the eight regions, filled with good, but not great, teams. I'm not sure I'd go so far as to pick them as the 3rd place team, presumably after Winona State and Augustana (SD), but I think Minnesota State is a squad that's being slept on among this group.

The Mavericks were a top-half team at last year's cross country national meet and entered the season in about that range as an "Honorable Mention" squad in our preseason rankings. They have two strong runners in MaKenna Thurston and Emily Cunningham, each of whom offers some valuable firepower. A big effort by the Mavericks' backend scorers could help them capitalize on a wide-open year in the Central region.

Reaching another national meet after a season in which Minnesota State has largely been an afterthought, nationally, would be significant for this program's momentum. It would also be nice to achieve it without dealing with the headaches of counting on receiving an at-large bid.

Grace: On the women’s side, I think the Southeast region is pretty “locked in” with Wingate, Flagler and Catawba taking the top-three positions. Wingate is the clear favorite and I would put their talent a level above the rest of the region.

But I think the next two spots are pretty set as well. Earlier in the season, I would have put Anderson (SC) in the mix. But after losing to Wingate and Catawba by considerable margins, as well as Lenoir-Rhyne at the SAC XC Championships, I don't think they will be able to rebound and put themselves in the top-three.

Additionally, both Flagler and Catawba have been strong thus far this fall, and I would be surprised if Lenior-Rhyne, Converse and/or Anderson (SC) could match their depth.

For the men, I think Lee (Tenn.), Alabama-Huntsville and Mississippi College are “locks” in the South region. Those three team recently lined up at the Gulf South XC Championships where Lee won convincingly while Alabama-Huntsville was just three points ahead of a sometimes-hard-to-gauge Mississippi College squad.

Embry-Riddle (FL) and Florida Southern did beat Mississippi College at the UAH Chargers XC Invitational, but that was without low-stick Jan Lukas Becker lining up for the Choctaws.

The Flames are the clear favorites this weekend and I think Alabama-Huntsville and Mississippi College could be interchangeable behind them. Regardless, that trio of teams is still a cut above the rest of the field when firing on all cylinders.

Marissa: On the women’s side, I think the South region is a lock.

Lee pulled off some upsets this season including beating UC-Colorado Springs at the Louisville XC Classic and they later won the Gulf South Conference XC Championships fairly easily. Both Tampa and Mississippi College have been consistent this year. Meanwhile, Tampa has produced some great results, finishing in front of Cedarville, Flagler and Mississippi College at the UAH Chargers XC Invitational.

For the men, the West region auto-qualifiers are seemingly a lock to go to Chico State, Azusa Pacific and Western Washington. They all easily won their respective conference meets and they've all been nationally competitive (to varying extents) this fall.

Chico State has consistently fared well at the national meet and they have a track record of winning West regional titles. Plus, the other teams below those three squads have all been beaten by that trio.

Gavin: The women's side in the Midwest region feels relatively predictable.

Our TSR #1 team, Grand Valley State, figures to win comfortably while Cedarville and Lewis should fill in the other auto-qualifier spots behind them. That may feel like I'm discounting Wayne State (MI), but based on the results that we've seen this season, it would be relatively surprising to see the Yellow Jackets or Flyers falter.

As for the men, I have to agree with Grace that the South region feels quite settled.

Lee (Tenn.) feels like the best team, even if they're just outside of our last top-10 team rankings. Meanwhile, Mississippi College and Alabama-Huntsville should fill in behind them barring any unforeseen circumstances.

Those latter two teams are following different trajectories, but both possess excellent firepower and strong enough complementary depth to be competitive toward the top-half of the national meet, let alone the regional stage.

Grace: For the men, I think the South Central region is the clear pick here.

Colorado Mines is almost certainly locked in as the top team, but after that, there is the potential for a toss up. If Adams State is without Awet Beraki again and Western Colorado continues their momentum, then there could be an upset, although the order within the top-three largely doesn't matter -- the teams in those positions just want the automatic spots.

We didn’t get to see Colorado Christian at full strength at the RMAC XC Championships, but they certainly have the talent to be in that top-three as well. They're a group that always focuses on the regional stage rather than the conference level.

We will also get to see how West Texas A&M’s international lineup fares in a larger field. As for Fort Lewis, they were a pleasant surprise at the RMAC XC Championships, but UC-Colorado Springs and CSU-Pueblo should also be in the mix with the Skyhawks.

Essentially, after the Orediggers, (and more likely than not, after the Grizzlies) I would not be too surprised with any order we see between Western Colorado, West Texas A&M and Colorado Christian. It's still more likely than not that many (but maybe not all) of the teams I just mentioned will get at-large bids to the national meet.

However, when we start getting to the range featuring Fort Lewis, UC-Colorado Springs, CSU-Pueblo, MSU-Denver and New Mexico Highlands, things become a little less certain. And as we saw last fall with Adams State, a top team dropping to that part of the results could lead to yet another stunning national qualifying miss. That's by no means a guarantee, but it's something to monitor.

On the women’s side, I think the West region will be the most volatile.

Chico State has a strong lineup and is almost certainly going to be a top-three squad on Saturday. Meanwhile, Western Washington has developed into a nationally competitive program and recently won the GNAC XC Championships. The Biola and CUI women are both highly respectable programs with a similar level of talent, but Azusa Pacific wasn’t too far off from them points-wise at the PacWest XC Championships.

Stanislaus State and Cal Poly Pomona also deserve mentions after respectable efforts at the CCAA XC Championships. We also can't forget about Saint Martin’s, a team that finished as the runner-up at the GNAC XC Championships and has been quietly building momentum.

Oh, and the talented trio of Nanooks from Alaska Fairbanks also can’t be ignored. If Naomi Bailey is firing on all cylinders, and their latter-two scorers move up a little, then Alaska Fairbanks will likely put themselves in the top-five.

There are a lot of unknowns in the West region and there are numerous contenders to consider -- many of whom will be going up against each other for the first time this season. I think Chico State has the clear edge over the rest of the field, but behind the Wildcats are a bunch of wildcards.

Marissa: I think the most volatile region on both the men’s and women’s side has to be the South Central region. For the women, Adams State and Colorado Mines seem pretty much a lock for the top-two spots, but places 3-4-5-6 could go to anyone such as West Texas A&M, Western Colorado, CSU-Pueblo and UC-Colorado Springs.

At the RMAC XC Championships, we saw how close the battle was between CSU-Pueblo and UC-Colorado Springs, and we already know how much closer it would have been with Western Colorado if Hedlund had not gone down with 100 meters to go. The West Texas A&M women will be a factor as well after their convincing win at the LSC XC Championships over Dallas Baptist.

But what happens when Colorado Christian runs their full lineup? And how dangerous are the Fort Lewis women? If those teams get into the mix and one of the above squads has a bad day, then is there the potential for a national qualifying favorite to be left at home?

For the men, it's arguably just as volatile.

As usual, we did not get to see the top men from Colorado Christian’s squad at the RMAC XC Championships, so they will put themselves into the conversation for the 3rd (and maybe the 2nd) place spot.

For now though, it seems like Colorado Mines and Adams State have a lock on the top-two men's positions. But again, places 3-4-5 could go to anyone, including Western Colorado — who had an impressive 3rd place showing at the RMAC XC Championships — Colorado Christian and/or West Texas A&M, the latter of whom also easily won their conference meet.

Gavin: I think the West region is the most unpredictable on the women's side for many of the reasons that Grace mentioned above. I think we could see virtually any three of Alaska Fairbanks, Azusa Pacific, Biola, Chico State, CUI, Western Washington and maybe even Saint Martin's advance.

Some have firepower in spades while others carry depth. Few among this group has enough of both aspects to feel like a lock, though some are more likely qualifiers than others. It's probable that we get a few at-large bids from this region, but a couple of those teams will likely be left out.

At first glance, it feels like there's a pretty fleshed out top-three men's teams in the Central region...but are we sure about that? East Central, Augustana (SD) and Minnesota-Duluth are the only teams from that region listed (in some capacity) in our most recent team rankings update. However, none of those groups have been anything close to dominant this season (although East Central has cruised past fairly light competition).

And are we sure that historically successful programs like Pittsburg State, Washburn, Northwest Missouri State, Nebraska-Kearney and Missouri Southern will fade quietly into the background? It feels more likely than not one of those squads crashes the auto-qualifiers party on Saturday.

Are there any top teams that you would be concerned about potentially missing the national meet in an unfavorable regional scenario?

Grace: For the women, I am a little concerned about Minnesota State. The Mavericks placed 16th at last year’s cross country national meet, and while they did lose some key scorers, this is a team that I expected to be the slightest bit better throughout the regular season.

The Central region is competitive. They’ll have to go up against Winona State, Augustana (SD), U-Mary, Pittsburg State, Missouri Southern and Sioux Falls. I do not think they are in position to earn an auto-qualifier, so I can't help but wonder what would happen if they were to fall to a team like Sioux Falls on Saturday.

On the men’s side, it is a similar situation with Illinois-Springfield. I don't think they can be a top-three team at the Midwest region and I personally think they needed to beat more teams than they did at both the Southern Stampede and Louisville XC Classic to be confident in earning an at-large bid.

Marissa: I think the teams that have to be on high alert are the ones in the always-volatile South Central region. I already detailed this in the above section, but it bares repeating.

After all, we saw what happened last year when the historically dominant Adams State men faded all the way to 7th place, making it hard for them to get an at-large bid and consequently failing to qualify for the national meet.

The Central and West regions on the women’s side could be unpredictable as well with a lot of teams shaking up the rankings. Grace makes a good point when it comes to Minnesota State in the Central region and the West region is seemingly primed to leave at least one competitive team at home.

Gavin: We were encouraged, and perhaps pleasantly surprised, by Minnesota-Duluth's runner-up finish at the NSIC XC Championship in the men's race. They have strong depth which they flaunted with a pack-running effort on the conference stage.

However, that scoring structure didn't serve them as well in larger fields at the Lewis XC Crossover and Griak Invitational. As such, it feels like they're lacking for big wins and I'll be curious to see how that impacts them when it comes to at-large bids.

Sure, they're not a top team, but the Bulldogs were among the 22 teams listed in our most recent team rankings update, so they should definitely be a national meet qualifier in theory. However, they may not wish to leave their national qualification up to (a calculatedly-determined) chance in a region that I chose as the most volatile.

We saw most of the top South Central region men’s teams compete at the RMAC XC Championships recently. What, if anything, do you anticipate changing when they race against each other once more on Saturday?

Grace: I think the men going up in distance to the 10k mixes things up quite a bit. We will see Colorado Christian’s “A” team unlike at the RMAC XC Championships. The South Central region usually has an altitude factor, and this year's race is being held in Texas at a much lower altitude than where most of these schools are located.

I think the new international additions to West Texas A&M have a lot of advantages in this race setting and seeing them go up against the top talents from Colorado Mines and Adams State is one of the main storylines of the weekend.

I imagine that the endurance stars of Colorado Mines and Adams State will thrive with the longer distance, but aggressive racing tactics from the Buffaloes could make things interesting.

Marissa: For the men, it gets even more exciting. As usual, we did not get to see the top men from Colorado Christian’s squad at the RMAC XC Championships, so they will put themselves into the conversation for 3rd place and maybe even 2nd place.

For now though, it seems like Colorado Mines and Adams State have a firm grasp on the top-two spots. But again, 3-4-5 could go to anyone, including Western Colorado — who had an impressive 3rd place showing at the RMAC meet — Colorado Christian or West Texas A&M, the latter of whom breezed through their conference meet.

I think the biggest thing that will change is the introduction of CCU's top guys. Not only does it present a potential new contender for the individual regional title in Matthew Storer, but the team could make a run at usurping Western Colorado or West Texas A&M.

Speaking of the 'Buffs, I think they will intersperse a few guys up into what were the top packs that formed at the RMAC meet. William Amponsah will definitely put himself in there with the likes of Andrew Amor, Awet Beraki, Simon Kelati, Duncan Fuehne, Romain Legendre and Storer for the individual title.

Gavin: Grace made an astute point about the potential complications of a longer racing distance, particularly later in the season when weather can introduce another variable. As such, I'll be closely monitoring some top cross country programs that can tend to lean more track-based or middle distance focused like Azusa Pacific and West Texas A&M.

Both have been pleasant surprises this year. Will they continue their success as we suddenly increase the race distance by 25%?

Who’s the favorite in the South Central region women’s individual race: Brianna Robles, Eleonora Curtabbi or Sarah Koomson?

Grace: Usually, I would pick Brianna Robles without a doubt just based on her overall talent and consistency. But at this race last year, we saw the duo from West Texas A&M (Florance Uwajeneza and Eleonora Curtabbi) prevail over the field. The race is also in Texas this year, rather than at the altitude of Colorado, and I think this is a big advantage for both Curtabbi and new teammate, Sarah Koomson.

Koomson already took down Robles this season at the Louisville XC Classic, but she was not great at the Lone Star XC Championships. Both Curtabbi and Koomson have the potential to beat Robles, but the Grizzly ace is just so reliable and competitive.

With that being said, my gut is telling me to go with the steeplechase star and elite veteran, Eleonora Curtabbi, to win this one.

Marissa: This is definitely a tough question because all three women are singular talents with varying resumes and skillsets. However, after their conference meets, I think I have to go with Robles based on her past history in championship races and how strong she recently looked at the RMAC XC Championships.

Curtabbi has been a little inconsistent this year given that Koomson beat her at the Louisville XC Classic. She did look fantastic at the LSC XC Championships, but I think Robles is going to edge her out.

Gavin: I'll provide a third different answer from our panel. I think Koomson's upside is greater than her two veteran counterparts, as evidenced by her triumph over them in Louisville.

The rookie distance ace should only get stronger as she attains more postseason (and major meet) racing experience. I also feel better about Robles than Curtabbi as I can't seem to shake her underwhelming performance from the Louisville XC Classic from my mind (which really wasn't that poor).

Grace: Since we discussed the South Central women and Marissa mentioned the West region, I am going to go with the individual battle between teammates from Grand Valley State in the Midwest region. Natalie Graber is the clear favorite after the GLIAC meet, but Lauren Kiley, Kaudia O’Malley and Ana Tucker are all very talented in their own regards.

Graber was the favorite at this meet last year as well, but it was O’Malley who crossed the line first. Kiley, O’Malley and Tucker have been pretty interchangeable so far this season and could finish in any order. Any one of these Laker women could take home the individual title, especially if they stick to running as a group early in the race.

Although, truthfully, I imagine that the Lakers may not necessarily care about this individual battle as long as they can comfortably cruise into the national meet.

For the men, I think the West region will be interesting. Kevin McDermott and Andrew Oslin of Western Washington, Cole Nash of Alaska Anchorage and a number of talented Chico State Wildcats will go head-to-head.

Nash beat the Viking duo at the Lewis Crossover, but McDermott and Johan Correa of Central Washington beat him at the GNAC XC Championships.

Speaking of Correa, he’s nearly undefeated this fall and is going into this race as a massive wildcard. As for Chico State, Daniel Hernandez and Dylan White have been solid this fall, but I'm not exactly sure how to measure their capabilities with their more restrictive regular season schedule.

Marissa: I think the most exciting individual race will be among the West region women between Gianna Bomarito, Rosie Fordham and Kendall Kramer. All three women have been on a tear this season, finishing on top of the podium and no lower than 4th place. This battle is going to be exciting and a matchup that I have been waiting all season to see the result of.

On the men’s side, I have to go back to the South Central region. After Andrew Amor came away with the RMAC title well ahead of Romain Legendre and Simon Kelati, this race becomes significantly more interesting.

Duncan Fuehne almost threw himself in the mix to win the conference title, but ran out of real estate. He will definitely be a factor with the distance moving up to 10k.

With men like Awet Beraki, Matthew Storer and William Amponsah also being added to the South Central mix, the battle for the individual title becomes even more exciting than what we saw at the RMAC XC Championships.

Gavin: I love the inclusion of Johan Correa in Grace's answer because I think he's a major dark horse contender out of the West region.

I'm also going to reiterate Marissa's answer about the South Central region holding the most compelling individual race thanks to its field of men. We're expecting to see five of the top-six individuals duking it out in west Texas. And naturally, I'm filled with questions.

Will Matthew Storer look like a deserving TSR #1 runner entering the national meet? Does Amponsah, a freshman, have the highest upside of any Division Two male? Is Kelati finally in store for a seismic win? Could Fuehne perform like our TSR #1 runner that he was listed as a month ago? It would be more more surprising than not if Amor won this race, right? Can Beraki revive his stock? And does he even race?

I look forward to overanalyzing these results in anticipation of the national meet.

The Augustana (SD) and East Central men are two teams that started the season in a completely different conversation, but enter the Central Regional XC Championships in similar standing. Which of the two, if either, do you see as the favorite to win the region?

Grace: I would say the men of East Central have more upside while the men of Augustana are the more reliable choice. That being said, the talent and firepower that East Central showed at the Southern Stampede meet was commendable. And if they perform like that, I do not see how they could lose to the Vikings.

As such, I am going to pick the East Central men as the favorites due to their low-stick scoring potency and current momentum.

Marissa: Basically, the question is whether you go with experience or momentum. The Augustana (SD) men’s team has more experience when it comes to winning regional titles and performing well in championship settings. However, the East Central men have the most momentum entering the regional meet.

I also think that East Central is just a stronger team than Augustana. Even though the Tigers have not faced incredibly challenging teams this fall, they have easily won every meet that they toed the line for. Augustana will be their toughest challenge yet, but I think they will rise to the occasion and beat the Vikings.

Gavin: At the risk of getting burned as all three of us pick the more unproven team, it simply feels like East Central has far more talent, and consequently, perhaps more margin for error.

The Vikings have a strong low-stick of their own in Ryan Hartman, but the Tigers have the look of a team that is still discovering the limits of their ceiling -- and it probably doesn't stop at an auto-qualifier spot in the Central region.

Grace: I think Walsh is the right choice for the men’s side. They beat Saginaw Valley State and Wayne State (MI) by considerable margins at the Lewis XC Crossover and performed well at the G-MAC XC Championships. Saginaw Valley’s runner-up effort at the GLIAC XC Championships was solid, but I think Walsh’s overall talent and stability has them beat.

For the women, I am hesitant to say Cedarville due to their relative inconsistency this season. Their performance at the Louisville XC Classic was not great and they lost to Tampa at the UAH Chargers Invitational.

Wayne State (MI) has been solid this fall with a 3rd place finish at the Griak Invitational, a 9th place finish at the Lewis XC Crossover and a runner-up performance at the GLIAC XC Championships. However, the Warriors lack true low-sticks while Cedarville has shown flashes of firepower in Hannah Rhem and Savannah Ackley.

I would not be surprised if either team placed 3rd, but based on history, I'll go with Cedarville.

Marissa: I feel pretty confident that Cedarville will take the 3rd spot on the women’s side.

Though the 'Jackets have not performed the way that we expected them to, they have still been consistent throughout the season, and honestly, I think they are simply better than any of the other teams outside of the top-two in the Midwest region.

Wayne State (MI) is the only team that might give them a scare, but I don't think the Warriors have been that stellar this year. They have had some tough efforts like at Griak Invitational and the Lewis XC Crossover.

For the men, it's pretty close between Saginaw Valley State and Walsh. At the Lewis XC Crossover, Walsh had the upper-hand and beat SVSU. Both looked really strong at their conference meets. With that being said, I think I am leaning towards Walsh because they beat the Cardinals at the Lewis XC Crossover, but it's definitely going to be a close battle.

Gavin: I'm also going with Cedarville to snag 3rd (or perhaps 2nd) for the women's side. Even with the hiccups that they've had, I'm still not certain that these Yellow Jackets are worse than last year's high-achieving team.

And while I'm as confident in this assessment, I think this setting will benefit the Saginaw Valley State men, who redeemed themselves by snagging runner-up honors fairly comfortably with a pack-running effort at the GLIAC XC Championships.

Plus, they have a recent history of success that's hard to count against.

Both the Alaska Anchorage men and the Alaska Fairbanks women are slotted 4th in the West region in our latest TSR team rankings update. Which program do you anticipate being the "odd team out" on each side should UAA or UAF crack the top-three of their respective races? And what chance (on a scale of 1 to 10) would you give of that happening?

Grace: The Alaska Anchorage men have posted impressive and consistent results so far this season, highlighted by their 6th place finish at the Lewis XC Crossover. Their lineup structure is stable with the low-stick scoring of Cole Nash, Michael Zapherson’s additional firepower and a solid trio to round out their scorers.

The Nanook women are really strong through three, but the gap after that trio really hurts them. I think we'll see a similar situation compared to last fall where they will have three individual national qualifiers in Kendall Kramer, Naomi Bailey and Rosie Fordham.

If the Seawolf men crack into the top-three, I think it will be Azusa Pacific left to rely on an at-large bid. Western Washington and Chico State have too many front-runners and have proven to be top-10 teams in the nation.

Don’t get me wrong, Azusa Pacific has been running well this year and I like their momentum, but they’re realistically the only team that Alaska Anchorage could take down. But on a scale of 1 to 10, I would only give that scenario a "4" in terms of likelihood due to how compact nature of the Cougars' lineup is.

Marissa: On the women's side, Alaska Fairbanks just doesn’t have the backend depth to pass up any of the other top-three teams in the region. Truthfully, I'm not sure if I can pick a team that Alaska Fairbanks could beat. Western Washington, Biola and Chico State all have fairly tight spreads.

For a team like the Nanooks that have a limited backend scoring group, it's going to be hard to beat other teams who have really close packs. As such, I'm going to offer a "1" on Alaska Fairbanks beating any of the top-three teams in the West region.

The Alaska Anchorage men do have a legitimate shot to take down Western Washington. Both teams have similar lineup structures, but the only difference is that Alaska Anchorage’s fifth runner is further back than WWU's.

If Alaska Anchorage can get their final scorer ahead of the Vikings', then they'll have a chance to beat them. I would give them a "6" out of 10 chance at achieving that.

Gavin: I agree with Marissa and Grace that it will be intrinsically difficult for the Alaska Fairbanks women to crack to the top-three, but I do think there is an outside path if their top-five all run well on the same day and meet expectations.

Still, it seems more likely the Nanooks snag an at-large bid if anything which would probably necessitate finishing ahead of a higher-rated team.

I'd say the likelihood of Alaska Fairbanks cracking the top-three is a "3" on a scale of 1 to 10. There are a host of teams right around UAF's ability level in the West region, but the most likely candidate for them to beat among the top-three West region teams in our rankings is Biola. And that's largely because we still don't know a ton about the Eagles.

Also, I agree with Marissa's assessment of a "4" out of 10 for how confident I am in the Alaska Anchorage men earning an auto-qualifying bid.

The Seawolves are in a slightly better position than their rivals up north and it wouldn't be a shock if they beat Azusa Pacific. Honestly, it may not even be an upset. Although, I think the West's third-best team on the men's side is better than its female counterpart along with who we perceive as the fourth-best team being stronger as well.

Regional Predictions

via Grace McLaughlin

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