TSR's 2022-23 Freshman Class Rankings: Just Missed Teams

Yesterday, we released our ranking rubric for how The Stride Report was going to rank the nation's top distance running freshman classes. We'll begin to release our full list on Thursday, but we thought that we would (quickly) highlight a few "Just Missed" teams that we thought had a shot at being ranked.

This probably wasn't one of the teams that you were expecting to see here, huh?

We'll admit, the Washington State men were a little bit of an afterthought when we were collecting data for these rankings. But when we went through the PAC-12 teams, I had to ask my writers, "Hey, is there a legitimate chance that the Cougars get ranked?"

The consensus was that WSU was right on the cusp. No one would have argued if they were ranked at TSR #9 or TSR #10. And truthfully, even as I'm writing this, I'm wondering if we made a mistake by omitting them from our top-10...

This group features two international talents in Lemerian Gidion (1:50 for 800 meters) and Johnson Lagat (3:46 for 1500 meters). That is exceptional firepower for men who are considered to be true freshmen.

And when you pair those men with Brandon Moore (8:58 for 3200 meters), Aidan Emerson (4:06 mile) and Grayson Wilcott (8:25 for 3000 meters), I can't help but wonder how much better some of the other freshman classes ranked ahead of them really are.

It's never a surprise to see the Princeton men securing top-tier freshman classes each and every year. However, what is surprising is seeing them land the talent that they did and still not be ranked this year.

Of the five true freshmen that we found on the Tigers' roster, four of them hold marquee times that put them in the highest tier of high school talent.

Connor McCormick has run 1:51 for 800 meters, 4:08 in the mile and 14:30 over 5000 meters on the grass. Myles Hogan has run 4:05 in the mile and 8:54 in the two mile. Jackson Shorten has run 1:52 in the 800 meters, 4:08 in the mile and 14:36 for 5000 meters on the grass. Jack Gregorski has run 8:53 for 3200 meters.

That is not only an unreal level of firepower, but also fantastic range from all of those Princeton rookies.

If someone wanted to rank these men in our top-10, we probably wouldn't argue. The only thing that probably held them out of our top-10 is the fact that the Tigers didn't necessarily need this class as much as a few other teams needed theirs.

We're not sure if Syracuse would have earned a theoretical TSR #11 ranking (which doesn't exist) with this group. Even so, they've got an excellent freshman class that matches the distance-centric focus of this entire program.

Assaf Hariri and Teun Ter Haar, two international talents, clearly bring the most value to the table out of this collection of recruits.

Hariri has already proven to be a very steady cross country scorer for the Orange. He was a big reason why the Syracuse men were so consistent this past fall. But when you look at his personal bests of 8:08 (3k), 13:59 (5k) and 29:33 (10k), that shouldn't have come as a surprise.

As for Ter Haar, he brings more speed to this team with his 3:47 (1500) PR. Of course, with his 8:08 (3k) and 14:54 (5k), it's still likely that he'll play a role on the cross country course sometime in the future.

There are a handful of other guys such as Joey Hendershot and Eamon Burke who have also dipped under 14:50 for 5000 meters while Ruben Rojas Betanzos has run 1:53 (800) and 4:08 (mile). Together, those men give Syracuse a fairly complete class with some exciting upside talent.

Tulsa's current freshman class is very similar to Syracuse's group of rookies. They have two international standouts and then a small handful of really underrated runners.

Johnny Livingstone is probably the marquee name when it comes to freshmen on Tulsa's roster. He has run jaw-dropping times of 8:09 (3k), 13:51 (5k) and 29:44 (10k). And when you pair that English distance standout with New Zealand ace Chanel Muir -- who has run 3:44 (1500), 8:23 (3k) and 14:29 (5k) -- Tulsa suddenly looks like they've got future low-sticks who are simply waiting to be developed.

With Charles Krasnoff running a 4:10 mile, Carson Royse running 1:52 in the 800 meters and Bradon Taylor running 1:53 in the 800 meters, there is a nice balance of talent spread throughout the Golden Hurricanes' roster.

There's not enough overall firepower to be ranked, but Tulsa certainly caught our attention.

Before we started collecting data, I would have assumed that the Air Force men were going to boast a top-10 recruiting class. Unfortunately (and even surprisingly), that wasn't the case.

This group is DEEP and there isn't necessarily a "weak" option. However, only about half of this freshman class holds key barrier-breaking times.

Max Sannes has run 8:59 for 3200 meters, Zach Ayers has run 8:56 for 3200 meters, Jayden Nats has run 14:49 for 5000 meters on the track and Jackson Mace-Maynard has run 4:09 in the mile (as well as 1:52 for 800 meters)

This is a very solid class with a clear long distance focus, something that should benefit a program that returns numerous men from a fantastic 2022 cross country lineup. However, in comparison to a few other teams, there just wasn't enough firepower for the Falcons to be ranked.

I'm sorry, Texas.

I tried. I really did. You were initially listed in my original top-10 until I was convinced to replace you with another team. Was that the right call? Honestly, I don't know, but I'm pretty surprised that you didn't make it in.
 

Emmanuel Sgouros is one of those rare, domestically-produced, elite-level superstars from the high school scene who brings a ton of name recognition and firepower to this squad. His 4:09 mile time is strong, as is his 10th place finish at the Eastbay XC National Championships.

However, with an 8:47 (3200) personal best, Sgouros could end up being a major problem in the NCAA one day.

Alongside him is Chris Riley who owns a blistering fast mile time of 4:05 as well as a highly impressive 14:47 (5k) mark on the track. Meanwhile, Hudson Heikkinen (14:47), Nathanael Berhane (14:41) and Henry Coughlan (14:56) have all dipped under the 15:00 barrier, either on the grass or on the track.

This team was REALLY close to making it. They just got unlucky this time around.

As a Virginia Tech alum, no one wanted the Hokies to be ranked more than me. And while their current crop of freshmen do feature a handful of upper-level talents, including one true superstar, the firepower of this class doesn't extend past four or five guys.

The Hokies have an unreal total of 12 (!) true freshmen on their roster this year. Nick Plant is the clear star of the group. He holds a 1:48 (800) personal best which should perfectly fit in with the middle distance focus and acclaim of this program.

Other guys like Charles Stock (1:51 for 800 meters), Ryan Chevalier (4:07 for 1600 meters) and Bryce Reeburgh (4:08 for 1600 meters) are a few additional names who feed into the middle distance reputation that Virginia Tech has built over the years.

The rest of this class features A TON of men who have run 4:16 or faster for 1600 meters, but it's clear that the upper tier of talent in this freshman class falls off just a bit after those four aforementioned runners.

It feels almost like a crime to list the freshman class of the nation's best distance program outside of our top-10. And while this group was VERY close to cracking our list, we ultimately had to leave them off due to their limited depth.

Hannah Gapes and Grace Hartman are the two women who carried a lot of influence when deciding whether or not to rank the Wolfpack rookies.

Gapes has run 4:26 for 1500 meters, 9:34 for 3000 meters and 16:47 for 5000 meters on the track. Hartman, meanwhile, has run 2:11 for 800 meters, 4:46 in the mile, 10:21 for 3200 meters and 17:01 for 5000 meters on the grass.

That duo, along with a 4:52 (1600) runner in Olivia Haas, gives the NC State women a very bright future. It's highly likely that we'll see more than one varsity cross country scorer come out of this class in the future.

Caroline Murrell and Briley Bickerstaff are both solid talents, but there seems to be limited depth in this freshman class. Plus, the firepower of other rookie groups isn't that much worse than what the Wolfpack women boast.

Another year, another tricky situation trying to figure out where/if the California Baptist women should be ranked in our top-10.

The Lancers' 2022-23 class of freshmen features five women, although three of those runners (all international) hold most of the top times.

Maelle Porcher has run 4:26 (1500) and 9:50 (3k), Anna Lawrukajtis has run 4:27 (1500), 9:39 (3k) and 17:05 (5k) and Maja Dzialoszewska has run 2:09 (800) and 4:28 (1500).

That's a really solid trio of women, and there might be a legitimate argument for this class to be ranked, especially with Tiani Goeson holding a 17:33 (5k) personal best on the grass. But with other teams boasting women with comparable firepower and far more depth, the CBU women had to settle for our "Just Missed" section.

The Boise State women truthfully don't have a freshman class that is all that large. In fact, we only counted four women as true rookies on their 2022-23 roster.

But each of those four women bring legitimate value to the Broncos -- and I don't think many teams could say that about their entire freshman class.

Isabella Frisone has run 4:53 in the mile. Macy Marquardt has run 4:48 for 1600 meters as well as 17:02 for 5000 meters on the grass. Kaiya Robertson has run 2:11 for 800 meters, 4:24 for 1500 meters and 16:58 for 5000 meters on the grass. Samantha Wood has run 2:12 for 800 meters, 4:53 in the 1600 meters and 17:12 for 5000 meters on the grass.

Every. single. one. of those women not only brings a competitive resume to Boise State, but they also flex highly underrated range. In fact, as I'm typing this, I wondering if we potentially robbed the Broncos of a top-10 ranking...

If Addy Wiley, who is now at Huntington University, was part of this rookie class as she was originally planned to be, then the Colorado women would probably be ranked. But even without the Indiana native, the Buffaloes still have a very solid class.

Colorado's rookie class features Katharine Brigham, Emma Hadley, Caroline Mehlhorn and Sierra Parks. Here are some quick stats about this quartet...

There's admittedly not quite enough depth or overwhelming firepower in order for Colorado to be ranked. That, however, doesn't make them any less talented.

If the Harvard women are upset at us for not ranking their rookie group, we would understand. This year's crop of Crimson freshman talents are incredible, specifically in the middle distances.

Marie Jensen and Molly Malague have both run 2:11 for 800 meters while the former has also run 4:48 for 1600 meters. Similarly, Kristin Otervik and Penelope Salmon have both run 2:10 for 800 meters as well as 4:27 and 4:23 for 1500 meters, respectively.

When Lily O'Donoghue-McDonald is arguably the fifth-best rookie in this class despite holding a 4:56 personal best for 1600 meters, then you know that Coach Alex Gibby did something right in his recruiting over the last year.

This entire group has the potential to be a problem in the middle distances over the next couple of years. Few programs consistently produce better 1500 meter runners and milers than Harvard does and their latest recruiting effort shows us why that is.

The only reason why the North Carolina women aren't ranked in our top-10 is simply because of the limited number of names among this recruiting class. However, despite having only three newcomers, the Tar Heels probably boast the best trio of freshmen who didn't make our rankings.

Madison Huecker has run 4:50 for 1600 meters and may actually be the least accomplished recruit among this freshman class. That's not a knock on Huecker, that's just intended to show how incredible her fellow recruits are.

Eva Klingbeil has run 4:47 (1600), 9:25 (3k), 10:00 (3200) and 16:44 (5k XC). She was the 7th place finisher at the 2021 RunningLane XC National Championships and has already competed in UNC's varsity lineup this past fall.

Lilly Shapiro, meanwhile, holds similar (and maybe even better) versatility. The established distance star has run 2:06 for 800 meters, 4:40 for 1600 meters, 10:18 for 3200 meters and 16:50 for 5000 meters on the grass. She was also a top-20 finisher at the 2021 Eastbay XC National Championships and the 2021 RunningLane XC National Championships.

We would completely understand any and all arguments for North Carolina to be ranked. Their trio of recruits is among the best in the NCAA. But with only so much depth, and other teams bringing value from six or seven different women, we had to place the Tar Heels at our theoretical TSR #11 spot.