Admin (Garrett Zatlin)
Dec 21, 20206 min
When it comes to the women's 800 meters, it has typically been pretty easy to identify who the main contenders and title favorites are coming into a certain season. Sure, sometimes top talents opt to pursue different events, decide to take a redshirt season or just don't match the expectations that we initially set for them.
Still, there is oftentimes a consensus as to who will headline the top ranks of the NCAA and in most cases, those athletes deliver.
However, the upcoming 2021 indoor track season is going to look very different this year. Not just because a global pandemic has sparked a plethora of uncertainty around the NCAA, but because we have almost no idea as to who will be considered as a national title favorite in the women's 800 meters.
Coming into these winter months, Washington's Carley Thomas was the clear and obvious pick to win gold in the women's 800 meters three months from now. The young Australian standout owns a personal best of 2:01.01 from the summer of 2019 and was ranked at NCAA #2 in the 800 meters last winter with a seasonal best of 2:02.75.
Unfortunately, The Stride Report has since learned that Thomas will be sidelined for the upcoming indoor track season, and potentially for the outdoor track season. A broken femur, after all, is a significant injury which surely requires a substantial amount of time for recovery.
As a result, we are now left with one very big question: Which women can contend for a national title in the women's 800 meters this year?
Now, obviously, the answer(s) to that question hinges entirely on whether or not an indoor track season -- and more specifically an indoor national meet -- actually happens. However, for the sake of this article, we're just going to assume that most athletes, teams and conferences are going to compete this winter.
When it comes to potential title contenders, the next-best name from last year's TFRRS list of 800 meter runners is Laurie Barton, a Clemson runner who transferred from Virginia Tech in 2019. Barton had a plenty of success with the Hokies, but she really stood out last winter.
During the 2020 indoor track season, Barton put together a complete season. She consistently ran top marks in the middle distances and peaked in the postseason, running 2:04.04 (NCAA #6) en route to the ACC title.
It was an impressive winter of races for the Clemson stud, but Barton didn't reach her original personal bests of 2:03.72 (800) or 2:48 (1000).
Barton's overall resume suggests that she can be a title contender over the next few months. That, however, will require her to replicate her tactical prowess and consistency from last year along with her top-tier fitness from 2018 (when she ran her current personal bests).
Of course, Barton is just one of a handful of women who could be in the mix to win it all.
A personal favorite of mine when it comes to predictions and picks is Katy-Ann McDonald. The LSU ace ran a personal best of 2:04.59 last winter which ranked at NCAA #9. She is the second-fastest returner from last winter if you take out Carley Thomas.
McDonald has been a stud since her freshman year, emerging as the country's top rookie in the winter of 2019, running a time of 2:05.11 (NCAA #11). She has consistently peaked towards the tail-end of her seasons, has developed an understanding of how to race tactically and has had the luxury of learning from her now-graduated All-American teammate Ersula Farrow.
Not only that, but McDonald had a quietly productive cross country season this past fall, finishing 12th at the top-heavy SEC Championships. While it is certainly hard to draw comparisons between cross country and the half-mile distance, McDonald's recent performances indicate that she has, at the very least, maintained her fitness from last winter.
Given her overall progression and lack of poor performances, it feels like McDonald has enough exciting potential to mix things up and emerge as a true title favorite in the women's 800 meters come March.
It's important that we don't leave Sage Hurta out of this title conversation. Last year, the Colorado ace was expected to come into the 2020 indoor track season and emerge as an All-American...or even a sneaky-strong title contender.
Unfortunately, we never got to see Hurta toe the line last winter as an injury kept her sidelined.
It may be easy to glance at her TFRRS profile, see that her best recorded time in the 800 meters is 2:04.43 and shrug your shoulders. However, it's important to realize that Hurta actually owns a personal best of 2:00.99 from the 2019 Music City Distance Carnival when she was racing unattached in the summer.
Obviously, a time like that, even if it was run on an outdoor track, should put anyone in the conversation to win a national title. Of course, a lot has changed since then. Hurta hasn't toed the line for any (known) track races since the summer of 2019 and she has since battled an injury that kept her out for an entire season.
And on top of that, Hurta is also talented enough to pursue a different event like the mile later this season depending on what her competitive opportunities look like.
Still, regardless of what has happened over the past year and a half, it feels like this Colorado star doesn't get enough respect when we talk about some of the more accomplished distance runners in the NCAA. If she's at 100%, then Hurta could be a serious problem for her competitors this winter.
One last name who we need to mention is Lauren Ellsworth. The emerging BYU ace ran a seasonal best of 2:04.79 (NCAA #11) last winter, but owns a personal best of 2:02.49 from the 2019 outdoor track season.
It seems fair to say that Ellsworth has been better on the outdoor track than she has been on the indoor track. However, the Cougars' goals for the DMR last winter are partially responsible for that.
With Whittni Orton and Anna Camp-Bennett now out of indoor eligibility, BYU may have less of an incentive to pursue a relay this season and instead may allow Ellsworth to go all-out in her goals for the women's 800 meters.
Could someone else who we haven't mentioned yet emerge as a title favorite? Yes, of course. To say that those women will be the only candidates for NCAA gold would be misleading. Just think about some of the other top talents who are scattered throughout the country...
Avi' Tal Wilson-Perteete (UNLV) had the nation's top time during the 2019 spring track season, but has been unable to translate that outdoor success to the indoor oval.
Lindsey Rudden (Michigan State) had a breakout track season last year and was tactically very strong. However, she'll need to improve upon her personal best of 2:04.89 to truly compete for a national title.
Kristie Schoffield (Boise State) struggled last winter, never running faster than 2:09. Still, she was one of the country's top women in the 800 meters during the 2019 indoor and outdoor track seasons. With an outdoor personal best of 2:02.65 and an indoor personal best of 2:04.34, Schoffield is one of the more experienced middle distance runners in the country who has a history of success in the NCAA. If she can put it altogether this winter, then she may be able to emerge as a top title candidate.
Julia Heymach (Stanford) shattered expectations last winter with personal bests of 2:04.94 (800), 2:45 (1000) and 4:33 (mile). Given that she only ran the 800 meters a total of two times, that is an incredibly impressive mark. However, she also has the potential to be an extremely valuable piece for the Cardinal women when it comes to cross country. How will her duties on the grass conflict with her potential on the track this winter?
The list of women to watch in this event is extensive and I couldn't possibly talk about all of them. Between the names that we already mentioned, the always-common breakout stars and the occasional international athlete who sometimes comes out of nowhere, it's impossible to talk about everyone.
There is, however, one rising superstar who we have not yet discussed.
I am, of course, talking about Athing Mu.
The Texas A&M freshman was one of the greatest girl's high school middle distance runners ever. Mu owns a personal best of 2:01.17 from July of 2019 when she finished 4th at the USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. She also owns an indoor PR of 2:03.98.
Over the past few years, the Texas A&M women have produced a handful of elite-level 800 meter runners. Jazmine Fray owns the indoor collegiate record of 2:00.69 and won the 2019 outdoor national title. One year earlier, then-teammate Sammy Watson won the 2018 outdoor national title. And last winter? Freshman Charokee Young ran a time of 2:05.80 and was able snag a qualifying spot to the indoor national meet.
In a year without a true title favorite and a noticeable lack of firepower in the upper-echelon of the women's 800 meters, Texas A&M may be able to produce yet another national title winner in Athing Mu. She's still young, but she boasts championship experience that most college freshmen rarely possess.
We may not know who will come away with NCAA gold in March or even who the actual title contenders will be. However, what we do know is that this winter has the potential to be one of the most exciting and intriguing indoor track seasons ever when it comes to the women's 800 meters...