2019 D2 Recruit Rankings (Women): #3 Wayne State Warriors
Updated: Apr 8
Recruit rankings data has been manually collected by TSR contributors from multiple, reliable sources. Transfers and foreign recruits who are not expected to have four years of eligibility are excluded from these rankings. Order of rankings was decided by TSR contributors. Despite our research, it is possible that certain names have been erroneously omitted.
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Wayne State may have surprised a few of us by bringing in several high-quality recruits. With five incoming freshmen at 19 minutes or under in the 5000 meters, as well as a solid middle-distance addition, this team could bolster an already respectable Michigan-based group (not to be confused with Wayne State in Nebraska).
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Katelyn Duffing has personal bests of 5:17 in the 1600, 11:23 in the 3200, and 18:20 in the 5k. She showed great consistency throughout high school and should transition well to the 6k with her level of endurance. Duffing will likely be a top five runner for the Warriors this fall.
Katherine Ray has personal bests very similar to Duffing with times of 5:17 in the 1600, 11:32 in the 3200, and 18:43 in the 5k. Like Duffing, she should make an immediate impact. Ray's highest finish at her cross country state meet was 48th her junior year in the Michigan Division 1 State Championships. She has experience in being in highly competitive races and should transition well to college racing.
Charlene Yarema has personal bests of 5:19 in the 800 meters, 11:27 in the 3200 meters, and 18:54 in the 5k. Yarema made significant improvements throughout high school and should continue her progression into college. Her racing has been less consistent than Duffing and Ray, but she has clearly not hit her full potential yet given her recent performances at the high school level.
The last sub-19 5k runner for Wayne State is Thailyia Christensen. She has personal bests of 2:26 in the 800, 5:19 in the 1600, 11:31 in the 3200m, and 18:53 in the 5k. She adds to what is already a very deep group of talent.
Duffing, Ray, Yarema, and Christensen all have very similar times on the track and should be able to push each other in both practice and racing. These four are fantastic additions for Wayne State and they all have the ability to make this team even deeper than they already have. We saw numerous youngsters toe the line last fall and that could again be the case in 2019.
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Not far behind that quartet is Makenzie Wank. She has personal bests of 5:23 in the 1600 meters, and 19:00 in the 5k. While her times are similar to the previous four, her progression hasn't been quite as consistent as the others. Still, the collegiate scene will likely open up a new opportunity of improvement for Wank who could easily be a part of that top freshman contingent mentioned above.
The mid-distance recruit for the Warriors is Cameron Martella who has personal bests of 2:25 in the 800 meters and 5:11 in the 1600 meters. She handily leads the recruiting class in terms of speed and will be an important incoming talent for this team when it's time to hit the track. With so many long distance talents who could potentially drop down in distance to an event like the mile, Martella is someone who could eventually be a massively valuable 800 or 1200 leg in a national qualifying DMR.
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Wayne State did an incredible job acquiring this group of quality recruits. All six will be in their home state and have a sense of familiarity as they transition from high school to college. Having several girls come on to a team with similar times can create a strong bond and allow for massive improvement.
The Warriors are set up to have a great fall and next four years with their 2019 recruits.