The Group Chat: D2 NCAA XC Championships Preview

Written by Eric Baranoski, Grace McLaughlin, Jose Hernandez & John Cusick

Additional edits and commentary by Garrett Zatlin

Eric: Even when it looked like the Grizzlies would’ve been assured a spot the NCAA XC Championships, the Lakers from Grand Valley State were always going to be the "other" contender when we had this conversation.

We’ve had the GVSU men ranked at TSR #2 or TSR #3 for most of this season, so this shouldn’t be a surprise.

Maybe the only thing that could be argued as a recent surprise would be the ascension of Caleb Futter into a legitimate second high-octane scorer alongside veteran Tanner Chada. That scoring dynamic is similar to what Chada is used to, as he had a similar racing relationship with Isaac Harding.

And if you don’t remember, Harding and Chada went 1-2 at last year's national meet.

With a similar 1-2 punch, or at least a scoring duo both capable of cracking the top-15 on the right day (with more emphasis going to Futter), the Lakers could at least match some of Colorado Mines' firepower, although it will certainly take more than just a great 1-2 punch.

John: I would say that Grand Valley State will pose the biggest threat to Colorado Mines.

We’ve talked about the depth of Colorado Mines all season long, and the only team in the field that might be able to match them is the Lakers. Tanner Chada has been an elite low-stick for the last two seasons and he’ll look to challenge Powell for that individual title.

As Eric mentioned, Caleb Futter can make all the difference for this team on Friday if he races up to the level that we have come to expect from him. Providing a 1-2 punch with Chada will go a long way in the Lakers team title efforts, although the actual finishes will likely be something along the lines of Chada finishing 1st or 2nd while Futter could probably aim for a top-15, or even a top-10, finish on the right day.

Andrew Hylen will be back in this lineup and his success greatly changes how things can go for GVSU. He’ll need to be the third scorer, and likely in the top-15 or top-20, for this team if they want to have a chance at keeping pace with the Orediggers.

The two components of this scoring group that may hurt the Lakers are freshman standout Koby Fraaza and whoever the fifth man for the Lakers will be. As a freshman, Fraaza will make his first national meet appearance and with it comes the pressure of being a scoring member of this lineup.

The final three runners for this team will be some sort of medley which could feature Sam Martens, Brock Wooderson, Samuel Baustert, Ben Zaremba, Daniel Lambert and Scott Spaanstra. All of these men have been a part of this GVSU scoring lineup this season and their success will raise the floor for this team on Friday. A strong performance from whichever of those three men toe the line could be the difference between another national title or just a runner-up performance.

Grace: I’m in total agreement with Eric and John. Grand Valley State is the only team with a valid argument for upsetting Colorado Mines this weekend. I would have said that Adams State was also in the conversation, but they're obviously not going to be at this meet.

Still, it's going to be hard to match the overall combination of firepower and depth that the Orediggers are expected to bring to the table on Friday. And truthfully, I don't have much more to say that hasn't already been said by my fellow writers.

Jose: This is definitely the question everybody is wondering right now, at least when it comes to the men's team race. I’d agree with Eric that Grand Valley State has been the biggest threat to Colorado Mines this fall, especially with Adams State now out of the mix.

I think it would make sense to say that Tanner Chada is going to try and push the Lakers into taking down the national favorite for both the team title in Colorado Mines and the individual title in Dillon Powell. Of course, it's going to take so much more than just him to pull off a legitimate team upset.

It all depends on who is able to show up and perform on the biggest stage of any runner’s cross country season.

Eric: Point blank, no.

The Grizzlies have been dominant all year long, whether at sea level (like at the Highlander Invite) or at altitude (like at the RMAC XC Championships). I wouldn’t look too much into the South Central Regional XC Championship results because that was their worst race of the season in the most competitive region in D2 -- and they still won.

And in that same time period, nobody came away from their region looking like they would be worthy of upsetting the women from Alamosa, Colorado.

Having a lineup made up of Stephanie Cotter, Brianna Robles, Precious Robinson, Emily Schoellkopf, Nicole Lawrence, Morgan Hykes and Maggie McCleskey has worked out extremely well for the Grizzlies this fall. They have proven time and time again that this group of women is the best in the NCAA.

Friday will be no exception.

Grace: Adams State had a rough regional meet, but they’ve performed well throughout the rest of the season and have been dominant in every race except the South Central Regional XC Championships.

They are certainly more vulnerable than I would have expected them to be at the beginning of the season, but they still have the best lineup in the nation at the D2 level. It would take a very poor performance by Adams State and a perfect day by another team to complete the upset.

But what teams are even in question for this scenario? There’s the obvious contender in Grand Valley State, and then the up-and-coming (at least for the women) powerhouse program of Colorado Mines.

Grand Valley State has Natalie Graber, Klaudia O’Malley, Lauren Kiley, Abby VanderKooi and Taryn Chapko -- that's not an easy group to take down.

Graber and O’Malley are experienced veterans, Kiley and VanderKooi are impressive rookies and Taryn Chapko has some serious range given her speed and endurance. This team is deep and incredibly talented, but as I said earlier, it would take a perfect day from the Lakers and a disastrous race for the Grizzlies for an upset scenario to play out.

Colorado Mines’ upside is their consistency and current momentum after coming within five points of Adams State at the South Central Regional XC Championships. Scoring stars such as Molly Maksin, Zoe Baker, Holly Moser, Clare Peters and Alayna Szuch nearly pulled off what would have been the season's biggest upset.

However, the Orediggers' biggest drawback was that Szuch was back in 32nd place the other week, which raised their point total quite a bit. But Jenna Ramsey, who won the Roadrunners Invitational ahead of Baker and Maskin in September, is expected to be back in the Orediggers’ varsity group on Friday and that could change a lot in terms of lineup structure.

If Colorado Mines was within five points of Adams State (on a bad day) without Ramsey and she is still close to her prior fitness level, then I think that an upset scenario isn't totally unrealistic.

John: I am not sure that anyone can knock off Adams State if they’re running up to their potential on any given day. That being said, there are two teams that have a legitimate shot at dethroning the Grizzlies this season.

Both teams have already been mentioned and detailed, so I’ll try and keep it brief.

Grand Valley State has the firepower and depth that can match the Grizzlies on a good day. Natalie Graber and Klaudia O’Malley are proven low-sticks and should be the top two runners for this team.

Whether or not they can outdo the likes of Stephanie Cotter and Brianna Robles is still unknown, but given how each team's regional meet went, it wouldn’t be a total shock if they matched or exceeded Adams State's top duo.

Lauren Kiley, Taryn Chapko and Abby VanderKooi have been the usual backend three scorers for Grand Valley State and they’ll need strong performances from them again on Friday. Chapko has the national meet experience, but Kiley and VanderKooi are both freshmen.

And as I said about Koby Fraaza, the same applies to Kiley and VanderKooi: The pressure will be high for them to perform well.

As for the women of Colorado Mines, they were in this scenario just two weeks ago. And I’ll be the first to say that if Jenna Ramsey had been racing for this team, then the Orediggers would have likely walked away with a regional title instead of Adams State.

Zoe Baker and Molly Maksin have been very strong up front for this team and should continue that at the national meet. Clare Peters has excelled in her first real competitive season and Holly Moser has been a consistent fourth option as well.

Where this team falters is usually their fifth scoring option. But the good news is that Jenna Ramsey is listed as one of the names who Colorado Mines has brought to Seattle. If she does indeed run, then she will change how this lineup scores dramatically.

Jose: I gotta say, the Grizzlies may be vulnerable this Friday, mostly because postseason competition always ends up being the most dramatic portion of cross country.

The Grizzlies are always dominant and have showcased their skill by winning a handful of competitive meets and invitationals. Stephanie Cotter has been the face of her team for years, but she had a disappointing performance in her most recent effort at the South Central Regional XC Championships.

I feel like Cotter is the runner on Adams State's lineup who could make them the most vulnerable right now, mainly because I'm not entirely confident exactly how much firepower she'll bring to the table.

For Adams State to get back on the right track this weekend, Brianna Robles and Precious Robinson need to step up as leaders for this group. I'm not entirely sure we know where Cotter will finish this weekend.

The Grizzlies right now need to come together as a team and all become leaders to keep the momentum of a possible championship title in their hands.

Eric: Dillon Powell has been on a mission ever since his race plan blew up in his face around the 7k mark on the Abbey Golf Course at last year’s NCAA XC Championships. He is currently undefeated and has run lights out in every race this season.

So, I think his strategy has to be something like this: Do not beat yourself.

The fitness and confidence are there, but he can’t run like he’s trying not to lose the race rather than racing to win. That is a big difference and he learned that from last year’s race.

However, I do think Tanner Chada from Grand Valley State will be a challenger. He was last year’s runners-up and if you look at his results throughout this season, he has lost just once. He has won larger races such as the Louisville Classic as well as the MSU Spartan Invite and has handled his business against D2 competition. I like his chances on Friday.

Grace: I do not think an athlete as talented and as experienced as Dillon Powell would let a scenario like last year happen again at the national meet.

Powell has won major races this season and has done so by incredible margins. While his front-running move at last year's NCAA XC Championships did not play out in his favor, I think he has improved since then and has gained valuable experience from that result. I do think that his tactics will involve leading the race, but maybe more conservatively at the beginning.

Dillion Powell is the clear favorite in Seattle, but as Eric and Jose mentioned, Tanner Chada and Zach Kreft will put up a good fight for the win as well.

John: I have been on the Dillon Powell train all season long and I won’t be getting off here.

This is Powell’s race to lose, but he will be challenged for the top spot, at least for some of this race. And I say some of the race because of how Powell has dominated his meets this season. He’s been winning races by more than 40 seconds and running alone for most of it.

Tanner Chada and Gidieon Kimutai are the two athletes who immediately come to mind when I think about someone upsetting Powell.

Chada was 2nd at last year's NCAA XC Championships, making him someone with the experience and composure to be a threat to Powell. If he can maintain his composure throughout the race, he'll have a strong chance at bettering his placement from last year.

Kimutai also has the necessary experience on the national level. He's been incredibly close in years' prior and with the way that he has been running this season, we wouldn't be surprised to see him pull off the upset.

Ultimately, if Powell loses this race, it’ll be because he’s either, a) run himself into the ground, or b) he’s been put in an uncomfortable position for the first time all season and that will have worked in his opponent’s favor.

Jose: I remember how stunned I was when I saw Dillon Powell’s unexpected downfall during the 2021 NCAA XC Championships. He showed his usual dominance during that cross country season, but ran out of steam at the national meet.

Powell made a bold move to run on his own last year, but was outclassed by the patient maturity and racing experience of the veteran runners chasing after him.

Powell has since made a statement during this 2022 cross country season with his undefeated campaign, winning the RMAC XC Championships and the South Central Regional XC Championships, the latter of which was a 45-second gap.

However, this is the same pattern that we saw from him in 2021 which makes me scared that he may make the same mistake of going out hard on his own (again) and running himself out of contention.

Tanner Chada, the senior at Grand Valley State, is a veteran talent and has the experience that overshadowed Powell. The Laker ace ultimately finished 2nd behind teammate Isaac Harding at last year's national meet.

This GVSU veteran has had an outstanding season, winning almost every meet that he’s entered. He absolutely blew away his competitors at the GLIAC XC Championships by 30 seconds.

Chada will certainly be the biggest threat to Powell and I won’t be surprised if I see Chada make the same move on Powell in the same way that he did at last year's national meet.

Another guy who I could see pulling away from both Chada and Powell is senior Zach Kreft of Walsh, the only runner who Chada has lost to this season. He has also won all but one meet this season. The Notre Dame graduate transfer will certainly be looking to attack and go for the top spot in the individual race while Powell and Chada may be more focused on the team battle.

Grace: If Cunningham manages to pull off the win, I think it will be by at least 10 seconds.

I do not think that this race will come down to the final sprint regardless of who crosses the line first. Cunningham is someone who goes out hard and likes to control the race from the front, similar to her biggest competitors who are also in the hunt for the national title such as Stephanie Cotter, Brianna Robles and Florance Uwajeneza.

I think these four women are all going into this race with the same tactic in mind, but Cunningham is the one who has executed this strategy time and time again this season.

Eric: As much as one would look at Lindsay Cunningham as the favorite, she isn’t my pick for Friday. She has come into national meets undefeated before and has come away as an All-American, but never a champion.

So, I have to pick the field.

Who could challenge her? First, the pair of Laker women in Natalie Graber and Klaudia O’Malley who have each had strong years. The same can be said about Brianna Robles and Stephanie Cotter of Adams State.

And how about Western Colorado’s Katie Doucette? She placed 2nd at D2 Pre-Nationals and has had a very consistent season. Should we put some consideration into the trio from Alaska-Fairbanks in Naomi Bailey, Kendall Kramer and Rosie Fordham?

This field is incredibly strong up top and despite Cunningham being as dominant as she has been this fall, I think it'll prove more difficult to maneuver through this field than we are maybe anticipating.

John: The women's individual race will be the most interesting outcome of the weekend, in my opinion.

I love what Lindsay Cunningham has been doing this season. Her racing level has been unmatched this season, but it’s safe to say that she hasn’t seen “top” competition relative to a few others which makes her racing approach for Friday an interesting one.

If she does go out hard (as she’s done before), then she’ll be stalked by the likes of Florance Uwajeneza, Stephanie Cotter, Brianna Robles and more. While those three women are the biggest threat to Cunningham, there are other talents such as Natalie Graber, Klaudia O’Malley, Kaela Dishion and Naomi Bailey who will also be in the mix.

We could go on and on about athletes who are top talents, but if you were to ask me, there are probably only four to five women who have a legitimate shot at the individual title.

I’m going to pick Cunningham to take home the victory. However, I will say that the margin of her win will probably be less than 10 seconds and it should be a close race when they cross the finish line.

Jose: I agree with Grace’s take on Cunningham.

The Winona State sophomore is not known as a sit and kick runner. She loves to lead the race and set the pace on her own standard. The women of Adams State, specifically Stephanie Cotter and Brianna Robles, are two runners who I see having the best chance of beating her.

These two ladies have had phenomenal seasons (despite what their regional results may suggest), effectively leading the Grizzlies to dominant team wins. I can see them giving Cunningham a run for her money, but only if they're running as well as they did at the RMAC XC Championships and not the South Central Regional XC Championships.

But in order for anyone to win this race, I feel like it won’t come down to a sit and kick. I feel with the pace setting style that Cunningham likes to employ, someone from the field will have to make a bold move out of their own in order to take home the individual title.

Eric: I like Caleb Futter from Grand Valley State on the men’s side and Kaela Dishion from Stanislaus State on the women's side.

Starting with Dishion, she is improved much from last year, mixing it up with the best women in the country as evidenced by her 6th place finish at the Santa Clara Bronco Invite earlier this year where she set her 6k PR.

Her comfort level as she goes to the front is much more relaxed this year compared to last and she clearly belongs in that lead group. Last year, she was 48th at the national meet. But this year, who knows how high she could climb as she now brings a wealth of experience to the 2022 national meet.

Just like Dishion, Laker standout Caleb Futter was right on the edge of being an All-American last year, taking 46th at the national meet. However, his role on this team has changed tremendously from last year to this year as he is no longer a support scorer.

With a history of being an All-American on the track and his team’s reliance on him being near the front, Futter has a really good shot to surprise some people despite sitting at TSR #23.

Grace: For the men, I really like the consistency and trajectory of Cole Nash. The Seawolf ace was the runner-up at the West Regional XC Championships and won the GNAC XC Championships. He also was 4th at the D2 Pre-Nationals meet, showing us that he can perform well on this course.

Coming from Alaska, we can assume that Nash will have an advantage over many of his competitors due to the weather and conditions. Cole Nash was 27th at the national meet last year and has improved greatly since then. His momentum, combined with the race environment, makes me confident in Nash living up to his TSR #8 ranking.

For the women, I think there are several names who could surprise us (and the Division Two scene). There are also some runners who I think deserve recognition before I decide on who I think will be the most surprising.

Adams State runner Precious Robinson has a good chance at being much closer to Cotter and Robles than one would assume, considering she was only nine seconds behind Robles at their last sea-level race.

UCCS star Layla Almasri has been on a roll this season and was 12th at this meet last year. Her momentum and experience are encouraging and that could result in a phenomenal performance. Marissa D’Atri of Chico State has also been getting better and better with every race, so I’m curious how her momentum will play out in Seattle.

I think Kylie Anicic of Edinboro is someone who has been overlooked. She could make a statement in Seattle.

The east coast star has been impressive this season, but it's been hard to gauge her talent due to the limited competition available in her conference and region. She was 19 seconds behind Lindsay Cunningham at the Lewis Crossover meet which was extremely promising considering Cunningham’s other dominant wins.

Anicic was 11th in the 5k at the NCAA Indoor Championships and 18th in the 10k at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. She’s also shown incredible improvement since then. I would not be surprised if Anicic finished in the top-10 on Friday, but it would probably shock others who are less familiar with her resume.

John: On the men’s side of things, I’m extremely interested in watching Simon Kelati race.

He has truly come on strong to the national scene after some strong performances this season and the next step for him is racing well on the NCAA's biggest stage. He’s the low-stick for a Western Colorado team that is trying to outperform expectations on Friday.

Kelati was a top finisher in the South Central region and I suspect that he'll use that newfound confidence to perform at a high level on Friday. I believe that he’s a top-20 athlete and on his best day, I think he could crack the top-10.

As for the women, I’m fully dialed-in on the women from Alaska-Fairbanks. The trio of Naomi Bailey, Kendall Kramer and Rosie Fordham were all inside the top-four at their regional meet and were lucky enough to each qualify for the national meet, individually.

I’m expecting Bailey to finish inside the top-10 and based on how Kramer has been running, it wouldn’t come as much of a surprise to see her inside the top-10 as well, or at least relatively close to her teammate.

Meanwhile, Fordham has come on strong as of late, making her an interesting runner to follow. If she's anywhere near the fitness level of Bailey and Kramer, then we could see three individual national qualifiers from the same team within the top-25.

These three women all participated at the national meet last year, but were met with lackluster results despite strong regular season campaigns. This year, things are looking like they could be much different. Instead of racing in the humid, hot weather of Florida, the Nanooks will get to race in conditions that they’re more familiar with.

And because of that, I think you will see good results from all three of these women.

Jose: As far as someone who could surprise us for the individual title, I gotta go with Zach Kreft of Walsh who I've already highlighted.

He’s pushed the Cavaliers in the right direction this season, leading his team to both an individual and team win at the GMAC XC Championships, stringing four more teammates into the top-15 in that meet.

Winning the individual title at the Midwest Regional XC Championships, Kreft displayed his motivation in wanting to possibly give the Cavaliers another title to take home, individually.

Another runner who I can see bringing home a top finish this Friday, although maybe not winning, is Joshua Chepkesir of UNC Pembroke. The Brave veteran probably has the most experience when it comes to championship racing and pursuing titles.

Chepkesir is a four-time conference champion (twice at the Peach Belt, twice at Conference Carolinas), and has also earned three Southeast Regional XC Championship titles. And after earning two All-American honors at two prior national meets, I can see Chepkesir wanting to finish higher than his two 8th place finishes that he has produced in the past.

For the women, I could see senior Stephanie Cotter absolutely dominating this race, not just winning it, which is probably not something that people would expect from her after her most recent effort.

Although she didn’t run incredibly well at the South Central Regional XC Championships, she is the lead runner for her team and is the one who has pushed the ladies to a top-four sweep at the RMAC XC Championships. Her history of elite success is hard to ignore as well.

Being a senior, she understands her team's position after their anticlimactic performance at the South Central regional meet. Understanding her role, I feel like she will go for the individual title in an effort to make a statement and walk away with a title victory that is more dominant than some may expect.

John: Okay, I'll go through these teams one at a time so that we don't lose track of what we're expecting.

The first team that I want to talk about is Western Colorado.

They were 3rd at the South Central Regional XC Championships behind a strong effort from Simon Kelati and company. While we now know that Kelati is a legitimate low-stick, there are questions about how the final four scorers for the Mountaineers will perform.

Jacob Herandez, Albert Hesse, Michael Grabowski and Juan Diaz were all within 16 seconds of each other at their regional meet and for any team success to be had, they'll need to replicate that performance and lineup structure.

They have proven to be a top squad this season and their efforts have them ranked at TSR #7. The Mountaineers have a legitimate shot at placing better than that if they all perform as they did the other week.

The second team that we need to talk about are the men from Lee (TN).

The Flames are an incredibly unique team because they don't rely on a single runner to lead their team week-in and week-out. This team has a very high floor because of their interchangeability within their scoring five. No single runner can truly cause a disaster for this squad and there are only a handful of programs in Division Two that can say that.

Whether or not it's Silas Eckenroad, Will Stone, Hayden Judge or anyone else, whoever is in the top-seven for this team on Friday has a chance to lead their team in terms of scoring. Their time-spread is incredible and could do tons of damage in a large fields such as this one.

Lee is currently ranked at TSR #6, but if they run like they have all season long, then it should not come as a surprise to see them inside the top-five of the final standings on Friday.

And finally, I want to talk about Nebraska-Kearney.

The Lopers have been impressive this season. They've knocked off Augustana (TSR #10) twice (once when the Vikings were short-handed, and once when they were full strength) and were in serious consideration to make our team rankings in our last update.

Myles Bach and Luke Stuckey are looking to be a potent 1-2 punch. And while they may not be inside our top-25 individual rankings, both are All-American-caliber athletes right now.

Ben Arens is also an athlete who could finish as an All-American on his best day. That makes him a valuable third option and if he finishes the season strong, then the Lopers could find themselves in the top-10 teams on Friday.

So far this season, the fourth and fifth scorers haven't killed UNK in big races and I don't think that trend will change at the national meet. If Justin Vrooman and Brett Schoenhofer can finish inside the top-100 on Friday, then that could be enough to knock off some ranked teams and put the Lopers in the national spotlight.

John: Okay, now time for the women.

First on my list are the Cedarville Yellow Jackets. They're currently ranked at TSR #7 in our women's team rankings, but I do think that they can be better than that.

Savannah Ackley will look for an All-American finish on Friday. If she achieves that, then things will look good for Cedarville. As mentioned in our team rankings, this is a team that races well as a pack and that strategy won't just be thrown to the wayside on Friday.

If they can keep a time-spread under 30 seconds, while having an All-American finisher, we could look at five women in the top-80 of this race. That will likely require some strong running from the entire lineup, but if five women in the top-80 does happen, then we can expect top-10 finish at the very least.

And if things break perfectly, maybe even a top-five finish.

Right behind Cedarville in our rankings are the Chico State Wildcats (TSR #8). They are a team that has a ton of potential going into Friday's meet.

The first thing that needs to happen is for Marissa D'Atri to race at the level that she has been at lately. If she can be the Wildcats' true low-stick, then things will start to fall into place for her team. Grace Dupuis has been getting stronger with each passing meet this season and she was the second scorer for her team at the West Regional XC Championships.

The rest of this scoring lineup consists of freshmen. The pressure for Iresh Molina, Della Molina and Hanna Tiffany to perform is extremely high. If they can deliver as they have throughout the season, then the Wildcats should boast some very good depth which will help keep them afloat.

We should note that Chico State was only a few points behind Stanislaus State (TSR #5) at the West Regional XC Championships in a regional-sized field. With a large field like we will see on Friday, we could see their depth hold up on Friday and deliver a strong result.

The final team to talk about is CSU-Pueblo.

They're fresh off of a 4th place team finish at the South Central Regional XC Championships and delivered a time-spread of just 19 seconds in a strong field. That was their best team performance of the season and it gave them a recipe for success on Friday.

This is a team led by Yasmine Hernandez and with two other seniors inside the top-five of their lineup, the Thunderwolves' experience could lead them to a top-10 finish. With harsh conditions expected for Friday, we could see this team pack up like they did at their regional meet and try to limit any blow ups.

If there is an "off" day for anyone in their top-five, it will be hard for CSU-Pueblo to recover properly. But if everything goes right, then we could be talking about a strong performance from this team.

Eric: The last weather report I looked at had a rain/snow mix on Friday. That will mean extremely sloppy conditions. I'm going to look a bit closer at teams that are theoretically built to handle the elements as any hopes of making this a fast race probably just took a detour.

Could a team like Augustana benefit from a slower course?

How about the three Alaska-Fairbanks women? Or Cole Nash from Alaska Anchorage?

What about the hometown Vikings from Western Washington? They are used to the Seattle rain and the climate, so you would expect them to be the most prepared...right?

Grace: I think Division Two as a whole has leveled up this year and I’m excited for the improvement and firepower that will be put on display in Seattle.

As Eric mentioned, the weather looks like a beautiful day...for a gutsy cross country race. This race will favor the mentally tough and those familiar with sloppy conditions.

I think the weather, regional surprises and overall talent increase in Division Two creates a perfect upset scenario. The question is, will it be in the men’s or women’s race? Will it be an individual upset or a team upset?

I guess we’ll have to wait and see!

Jose: I think the most shocking news of this season was the Adams State men not advancing to the national meet, so I’m excited to see how the other teams in contention to upset Colorado Mines will react with one less threat to worry about for team placements.

Grand Valley State had a huge upset last year, winning both 1st and 2nd individually and the team title. I’m excited to see how Tanner Chada will lead the Lakers this Friday and see the duel between him and Dillon Powell.

As seen last year, the seeded times on paper do not always equal instant wins, and there is going to be drama unfolding over this 10k race, so I am really looking forward to what the national meet will have in store for us on that end.

John: Man, so many things intrigue me, but I’ll keep it to two.

The first would be the weather. We are in for a race much like we saw in 2018. Conditions are going to be bad and while this meet is being held on a golf course, it could still be a slow race. If that is the case, then the odds of someone running away with the race early-on will greatly decrease.

The second thing(s) I’m interested in are the team races.

Can the men of Colorado Mines keep their composure this time around? They should walk away with a team title without much opposition if they do.

In the women’s team race, the battle between Adams State, Grand Valley State and potentially Colorado Mines could be one for the history books. I wouldn’t be surprised if these three teams were all separated by less than 10 points. Each team has their own style of racing and it will be interesting to see if any of them switch that strategy up in an effort to throw off their opponents.