Gavin Struve
Nov 8, 202311 min
Written by Gavin Struve, additional edits & commentary by Garrett Zatlin
NOTE: These rankings are based on how an individual fared throughout the entirety of a season, not just how they ran at a singular meet or (eventually) at the 2023 NCAA XC Championships. Click here to learn more about our ranking criteria.
Was not ranked in our last update.
First number indicates how much the individual has moved in our rankings.
The second number indicates where the individual was ranked in our last update.
25. Andrew Kaye, Junior, Colorado Mines (-3 / 22)
Andrew Kaye did exactly what was needed of him in his most recent outing: He finished comfortably in the top-15 at the South Central Regional XC Championships and remained a dependable scorer for the Orediggers win the nation's deepest region.
The Colorado Mines talent moves down slightly in our rankings simply to make room for a few individuals who had breakout performances. That being said, Kaye's 6th place finish at the Lewis XC Crossover still holds the most weight on any of his performances this fall and we still view him as capable of his best-ever postseason finish in his fifth year in the NCAA.
24. Johan Correa, Sophomore, Central Washington (Unranked)
We've been wanting to add Johan Correa to our rankings for some time ever since he opened his season with three-straight wins before leaving the state. However, a runner-up finish at the GNAC XC Championships, while serving to validate his talent, did not necessarily indicate that this CWU breakout star was a top-25 runner (although it certainly didn't hurt his stock).
Luckily for him, a West Regional XC Championship individual title certainly did the trick.
Correa took down a slew of nationally competitive names on Saturday and currently looks like Division Two's best runner on the west coast, let alone the Pacific Northwest. His unique middle distance skillset and relative anonymity (compared to more established veterans) makes him an even more intriguing variable entering the national stage.
23. Cortland Ross, Junior, Illinois-Springfield (-2 / 21)
Cortland Ross continued a strong, relatively unassuming season with a bronze medal finish on the Central regional stage, complementing his GLVC title.
It feels like Ross has flown under the radar this fall. He has won a competitive race, faced higher-level (Division One) competition and finished towards the front of top-end fields, performing admirably in every setting. That's the kind of resume you look for in a prospective top-half All-American runner as we enter the Ides of November.
22. Logan Bocovich, Senior, Colorado Mines (-2 / 20)
Has not competed since our last rankings update.
21. Tyler Nord, Rs. Freshman, Western Colorado (-2 / 19)
We'll admit, Tyler Nord's 12th place finish at the South Central Regional XC Championships did not quite match his 7th place run at the RMAC XC Championships from two weeks prior. That, of course, is not something that we're looking too heavily into.
At the very least, Nord provided another still-strong data point and another impressive performance in a deep field for his first-year of cross country. Despite his youth and relative inexperience, we have little reason to doubt either Nord's high-end talent or his comfort level in national-caliber fields at this point.
20. David Kibet, Senior, Washburn (-2 / 18)
We learned very little about David Kibet in his most recent outing, a 4th place finish at the Central Regional XC Championships. He landed towards the front of a strong field and stayed in the mix. That result complemented his win at the MIAA XC Championships.
This Ichabod veteran has improved with each passing season and has run incredibly well in a variety of different race scenarios. With prior national meet experience already on his resume, Kibet's real proving ground will be the upcoming NCAA XC Championships.
19. Dayton Brown, Rs. Senior, Adams State (-3 / 16)
It feels like Dayton Brown's stock is angling ever so slightly downward as we enter the late stages of the postseason. He was solid at both the RMAC XC Championships (8th) and South Central regional meet (10th). However, he had the talent to be in contention for the win, or at least in the lead pack, in both of those settings.
Even so, that estimation speaks more to Brown's crazy-high upside rather than anything wrong that he's done on the course this fall.
This is someone who is a proven postseason performer and he's been just about everything that Adams State has needed him to be to this point in the year. It helps that he has further potential to tap into as the ever-aspirant Grizzlies likely seek to be more than a podium team.
18. Trent Cochran, Senior, Colorado Christian (-7 / 11)
This rankings drop for Trent Cochran is more due to a general lack of results rather than anything truly performance-based.
We can't be too upset with Cochran's 15th place performance at the South Central regional meet, even if it wasn't nearly as impressive as the 4th place showing that he put forth at the loaded Lewis XC Crossover.
Cochran's end point is probably somewhere in the middle of those results, something that we tried to reflect in the reigning cross country All-American's newest ranking. But truthfully, without more nationally competitive meets to review, it's hard to get an idea of where this Colorado Christian veteran should be listed in our top-25.
17. Peter Kipkemboi, Junior, East Central (Unranked)
We'll admit, Peter Kipkemboi's star teammates have been brilliant this fall, so much so that he had mostly been racing in their shadows.
That, however, is no longer the case after he had a breakout race of his own, winning the Central Regional XC Championships over guys like David Kibet, Ryan Hartman and his higher-ranked East Central teammates.
And upon further inspection, Kipkemboi has the resume of a clear top-25 runner, something we may not have truly recognized had it not been for his regional title. Finishing 3rd at both the Great American XC Championships and the DBU Old Glory Gallup as well as 6th at the Southern Stampede where he beat David Kibet, Cortland Ross and a couple of our "Honorable Mention" names.
It feels like this is a fair placement for Kipkemboi, but at this point, are we sure that he won't finish in the top-10? It feels like we could say that about multiple East Central men which is what makes the Tigers' team ranking just as tricky to figure out.
16. Amos Pkiach, Junior, East Central (+7 / 23)
Yes, Amos Pkiach finished behind his teammate, Peter Kipkemboi, in their most recent race at the Central regional meet. That, however, was just one race of many.
Pkiach holds the more complete season-long resume, placing 4th at the Southern Stampede meet, runner-up at both the DBU Old Glory Gallup and the Great American XC Championships and 3rd at the Central regional meet.
The only man who he has consistently lost to this fall is another teammate who he and Kipkemboi finally got the best of on the regional stage (Asbel Kiprob). For someone who was a relative unknown entering this season, Pkiach has offered one of the nation's best blends of high-end execution and reliability.
15. Noah Fisher, Junior, Findlay (+2 / 17)
Noah Fisher continues to be one of Division Two's most dependable stars, finishing no lower than 5th in any race this season. That lone 5th place effort came among a number of other ranked runners at the Lewis XC Crossover. Since then, Fisher has been a conference champion and the Midwest Regional XC Championship runner-up.
All that's left to achieve is a top-half All-American finish. In our eyes, Fisher seems destined to do exactly that after twice finishing in the top-15 over the 10,000 meter distance at the outdoor national meet, but never earning All-American status.
Can the proven reliability of this Findlay ace come through on the nation's biggest stage?
14. Paul Knight, Rs. Sophomore, Colorado Mines (-1 / 13)
There's not much to say about Paul Knight whose finish at the South Central regional meet (6th) aligned perfectly with the effort that he put forth at the RMAC XC Championships (5th).
That high-end consistency is made even more impressive by the fact that those were the first two races of this redshirt underclassman's season.
Knight was already operating with a high baseline after finishing 24th at the 2022 cross country national meet in his debut season on the grass. However, he seems to have taken another leap in running back-to-back personal bests over the past few weeks. Clearly, his experience from last fall is benefitting him in a major way in 2023.
13. Caleb Futter, Junior, Grand Valley State (-1 / 12)
We're not looking too heavily into Caleb Futter's recent 9th place finish from the Midwest Regional XC Championships. The Grand Valley State men clearly ran as a pack and we're preserving energy for the national meet as they cruised through the regional rounds.
12. Jan Lukas Becker, Senior, Mississippi College (+3 / 15)
It felt like Jan Lukas Becker was sending us mixed signals for much of this fall.
His performances were far from "poor" in the early stages of the season, but they also weren't representative of his talent as our initial TSR #3 preseason individual.
But provided more context, it appears that he's shown us who he is all along this season: Someone capable of competing with and beating some of the top runners, but also boasting a limited ceiling for someone of his caliber.
That feels strange to say for an individual who won the 10k national title earlier this year, but we hadn't seen Becker snag any overall wins against truly elite competition....at least, not until the South Regional XC Championships.
Whatever version of this experienced German runner we get on the national stage is better than the best version of nearly every other individual. And on the right day, he could find himself towards the front of a wide-open individual national title race.
11. Romain Legendre, Junior, Adams State (+3 / 14)
We were excited about the unknown and immense potential that Romain Legendre entered the NCAA with. And for the most part, he has satiated us with results that live up to said potential.
The French star is probably still a year away from being in the individual national title contender conversation, but he increasingly looks like the best runner on a podium favorite. His emergence as a truly consistent low-stick with hints of elite potential is clearly there.
A runner-up showing at the South Central regional meet after he held his own against many of the same men at the RMAC meet (where he placed 6th) hinted that Legendre may still be gaining comfort, confidence and momentum among the Division Two ranks.
If that's true, then that's a scary thought for his competitors. There's also something to be said about the 10k distance fitting his skillset more cleanly.
10. Sam Wilhelm, Junior, Alabama-Huntsville (-1 / 9)
We were a tad underwhelmed by Sam Wilhelm's bronze medal finish at the South regional meet after he had spent the previous month dominating Division Two competition.
Even so, we're being careful not to put too much value into a (still strong) result. Saturday's race was arguably more of a means to an end against men (including Becker) whom Wilhelm had already beaten. He still feels capable of beating virtually almost anyone on any given day.
9. Ryan Hartman, Junior, Augustana (SD) (+1 / 10)
Ryan Hartman procured his third runner-up finish of the season with another second-best effort at the Central regional meet. But even though he lost to an individual ranked below him (Kipkemboi), he also beat a handful of ranked names, including one a couple spots ahead of him. In turn, we're trying to balance those two facts.
We're also weighing the notion that Hartman is one of the most consistent low-sticks relative to his talent, but also isn't necessarily in the thick of the individual national title race. Either way, this is someone who most teams would love to have leading their lineup as a consistent points minimizer.
8. Loïc Scomparin, Junior, Colorado Mines (0 / 8)
Loïc Scomparin is a more experienced and fully-realized version of teammate Paul Knight. He's an elite complementary star on this juggernaut team and he has wasted no time reclaiming his status among the best in the nation, let alone his own team, after a late start to the 2023 fall campaign.
Scomparin placed 4th in his season debut at the RMAC XC Championships and was arguably even better at the South Central regional meet, finishing 3rd. He has taken a different route to get there, but Scomparin's racing savvy should land him in the same place it did last year: among the individual top-10 while contributing to a title-winning team.
And given his raw fitness from the track, extensive experience and recent success, you can't help but wonder if a top-five national meet finish is in the cards for this Oredigger ace as well.
7. Aspel Kiprob, Junior, East Central (-4 / 3)
It's difficult to weigh the significance of a 12th place finish at the Central regional meet, mainly because that was far below everything else that Aspel Kiprob has posited this fall.
We're choosing to deemphasize that result, presumably in the same way that Kiprob treated the race. But in a wide-open and closely packed individual picture, it's only fair that this Tiger star — who was as good as anyone during the preceding months — takes a small drop after suffering his first loss (and a substantial one at that) of the season.
6. Ransom Allen, Senior, Wayne State (MI) (+1 / 7)
It feels wild to suggest that Ransom Allen's 3rd place performance at the Lewis XC Crossover is weighing him down. That, however, is only because the rest of his races this season have resulted in wins and for the sake of fairness, we have to keep him below the two men who beat him in that setting.
Nonetheless, that aforementioned bronze finish is one that suggests that Ransom is comfortably a top-10 talent, nationally. Allen's outright victories at the GLIAC XC Championships and the Midwest regional meet suggest that he should be taken seriously as an outside contender in the individual national title race.
After all, he's someone who has thrived in these high-leverage settings before and seems to have one of the highest floors among the nation's best individuals.
5. Duncan Fuehne, Junior, Colorado Mines (+1 / 6)
Has not competed since our last rankings update.
4. Simon Kelati, Rs. Junior, Western Colorado (+1 / 5)
Has not competed since our last rankings update.
3. Andrew Amor, Senior, New Mexico Highlands (+1 / 4)
Andrew Amor rises by virtue of the top men he defeated at the RMAC XC Championships sitting out the South Central regional meet. Of course, his 5th place showing in that regional setting hardly hurts his case, although it doesn't necessarily excite us, either.
Amor provided one of the most eye-popping results of the season when he won Division Two's most competitive conference, the RMAC XC Championships. As such, we have to take him seriously as a contender for individual gold as he's proven capable of beating just about anyone on his best day.
Of course, trying to figure out if he'll have his "best day" in Joplin, Missouri is an entirely different conversation that we'll have next week.
2. Matthew Storer, Rs. Sophomore, Colorado Christian (-1 / 1)
We hadn't seen Matthew Storer since his (relative) surprise victory at the Lewis XC Crossover. So while he drops a spot, his latest effort carried more positive connotations than negative.
On Saturday, Storer proved that he has maintained his fitness after nearly a month between races, losing only to fellow top-12 names while beating Andrew Amor. Like his New Mexico Highlands counterpart and the man ranked above him, Storer's high-end victory (coupled with his previous national meet success) shows us that he's capable of emerging on top in a season without a clear favorite.
Of course, trying to pull insight from a regional meet performance that was simply a means to an end isn't the best way to rank someone like Storer.
1. William Amponsah, Junior, West Texas A&M (+1 / 2)
Our final TSR #1 spot entering the NCAA XC Championships deservedly goes to someone who we believe is the only undefeated individual remaining (at least among those who have raced high-level competition).
William Amponsah has toppled Division One standouts and Division Two contenders this fall. And his latest victories at the Louisville XC Classic and the South Regional XC Championships — sandwiched around a Lone Star conference title — suggest that he's the man to beat entering mid-November.
Amponsah has thrived in a variety of race settings and we don't expect that to change in his biggest race yet. This is not to say that its championship or bust for this NCAA newcomer, but any finish in the top-five a week and a half from now feels like it would be a positive development for this first-year talent.
But at this point, you could say that he is the most complete distance talent and the highest-upside individual in our rankings.
Peter Kipkemboi (East Central)
Johan Correa (Central Washington)
KICKED OFF
Elias Bergman (Grand Valley State)
Kevin McDermott (Western Washington)
JUST MISSED (in no particular order)
George Couttie (Charleston (WV))
Elias Bergman (Grand Valley State)
Kevin McDermott (Western Washington)
JP Rutledge (Colorado Mines)
John O'Malley (Colorado Mines)
Andrew Hylen (Grand Valley State)
Cole Nash (Alaska Anchorage)
Awet Beraki (Adams State)
Gidieon Kimutai (Missouri Southern)
Daniel Hernandez (Chico State)
Juan Diego Castro (Azusa Pacific)
Yonas Haile (Adams State)
Koby Fraaza (Grand Valley State)
Berket Mesele (Christian Brothers)
Matthew Fowler (Lee (Tenn.))
Hamza Chahid (Wingate)
HONORABLE MENTIONS (in no particular order)
Samuel Lange (Michigan Tech)
Donald Kibet (Washburn)
Jagger Zlotoff (UC-Colorado Springs)
James Ramey (MSU Denver)
Andrew Oslin (Western Washington)
Daniel Appleford (Colorado Mines)
Bastian Mrochen (Wingate)
Alberto Campa (Colorado Mines)
Enrico Oddone (West Texas A&M)
Aziz Mohamed (West Texas A&M)
Isaiah Kelly (Cedarville)
Cas Kopmels (Wingate)
Jakob Rettschlage (Wingate)
Brock Wooderson (Grand Valley State)
Dylan White (Chico State)
Brayden McLaughlin (Chico State)
Talel Khalfi (Tiffin)
Harry Louradour (West Texas A&M)
Noah McIntyre (Illinois-Springfield)
Benjamin VandenBrink (Missouri-St. Louis)
Cal Yackin (Grand Valley State)
Reece Sharman-Newell (CSU-Pueblo)
Matthew Oglesby (Pittsburg State)
Thomas Hufton (Saginaw Valley State)
Scott Nutter (Wingate)
Ricardo Barbosa (Wingate)
Titouan Le Grix (Wingate)
Sebastian Brinkman (Simon Fraser)
Notes
- N/A