2025 John Thomas Terrier Classic Preview & Predictions (Women): Whittaker & Willis Return to the 800m, Flockhart vs Chamberlain in the Mile, Bunnage vs May vs Carlson Over 3k & Halladay-Lowry Returns

Buckle up friends, another Boston U. distance running palooza is set to take place this Friday and Saturday!

The John Thomas Terrier Classic is often viewed as the first "major" invitational of the post-winter break indoor track season. And with it comes a handful of jaw-dropping performances. Don't forget, this is the same meet where Nico Young set the world on fire with a 12:57 (5k) mark last year!

But today, we're not talking about the men -- instead, it's the ladies' turn for the spotlight. Below, we broke down all of the major women's collegiate entries in each of the distance events and then made our predictions below.

Alright, here we go...

Women's 800 Meters: Whittaker & Willis Return to Primary Distance While Hunter & Gorriaran Face-Off in Rematch

The NCAA's best half-mile duo in the country -- and maybe of all-time -- are set to return to the 800-meter distance this Friday. So what should we expect from these two middle distance phenoms?

Whittaker is likely viewed as the pre-race favorite among collegians. However, a large handful of pro runners with sub-2:00 seeds may make it difficult for her to secure the overall win. Even so, this Stanford star was an Olympian this past summer, making it to the 800-meter finals in Paris in what felt like a Cinderella story through the rounds. And maybe even more impressively, the Cardinal junior dropped an unreal PR of 1:57!

Coming into this meet, Whittaker has only contested one race this season. Her 4:31 mile effort came at the UW Preview where she emerged as the top collegian. That, however, was more of a rust-buster than anything else.

Expecting Whittaker to be anywhere near the form that we saw from her at the Olympics admittedly feels ambitious. Of course, if she's firing on all cylinders, then a sub-2:00 (800) clocking could still be in the cards for her. That, however, would require multiple aspects of this race unfolding in her favor.

We then come to Willis whose recent 1:25.74 mark over 600 meters would have broken the NCAA outdoor record in that event by 0.01 seconds. But on the indoor oval, the Stanford phenom now sits at NCAA #3 all-time when accounting for all track sizes.

This Cardinal duo is seemingly just as fit as any other collegians are in this field. Their pedigree, recent experience and raw fitness makes them comfortable guesses to run 2:01 (800) and maybe even 2:00 this Friday. However, given their tendency to peak in the postseason, expecting anything faster than that would be fairly surprising.

We then come to BYU's Meghan Hunter and Harvard's Sophia Gorriaran. Those two women went head-to-head over 800 meters at the Boston U. Season Opener back in December. In that race, Hunter's strength in the last lap allowed her to pull away from Gorriaran in the final stretch, defeating the Ivy League star, 2:02.03 to 2:02.74, en route to the win.

However, this time around, the 800-meter field that Hunter will see in Boston should be much stronger. And for as good as the BYU veteran is, it's unlikely that she'll be able to implement the same tactics that led her to gold in her last outing. In theory, that should benefit Gorriaran whose raw fitness has always been better than her in-race execution.

Despite the accolades of Hunter and Gorriaran, there are two other collegiate half-milers who could be just as good. I am, of course, talking about North Carolina's Makayla Paige and Harvard's Victoria Bossong.

Both of those women had huge breakout seasons last winter and spring, each producing 800-meter PRs of 2:00-high.

Paige is more of a strength-based 800-meter runner who recently posted a 4:38 mile PR. Bossong, however, leans closer to the sprints, boasting a 52.16 (400) PR. In races that are all-out time trials (like the one that we'll probably see on Friday), having greater aerobic strength like Paige does should be more beneficial.

Of course, both of these women are largely equal in terms of their fitness, recent progression and overall resumes. It would be a mistake to say that Bossong doesn't belong with the likes of Hunter, Gorriaran and Paige -- because she absolutely does.

Also, keep an eye out for newcomers such as Aliyah Canty (Boston College) and Tharushi Karunarathna (Tulane). The former is seeded with a 2:01 mark, which I couldn't verify, while the latter has run 2:00.66 despite holding a slower seed time.

Women's Mile: How Will December 3k Standouts Flockhart & Chamberlain Fare in Their (Presumed) Primary Event?

When talking about star power, there are only two collegians who truly stand out in the entries of the women's mile. Those women are Providence's Shannon Flockhart and BYU's Riley Chamberlain.

Excluding a mile DNF result from Flockhart who was on pacing duties, both of these women last competed at this same track over 3000 meters back in December. In that race, Flockhart flexed an unreal combination of speed and strength. The Friar star threw down a huge kick to emerge as the top collegian with an 8:45 PR. Chamberlain, meanwhile, was a bit further back with a time of 8:51.

Flockhart is the somewhat clear collegiate favorite for tomorrow's race. The mile/1500 meters has always been her best event and in 2024, it felt like she was able to fully translate her success from the outdoor oval to the indoor oval. Now, after showcasing a clear leap in strength while maintaining (and improving) her turnover, Flockhart feels like she is due for a monster mile performance.

There is no question in my mind that this Providence standout is going to go under 4:30 on Friday. The only question is, how far under will she go?

As for Chamberlain, she has admittedly been a tricky name to analyze over the last year or so. Last winter, the BYU ace was outstanding and, at times, looked like one of the 10 most dangerous distance runners in the country. However, her spring campaign, while by no means bad, didn't hold the same level of excitement.

After a productive cross country season -- and an even better 3k race -- one has to believe that Chamberlain is on the up. Few women in the country are more dangerous than this Cougar ace is when she is able to establish momentum. And given that she has improved her aerobic strength over the last seven months, she should be able to hold her own in a quick-from-the-gun type of race.

Molly Hudson, the English miler who entered the NCAA last winter, has returned for another season of competition. The Boston College runner was able to drop her mile PR down to 4:30 last year, but opted to go all-in for the Golden Eagles' DMR rather than pursue individual glory on the national stage.

Admittedly, some of Hudson's races are better than others. Even so, it's clear that the BC miler favors the indoor oval more than any other season. Many of her best races have come in Boston -- whether that be at Boston U. or at the New Balance track -- and it doesn't hurt that she ran a 9:17 (3k) PR on this same track back in December.

Hudson seems to have a fairly high floor -- I don't see her running any slower than 4:33-ish on Friday. However, expecting her to go under 4:30 in the mile would be asking a lot at this point in the season.

Other names to keep an eye on are BYU's Carmen Alder, Taylor Rohatinsky and Carlee Hansen as well as North Carolina's Taryn Parks and Brynn Brown. Northern Arizona's Karrie Baloga is also seeded with that group as well.

The BYU women will definitely have my attention throughout tomorrow. All three of those women have proven to be fairly competitive milers during their time in the NCAA. And given how much they improved this past fall, specifically Alder and Rohatinsky, they could be due for a big breakout race.

Women's 3k: Who You Got? Bunnage, May or Carlson?

Truthfully, when it comes to collegians, the women's 3000-meter field seems to be very limited on depth. Only four collegians are seeded with sub-9:00 marks.

But what this field lacks in quantity it makes up for in quality. That's because Stanford's Amy Bunnage, Providence's Kimberly May and Northern Arizona's Alex Carlson will all be going head-to-head-to-head on Friday evening.

Bunnage and May are the two women who are favored to finish as the top collegians. And unfortunately for people making predictions (read: me), both of those distance stars have very good cases for why they could come out as the top NCAA runner in this 3k field.

Aerobically, Bunnage is flat-out incredible. She was 4th at the NCAA XC Championships this past fall and then produced a historically elite time of 15:00 (5k) on this same track a month-and-a-half ago. And considering that this race will likely be an all-out effort, the pure strength that this Cardinal sophomore holds should give her a big advantage.

However, you may be someone who believes that the 3000 meters requires just as much turnover as it does endurance. That's why Kimberly May is such a dangerous name in this field. The Providence phenom is an all-time standout in the mile who ran a 3k PR of 8:54 last winter and had a 2024 dominant cross country season.

Not only that, but May has already run 4:28 in the mile this season!

On paper, May is practically built for the 3000 meters. She has a beautiful blend of speed and strength which could allow her to erupt for a huge time. And if you're of the opinion that May is a better distance talent than Flockhart (which is becoming an increasingly more difficult conversation), then you'd have to imagine that May can surpass the 8:45 (3k) mark that her teammate posted in December.

We then come to Alex Carlson, the Northern Arizona standout who captured our attention with a monster mile conversion of 4:27 two weekends ago. That was a brilliant performance which suggested that she was at (or maybe even beyond) her peak form from two years ago.

During her time at Rutgers, Carlson posted times of 4:31 (mile) and 8:56 (3k). And for someone who was only a sophomore at the time, those were incredibly impressive marks. Unfortunately, Carlson had not replicated that kind of fitness in the following seasons...until now.

Truthfully, this rising Lumberjack star is still a bit of a wild card. Her mile conversion earlier this month was outstanding, but it's only one result and it's hard to say how a converted mile translates to a 3k effort at sea level.

But in theory, thriving at altitude suggests that Carlson has the raw strength to hang with a fast pace. And if that suspicion holds true, then it's not a question of whether or not the NAU star will run a 3k PR, but rather, by how much?

As for a few other women in this field, Agnes McTighe (Northern Arizona), Savannah Roark (Syracuse), Sophia Kennedy (Stanford) and Jessie Secor (Colorado) have my attention.

McTighe is the fourth collegian who has a sub-9:00 (3k) seed time in this field. And while I don't see anything on her resume that directly points to her running something close to that, I do think it's realistic for the former Florida State runner to crack the nine-minute barrier on Friday.

Her recent success on the grass should be translatable to the 3000-meter distance for a 4:13 (1500) runner...right?

Women's 5k: BYU's Halladay-Lowry & Hutchins Return

After a not-so-terribly-long wait, BYU's long distance duo of Lexy Halladay-Lowry and Jenna Hutchins are scheduled to return to action.

This past fall, the former was battling an injury through the NCAA XC Championships, something that kept her from being in top form (although she still placed 14th at the national meet). Hutchins, meanwhile, had an injury that was more significant, taking her out of regional and national competition, entirely.

But now, after a long winter break where they could recover and rebuild, both of these BYU standouts will make their season debuts on Friday over 5000 meters.

Truthfully, I'm torn with how I want to make my predictions. On one hand, both of these women recently had setbacks in training, leaving me to believe that a 5k PR this Friday isn't likely. And yet, at the same time, I don't think Coach Diljeet Taylor would enter her women in a field like this if she didn't think that they were ready for it.

Tomorrow's 5k race is going to be more about where the Halladay-Lowry and Hutchins are with their current fitness levels rather than what they can eventually do in March.

Another key name to monitor is Providence's Alex Millard, the English distance star who was a standout low-stick for her team this past fall.

The newest Friar talent has only competed once this winter, running 4:35 in the mile. However, her accolades prior to entering the NCAA suggest that she is capable of a much stronger performance, either in the mile or in another event.

Millard is too proven and too talented to not have a good race on Friday. And while the field will be stacked with upper-tier pros, it's important to remember that she also has plenty of experience racing against top pro names from her time overseas.

FINAL PREDICTIONS

NOTE: Predictions are only for attached collegians listed in the entries. TSR is aware that an athlete could/will scratch out of certain events to pursue a more manageable weekend of racing. Even so, The Stride Report will offer predictions for each event as if every athlete in the distance fields will be completely fresh.

*An asterisk denotes that a collegian is also entered in another individual event.

Women’s 800 Meters

1. Juliette Whittaker (Stanford) - 2:00

2. Roisin Willis (Stanford) - 2:01

3. Makayla Paige (North Carolina)* - 2:01

4. Megan Hunter (BYU) - 2:02

5. Sophia Gorriaran (Harvard) - 2:02

Women’s 1000 Meters

1. Bella Pietrasiewicz (Dartmouth) - 2:43

2. Marianne Mihas (Harvard) - 2:46

3. Iris Bergman (Yale) - 2:47

4. Juliette Dutruy (Laval) - 2:50

5. Abby Sadler (Harvard) - 2:51

   
   

Women’s Mile

1. Shannon Flockhart (Providence) - 4:26

2. Riley Chamberlain (BYU)* - 4:29

3. Carmen Alder (BYU) - 4:30

4. Taryn Parks (North Carolina) - 4:31

5. Molly Hudson (Boston College) - 4:31

Women’s 3k

1. Kimberley May (Providence) - 8:43

2. Amy Bunnage (Stanford) - 8:46

3. Alex Carlson (Northern Arizona) - 8:50

4. Agnes McTighe (Northern Arizona) - 8:56

5. Jessie Secor (Colorado) - 9:02

Women’s 5k

1. Lexy Halladay-Lowry (BYU) - 15:16

2. Alex Millard (Providence) - 15:23

3. Ali Upshaw (Northern Arizona) - 15:29

4. Elise Stearns (Northern Arizona) - 15:34

5. Jenna Hutchins (BYU) - 15:37