Marissa Kuik
Jan 1816 min
Written by Marissa Kuik, additional edits & commentary via Garrett Zatlin
Click here to see our Just Missed and Honorable Mention names.
Listed eligibility takes redshirts and Covid-related extensions into consideration.
TFRRS is used as a general, but not strict, guide when determining eligibility.
EDITOR'S NOTE: During our data collection phase, there were multiple ranking-worthy distance runners who gave TSR reason to believe that they would not be competing this winter. While TFRRS eligibility, TFRRS rosters and official listings on athletic rosters were used to craft these rankings, it is possible that new developments could ultimately introduce key names that were once thought to not be racing this winter.
CRITERIA NOTE: The below rankings are considered to be "power rankings" which utilize subjective analysis to determine the best overall middle and long distance runners at the NAIA level. Factors such as postseason accolades and personal bests carry the most weight in our rankings. However, a large handful of secondary factors such as consistency, range, experience, history, upside, momentum, championship trends, event competitiveness saturation, etc. can also play significant roles depending on the individual.
Ana Pineda has already set a handful of personal bests for herself in the early goings of this indoor track season, including a time of 17:23 over 5000 meters and a mark of 10:07 for 3000 meters.
To add to her resume, she has also run times of 4:35/4:59 for the 1500 meters and the mile, respectively, making her another competitor with quietly-great range.
When it comes to championship pedigree, Pineda is hardly bare in that department. The Saint Francis product earned an All-American finish over 1500 meters at last year’s outdoor national meet and helped her team to an 8th place finish in the DMR at the most recent indoor national meet.
Not only that, Pineda has found great success on the grass, redshirting this past season, but finishing 14th overall at the 2022 cross country national meet. And given that she has been running so well over 5000 meters, what will make this season interesting for her will be what event she chooses to focus on.
Historically, Pineda has chosen the middle distance approach, but with such success on the grass and some big improvements in her 3k and 5k time, she may choose to focus on the longer events. That would make plenty of sense given that the 3k plays a happy medium between the middle and long distance events.
One of the purest cross country runners in all of the NAIA, Jessica Kampan, has done enough in the eyes of The Stride Report to crack our top-20 rankings. After all, two top-10 finishes at the NAIA XC Championships (three-time top-20, four-time All-American) is hard to ignore.
With extensive cross country success, a 9:54 (3k) PR and a handful of All-American honors from different relays, this Dordt veteran may have the argument to be ranked higher. However, Kampman's resume is admittedly cross country-heavy. And when it comes to the national stage, she has found much more success on the grass than the track.
Even so, there is too much proven talent on the resume of this Defender ace for us not to rank her. Eventually, her cross country prowess is bound to translate to the indoor oval, something that she's already proven with her strong 3k PR.
Don't be surprised if Kampman ends up as a top-half All-American in the 3k or 5k come March (relay depending).
The first youngster in our rankings is Addi Dewey, someone who is slowly figuring out whether she thrives most in the longer distances or in the middle distances.
At last year’s indoor national meet, Dewey did quite well over 3000 meters, finishing 6th place overall. She also ran the mile leg for Indiana Wesleyan' DMR team. With a string of personal bests featuring times of 5:10 (mile), 9:53 (3k) and 17:08 (5k).
Dewey's resume is fairly complete and thorough despite only being a sophomore. The rising Wildcat distance talent clearly favors the longer distances, although a 5:10 mile PR is nothing to be upset about considering how young she is.
And yet, despite that relative inexperience, Dewey placed 6th at the outdoor national meet over 5000 meters last spring. That, in turn, makes us wonder if she'll choose to move up in distance to contest that event instead of the 3k. Of course, part of that equation may depend on the need from IW's relays and how much she wants to/can improve upon her 3k time.
All in all, Dewey could find the most success with the lengthening of the race. In theory, moving up to the 5k could yield grand results in the long run (no pun intended). And given her relative youth, this Indiana Wesleyan runner should still have plenty of growth remaining.
Leading into the 2023 indoor track season, Mollie Gamble was a very solid name who was an All-American on the grass and a somewhat consistent fringe national qualifier. But since last winter, Gamble has clearly elevated her game.
Emerging as the 7th place All-American over 5000 meters at the NAIA Indoor Championships was complemented by a 6th place All-American effort over 10,000 meters at the outdoor national meet. However, no one could have seen Gamble eventually placing 4th at the NAIA XC Championships this past fall, a massive statement performance.
This Taylor veteran has proven over the last 365 days that she can be a legitimate problem for her competitors on the national stage. And after taking a step up last year, Gamble has seemingly done it again based on her cross country results.
Admittedly, Gamble's times don't quite match her postseason honors (yet). That, however, is bound to change over the next month and a half.
For the most part, Alex Ebetino is a steady and reliable distance who is flat-out solid across the board. You could also argue that she's only now beginning to realize her full potential.
The redshirt senior has had a consistent presence on the national stage, snagging four All-American honors on the track (and many more on the grass). The 3k has historically been Ebetino's bread and butter, but so far this winter, this may be the best that we have ever seen her at this distance!
That's because Ebetino just ran 9:55 for 3000 meters, a new outright PR and her first time ever going under 10 minutes without a conversion. And the catch? That 9:55 mark gained a flat-track conversion itself, putting this Saint Francis standout at a time of 9:50.
If Ebetino was already a consistently strong All-American name over 3000 meters on the national stage for the past few years, then what can she do when she has clearly taken a step up in her fitness?
Though Noel VanderWall has limited stats, the times that she does boast are pretty fantastic. Vanderwall has PRs of 4:57 (mile) and 9:52 (3k). Paired with the fact that she has two All-American honors from last winter in those exact same events, and you get a surprisingly well-rounded and complete resume despite her sophomore status.
And yes, VanderWall has been plenty impressive on the grass as well, earning two All-American finishes in the only two cross country seasons that she has competed in. Truthfully, with all of those accolades, it may be surprising to some that VanderWall is this low in our rankings.
However, the Taylor distance standout did not race during the outdoor track season, leaving us with limited results to make us feel super confident about putting her above some of the other women in these rankings. And yet, based on what she was able to do this past fall and throughout her first year of competition, we feel confident that she will be moving into our top-10 in the somewhat near future.
One of the more interesting resumes in these NAIA rankings belongs to Kylahn Freiberg, a runner whose skillset is fairly rare for someone who is also so accomplished on the grass.
On one hand, Freiberg looks like she is much more of a middle distance specialist with PRs of 2:54 (1k), 5:07 (mile), 10:29 (3k) and 18:04 (5k). She also finished a tremendous 2nd place over 1000 meters at the 2023 indoor national meet last year and has raced in mostly middle distance events / relays.
On the other hand, this Nebraska-based distance talent has a fantastic track record on the cross country course, most recently placing 16th finish at the NAIA XC Championships.
That finish is by far her best in her whole collegiate cross country career which brings up the question of whether or not she'll take some tries at the longer events during the track season. We definitely know that she has had a major jump in fitness which means that, in theory, her other longer distance PRs should drop immensely if she chooses to contest those events.
Regardless, even if Freiberg stays in the middle distances, that would be a great choice. She has a legitimate shot at winning the 1k national title in March and her recently-improved aerobic strength suggests that she could be a lethal miler as well.
Placing a true freshman in the first edition of our indoor track rankings sometimes raises eyebrows, but Alina Boshchuck deserve to be in our top-20, largely because she has already thrown down a wicked fast time.
At GVSU Holiday Open, Boshchuck contested the 5k where she covered the distance in a time of 16:58. That result comfortably put her in the lead ahead of the rest of the NAIA. Not only that, but this Ukrainian distance talent has raced a lot internationally, giving her extensive and diverse race experience that other runners in the NAIA ranks may not have.
And if you think we're overreacting to her 5k effort, then we would implore you to look at her 9th place finish from the NCAA XC Championships. Simply put, she can hold her own against some of the best competitors in the division.
With the nation's top 5k time, Boshchuck has already surpassed her PR from her international competitions, making this Cumberland rookie someone to watch out for -- not only in the longer events, but maybe in the shorter events as well.
With some pretty decent range and tons of experience, Caitlin Dominy enters our NAIA indoor track rankings just outside of our top-10.
In some ways, this ranking may be a little conservative for this veteran, especially since she has already opened up her season with marks of 17:25 (5k) and 9:50 (3k), the latter of which received a flat-track conversion of 9:45. Both of those times are actually her PRs, putting Dominy in a great spot for future success over the next month and a half. Plus, she finished 3rd over 3000 meters at last year’s indoor national meet!
On top of an already-great resume, Dominy adds PRs of 2:54 (1k) and 5:02 (mile) while also earning a separate All-American honor on Milligan’s DMR team.
Though Dominy has so many accolades, we feel this spot for her in our rankings is right for her simply because of the talent that is ahead of her -- many of whom hold faster personal bests. Even so, it does feel strange to put Dominy this low, and we would not disagree with anyone who wanted her to be listed in our top-10.
With the current momentum that she has, Dominy could be a runner who no one wants to toe the line against come March.
Ellen Palmgren sits just outside of our top-10 rankings in large part due to her overwhelming competitive presence throughout the entire array of middle distance events.
The NAIA contests the same events as the NCAA on the national stage, albeit with the inclusion of the 600 meters, the 1000 meters and the 4x800-meter relay, effectively creating numerous opportunities for middle distance runners like Palmgren.
Her 800-meter PR of 2:10 is plenty impressive and though she has not raced the mile before, she does have a PR of 4:29 for the metric mile, showcasing highly competitive speed and strength. Palmgren has also been a workhorse for The Master’s runner as she has contested most middle distance events as well as the high jump, 400 meters hurdles, the javelin throw and numerous relays.
Palmgren seems to be a talent that could thrive in any of the middle distance events from the 600 meters up to the mile. And with her 2:10/4:29 (800/1500) combination, this NAIA veteran could be incredibly lethal in a variety of different middle distance race scenarios.
Transferring from Cornerstone to Huntington after her sophomore season, Anna Martin kicks off our inaugural NAIA rankings with the first spot inside of our top-10.
Martin has showcased talent in multiple events, running eyebrow-raising personal bests of 4:59 (mile), 9:50 (3k) and 17:13 (5k). She is also the reigning 3k runner-up from the 2023 indoor national meet and was a part of Cornerstone’s DMR team, running the mile leg.
The situation for Martin this winter will be deciding what event to focus on. She has already run 9:55 for 3000 meters, but with Huntington’s roster strengths lie more in the middle distances, the Foresters may not need her for the DMR. That, in turn, might give Martin an opportunity to focus more on the 3k or maybe move up to the 5k.
And if she does, then that would make plenty of sense! Martin did, after all, place 11th at the cross country national meet this past fall, so she clearly has the aerobic strength to do so.
With PRs of 2:09 (800) and 5:04 (mile), as well as an All-American performance at the NAIA XC Championships, Kylie Sauder could be a name to look out for. However, at the 2023 indoor national meet, she only toed the line for relays, making it challenging to know if she'll factor into the individual title bouts come March.
Of course, we don't really blame her for setting individual glory aside. Sauder helped her team to a national title performance in the 4x800-meter relay while also running the 800 meter leg of the 6th place DMR team.
Sauder's recent leap in her aerobic fitness, which was showcased throughout the cross country season, could pair beautifully with her wicked-fast 800-meter PR. As such, this Grace College star could be primed for a big-time mile effort in the near future.
With so many middle distance events, the NAIA Indoor Championships favor the runners who have better turnover.
Abbey Shirts definitely falls into that category with no track record of racing 3k or longer (except in cross country) despite finishing an incredible 5th place finish at the cross country national meet this past fall.
Shirts’ PRs of 2:10 (800), 2:54 (1k) and 5:03 (mile) makes her dangerous in many of the shorter events, placing 4th over 1000 meters at the 2023 indoor national meet. She also helped out her team to a 3rd place finish in the DMR, running the 1200-meter leg, before snagging 4th place over 1500 meters at the outdoor national meet.
The Yotes are an incredibly strong team, especially after winning the cross country national team title, so expect them to put together nationally competitive relay teams with Shirts as a key member. However, with such an improvement during the cross country season, could this be the year that we see her attempt something longer like a 3k?
With one of the most dynamic resumes in the nation, Hannah Fredericks comes into this season as one of the most well-rounded distance runners that the NAIA has to offer.
With times of 2:12 (800), 2:54 (1k), 10:11 (3k) and 16:32 (5k), Fredericks has the ability to contest almost any race at a high level. Her 3k time is, comparatively, the only mark that seems to be lacking, although with so many different options to race in, Fredericks hasn't had as many shots at that distance as a few others would have.
Similar to some of the other women on this list, Fredericks has helped her team out in the relays at the indoor national meet, earning a small handful of All-American honors. She also placed 3rd in her one individual event, the 1000 meters, adding top-tier championship success with a resume void of flaws.
But what if I told you that Fredericks also owns a bronze medal from the 2023 outdoor national meet....over 10,000 meters?
Talk about some ridiculous range!
The Master’s is always a competitive program when it comes to the relays, so there is a great chance Fredericks finds herself a part of those lineups. And yet, this is someone who is far too dangerous to not aim for an individual national title. In the end, whatever she decides to contest in March, she will be dangerous.
Alyssa Bearzi has a few national titles under her belt, including the 2021 cross country national title and most recently, the 5000-meter title from the 2023 NAIA Indoor Championships.
Bearzi’s multiple individual titles is part of the reason why she is listed this highly at TSR #6. However, it's also because of the PRs that she brings to the table in the longer events. The winter months can often be dominated by middle distance specialists, but Bearzi comes into this season not only with the 5k title, but also with PRs of 17:06 (5k) and 35:39 (10k), the former mark earning a 16:58 (5k) conversion.
Yes, these are indoor track rankings, but her 10k time validates the idea that the Milligan veteran is still a contender (dare we say favorite?) for 5k gold this winter.
Though her PRs in the shorter events are not quite as potent, Bearzi still helped her team to qualify for the finals in the DMR at the 2023 indoor national meet, running the mile leg and proving that she can step up to the plate...even if the distances do get shorter.
And of course, it's not like her 5:07 mile PR is anything to scoff at.
Bearzi did not race this past cross country season, so we are a little unsure of where her fitness is at. That's largely why we struggled to find a spot within our top-five for her. Even so, there aren't many aerobic-centric NAIA stars who are also reliable postseason national title contenders like this Milligan ace is.
A 4th place finish at the indoor national meet in the mile, as well as a silver medal in the DMR, already gives Ellen-Mary Kearney a great track record, especially for someone who is only a sophomore.
However, the Milligan underclassman also has one of the most impressive and well-rounded resumes of any NAIA woman in the nation, boasting PRs of 2:11 (800), 2:54 (1k), 4:52 (mile), 10:00 (3k) and 17:11 (5k).
For the NAIA level, that mile PR isn't just good, it's elite.
Kearney has already kicked-off her indoor track season with a respectable 17:22 (5k) mark, though she will most likely drop down to the shorter events as the season unfolds. But when you mesh her aerobic strength and her middle distance speed, it makes sense why this sophomore is such a strong miler.
And with so much versatility and value throughout her entire resume, as well as A TON of room to improve as she simply grows older, Kearney could be a legitimate NAIA superstar by the time that she's a senior.
Sage Martin is coming off of her best cross country season ever with a 3rd place finish at the cross country national meet. Her performance over the grass bode well for the oval where she has already dominated in the past.
Her PRs of 4:55 (mile), 9:59 (3k) and 16:48 (5k) is what gives her resume so much value, providing strength and speed to a variety of different event areas. And when it comes to championship success, Martin finished 5th overall in the mile at last year’s indoor national meet and also ran the mile leg on the Yotes’ DMR team which placed 3rd overall.
We'd also be remiss if we didn't mention that she also won the steeplechase national title at the outdoor national meet, making us wonder if she may consider focusing on the flat 3k for the current indoor track season.
With strong versatility, and the College of Idaho women potentially aiming to take home the DMR title, Martin’s postseason decisions will likely be challenging. Even so, that's a good problem to have. This junior distance runner is talented enough to be a legitimate contender in a variety of events, granting her some schedule flexibility if need be.
Another College of Idaho talent is Ellyse Tingelstad, someone who is coming off of a 2nd place finish at the cross country national meet (which led the Yotes to the team title).
As of year-to-date, Tingelstad has seen one of the biggest jumps in fitness of any woman in the NAIA. At the outdoor national meet last spring, she placed 2nd and 3rd over the 10k and the 5k distances, respectively. Throw in a national meet silver medal from the grass and Tinglestad looks primed to fight for the indoor national title over 5000 meters.
Her previous indoor track performance at the national meet was “just” a 9th place finish over 3000 meters. However, looking back at that winter season, Tingelstad only raced twice before the national meet, so sneaking into the final for the 3k is actually fairly impressive.
On top of that, her PRs of 9:58 for the 3k (which she ran at last year’s national meet), 17:00 for the 5k and 35:41 for the 10k were already competitive times before her recent national meet success.
In theory, that means that Tingelstad could be due for a huge indoor track season.
If you are wondering who has won the past three consecutive 1000-meters national titles at the indoor national meet, look no further than Lisa Voyles.
On top of making herself the 1k queen of the NAIA, she also placed 3rd in the mile at last year’s indoor national meet, was 5th in the DMR and took 3rd place in the 4x800-meter relay. Voyles is also a three-time All-American in cross country and just ran an incredible PR of 9:46 for 3000 meters, showcasing her sneaky-good range.
Speaking of PRs, Voyles holds tremendous personal bests of 2:08 (800), 2:48 (1k), 4:50 (mile) and 17:30 (5k), the latter of which was set during the cross country season. Those middle distance marks are awfully impressive. Those kinds of performances would make this Indiana Tech star a legitimate top-half All-American threat at the D2 and D3 levels.
Across the board, Voyles is flat-out awesome. She has incredibly fast times, numerous examples of postseason success, excellent range and extensive experience. If it weren't for a historical anomaly, then this Indiana Tech runner would be sitting at our TSR #1 spot.
The list of accolades for Addy Wiley is pretty long, so we'll try to do her justice.
For only being a sophomore, the times that Wiley has put up are insane -- and that may be putting it lightly. Her in-season collegiate PRs stand at 2:02 (800), 2:49 (1k, flat-track converted), 4:29 (mile, flat-track converted), 9:24 (3k) and then a 16:57 mark for 5000 meters on the grass
But Wiley also has tons of experience, internationally, where she has actually run even faster.
At the beginning of last fall, the former high school megastar ran 1:57 over the half-mile distance at a meet in Switzerland. Then, a few days later in Brussels, she raced to the all-dates collegiate record for 1500 meters, running an astounding time of 3:59! However, the official in-season record still belongs to Jenny Simpson (née Barringer).
Naturally, with times like those, Wiley has won a lot of national titles. At last year’s indoor national meet, Wiley won the 600-meter, the 800-meter, the mile and the 3k national titles...oh, and she also anchored Huntington's DMR team to a national title victory.
And those are just her indoor national titles.
Though Wiley is in a class of her own, winning that many titles is still incredibly impressive. Remember, she had to run prelims in every single one of those events over just three days. That shows a lot of poise and stability on Wiley’s part.
The question for this all-time megastar this season will not be if she will win more national titles, but rather...how many can she win and how fast can she run?
Veronica Pinkerton (Hastings)
Kahea Figueira (College of Idaho)
Alauna Carstens (Evergreen State)
Reagan Hiebert (St. Mary (KS))
Geraldin Correa (Lewis-Clark)
Rylee Haecker (Concordia (NE))
Danielle Allison (Tabor)
Ahna Neideck (Taylor)
Cailen Jolley (Oklahoma City)
Suzie Johnson (The Master’s)
Abbey Gentz (Huntington)
Riley Hiebert (St. Mary (KS))
Maddy Walter-Sherretts (St. Mary (KS))
Elizabeth Barrett (Indiana Wesleyan)
Mercy Chebet (Goshen)
Krista Boese (Indiana Tech)
Nieuwkoop Haley (Cornerstone)
Kate Madsen (St. Mary (KS))
Emilee Heynen (Dordt)
Allison Ramsay (St. Francis (IL))
Emma Timmermans (Hope Int’l)
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