Transfer Market (Part 26)

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The Wolfpack men are going to look a bit different this year. Not just because they lost a handful of key names, but because they are introducing two wild card distance talents who could have a noticeable impact in Raleigh, North Carolina this fall and on the oval.

Travis Koekemoer leaves behind Campbell as a regular transfer with numerous seasons of cross country eligibility, potentially up to all four years. He will also have tons of indoor and outdoor track eligibility, potentially up to three years in each season.

Vorbach, meanwhile, is a graduate transfer from Columbia. He carries with him one season of cross country eligibility, one season of indoor track eligibility and two seasons of outdoor track eligibility.

Adding both of these men to NC State's roster is huge, especially because the Wolfpack are expected to lose a handful of key veterans from a 2021 fall cross country team that was already struggling to remain competitive.

According to TFRRS, Gavin Gaynor is out of cross country eligibility and so is JP Flavin (who is now pro) as well as Robinson Snider.

The Wolfpack men finished an underwhelming 6th place at the ACC XC Championships this past fall and will now lose plenty of the men who made up most of their scoring five.

If NC State has any chance of being competitive in the rapidly growing ACC, then they'll need a lot of things to go there way. Brett Gardner will need to translate his steeplechase success to the grass and Nate Kawalec will need to deliver the same firepower that we saw from him on the outdoor oval (running 13:39 for 5000 meters) during the fall months.

The good news, however, is that star low-stick Shanklin does appear to have an extra season of cross country eligibility if he wants to use it (despite what TFRRS indicates) after not racing last fall. Of course, that depends on if he returns to Raleigh later this year.

If all of that happens, then the promising distance talent of both Koekemoer and Vorbach could allow the Wolfpack men to have a fairly cohesive and effective lineup.

Koekemoer has never actually contested a collegiate cross country race, but running 4:03 in the mile, 14:18 for 5000 meters and 8:50 for the steeplechase, while not overwhelmingly incredible, is still very solid.

Not only that, but Koekemoer didn't compete this past spring on the outdoor oval, meaning that his personal bests, specifically in the steeplechase, could be faster than they currently are.

And on paper, NC State is a perfect fit for the former Campbell runner.

I did, after all, suggest that NC State would be a perfect fit for him back in March...

Relevant analysis begins at 7:33

Then we have Vorbach who has run 8:00 (3k), 13:47 (5k) and 29:38 (10k), times that don't necessarily make him a true low-stick in today's NCAA landscape, but marks that are still fast enough to make him one of the better middle/upper lineup scoring pieces in the nation.

Vorbach's best performances have all come this past winter and spring, meaning that he has yet to truly reach his ceiling...or, at least, that's what we think that means. His recent surge in personal bests also suggests that his cross country performances, while solid, could see an improvement this fall.

The soon-to-be Wolfpack runner has had a few scattered moments of success on the grass, finishing 14th place at the Northeast XC Regional Championships, for instance. However, his relative inconsistency has made it difficult to know exactly what we should expect from him during the fall months.

But Vorbach is certainly better now than he was nine months ago. Now it's just a matter of how much better he actually is.

One of the more surprising moves of this summer is taking place within the BIG 10. The Stride Report has confirmed that Indiana's Arjun Jha will be finishing eligibility as a graduate transfer with the Michigan men starting this fall.

Jha is expected to have one season of cross country eligibility remaining as well as two seasons of both indoor track and outdoor track eligibility (each).

Seeing Jha transition from Indiana to Michigan is surprising given that the two schools are considered to be rivals within the always-prideful BIG 10 conference. Even so, that doesn't make Jha any less of an excellent fit for the men of Big Blue.

Jha has arguably been one of the more underrated long distance talents in the BIG 10 over the last few years. The soon-to-be Wolverine has been excellent in cross country, balancing on the line of being a high-impact middle-lineup scorer and a fringe low-stick.

This past fall, Jha finished 18th at Joe Piane, 25th at Nuttycombe, 6th at the BIG 10 XC Championships, 9th at the Great Lakes XC Regional Championships and then faltered a bit at the NCAA XC Championships, placing 176th overall.

However, Jha has made three other appearances at the cross country national meet earlier in his career. Twice he has finished in the top-100, placing 85th at the 2021 NCAA Winter XC Championships.

On the track, Jha has shown plenty of promise as well, running 4:00 (mile), 7:58 (3k) and 13:53 (5k). However, one could ague that Jha is capable of doing more on the oval given his recent success during the cross country season.

But personal bests aside, it feels safe to say that Jha is an excellent fit for the Michigan men. Coach Kevin Sullivan's group often thrives and specializes in events from the mile up to the 5k. On paper, the skillset of Jha should synch beautifully with the training regiment that he'll see in Ann Arbor.

But even more importantly, Jha allows Michigan to be a team that can qualify for the NCAA XC Championships once again. There are a handful of solid and promising scoring pieces within the Wolverines' top-seven, but the expired cross country eligibility of key veterans like Devin Meyrer, Joost Plaetinck and Christian Hubaker certainly leaves some gaps to be filled.

Michigan's young core is absolutely capable of filing some of those holes, but adding a guy like Jha to provide a jolt of top-end scoring is huge. He makes a comeback campaign from Michigan a bit easier in pretty much every facet.

Addison Cox is on the move, transferring from New Hampshire to Virginia. The up-and-coming distance talent is expected to have three seasons of cross country eligibility remaining as as well as all four years of indoor track and outdoor track eligibility remaining.

Cox was an underrated recruit during her high school days, posting highly impressive marks of 4:55 (1600), 10:30 (3200) and 17:00 (5k track). Cox went undefeated during the 2020 high school cross country season and later placed 5th at the Nike Outdoor National Championships in the 5k en route to her aforementioned 17:00 personal best.

Addison is also the sister of Aidan Cox, a Class of 2023 high school standout who is one of the best long distance runners in the nation at the prep level. It should also be noted that Addison has been diagnosed with Lyme's Disease, something that she has managed since 2019.

At the collegiate level, Cox has shown just as much promise as she did in high school. As a rookie, she placed 9th overall in a respectable field at the NEICAAA XC Championships. She later placed 11th at the American East XC Championships and then 58th at the Northeast XC Championships.

Cox isn't necessarily an underclassman star, but her results are still very good and they should not be overlooked. Her ability to effectively translate her strong high school success to the collegiate scene is extremely encouraging.

With tons of eligibility remaining, Cox looks like a highly valuable long-term asset, something that the Virginia Cavaliers have been stocking up on since the introduction of Vin Lananna as the team's newest head coach.

Cox may not make an immediate impact on the Cavaliers this fall, but in two to three years from now, she could end up being the pivotal piece who brings stability and impact scoring to a team that will feature highly developed standout stars.

And based on her high school credentials, the idea that Cox could evolve into a true low-stick isn't out of the question, either.

One of the top distance running talents in Division Three is on the move! The Stride Report has confirmed that Emily Clarke will be transitioning from Claremont-Mudd-Scripps to Nevada (Reno) later this year as a graduate transfer.

Clarke is expected to have one season of cross country eligibility remaining as well as two seasons of both indoor track and outdoor track eligibility (each).

The soon-to-be Nevada distance runner showed tremendous promise this past year, emerging as a multi-time All-American in what was ultimately a breakout year for her. Clarke ran most/all of her current distance personal bests earlier this year, securing respectable marks of 9:46 for 3000 meters and 16:40 for 5000 meters.

However, it is Clarke's ability to thrive in the postseason that truly stands out. The CMS distance ace finished 26th at the NCAA D3 XC Championships this past fall, finished 9th in the 3000 meters at the NCAA D3 Indoor Championships this past winter and then finished 7th in the 5000 meters at the NCAA D3 Outdoor Championships this past spring (en route to her current PR).

Clarke is significantly better now than she previously was in her collegiate career. She has elevated her fitness to an entirely new level and she is still making significant improvements in both her times and her nationally competitiveness.

With tons of untapped potential, proven upside and newly-attained national meet experience, Clarke will bring some sneaky-good value to the Wolf Pack later this year in a Mountain West Conference that features a few heavy-hitting teams.

The Wolf Pack women have floated in the middle of their conference standings during cross country, but pairing a veteran like Clarke with an up-and-comer like Tiernany Wolfgram should allow Nevada to be more competitive with the top-half of their conference rather than the bottom-half.