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Notre Dame Alex Wilson Invite Preview
- Admin (Garrett Zatlin)
- Feb 18, 2022
- 21 min read
Updated: Feb 20, 2022
Our preview of the JDL DMR Invite was long, extensive and detailed. That, of course, should have been expected given the mass amount of talent in those fields and the JDL's history of producing elite-level DMR times over the last few years.
However, for as good as the JDL DMR Invite is, it is Notre Dame's Alex Wilson Invitational that is arguably better. The DMR-centric meet, which is to be held on Saturday, will surely produce a handful of the nation's fastest times as it always does.
Below, we breakdown a few projected relays for the men's and women's "elite" DMR fields in South Bend, Indiana for this weekend.
Let's get started...
NOTE: Any and all analysis regarding who is running what leg of these DMR squads is based strictly on speculation. While we do know the teams that are entered at the Alex Wilson Invite, we do not have lineup entries. Again, these predicted relay entries and projected orders are only speculation and are subject to change.
MEN's ELITE DMR
Ole Miss Rebels
Everything about this Ole Miss roster screams "elite DMR".
The Rebels have added numerous men to their roster who have dipped under the four minute barrier in the mile. We've also seen their middle distance corp continue to progress, with more and more Ole Miss athletes dipping under the 1:48 and 1:49 barriers for 800 meters.
Because of that, it is almost impossible to figure out exactly who Coach Ryan Vanhoy will choose to fill the 1200, 800 and 1600 meter legs of this DMR without seeing any entries.
However, regardless of the relay combination that he chooses, it will almost be tricker for Vanhoy to construct a "poor" DMR lineup rather than a good one given the amount of talent that he has to pick from.
While he may not run this event at the indoor national meet, Mario Garcia Romo seems like the obvious choice to be on this relay come Saturday. With times of 2:20 (1k) and 3:53 (mile) this season, putting Garcia Romo on this relay, presumably on the anchor, seems like an obvious choice.
However, is it possible that Garcia Romo could move to the 1200 meter leg. Doing so would give the Rebels a massive edge from the gun. It's also not an absurd prediction to make, either. After running 2:20 for 1000 meters earlier this season, Garcia Romo could be the man who gives the Rebels the lead through the first leg.
Doing so would essentially put Ole Miss in a position to run away from their competition this weekend. That's a bit of gamble considering that Nuguse and Beadlescomb will be the presumed anchors for their relays.
You could argue that Academy of Art graduate transfer James Young, who is fresh off of a 3:55 mile time at Vanderbilt, could overtake the anchor spot of this relay. If the Rebels are trying to run away from their competition by putting Garcia Romo in the lead-off spot, seeing Young takeover that spot would make plenty of sense.
Young wasn't exactly amazing in the 1200 meter leg earlier this season (although he wasn't exactly bad, either), so I wonder how Vanhoy will opt to integrate him into this lineup if he doesn't want Young on the anchor leg.
If Garcia Romo is on the anchor leg, and Vanhoy somehow brings himself to leave a 3:55 miler in Young off of his relay, then trying to figure out the 1200 meter and 800 meter legs of this lineup is impossible.
Tiarnan Crorken just ran 1:47 for 800 meters the other weekend, has run as fast as 1:46 on the outdoor oval and owns a mile PR of 3:58. Is he better primed for the 1200 meter leg?
Or could it be Cruz Culpepper, the sub-four miler who has run 2:20 for 1000 meters this season? What about Everett Smulders, a 1:48 and 3:58 middle distance standout? I have a similar questions about Baylor Franklin who has run 1:47 and 3:59 earlier in his career. Could 3:57 miler Shane Bracken play a role? How about 3:59 miler Derek Elkins?
While it may be easy to overthink this relay lineup, the best option is to keep it simple.
Put Young and Garcia Romo on the opening leg and anchor leg (or vice versa) and put middle distance standout John Rivera, who has run 1:47 this season, on the 800 meter leg.
On paper, that group should not only win this race, but they should also contend for the national title.
Of course, delivering results based on what we see on paper is much more challenging than the reality that follows.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Let's just get this out of the way: Almost any team in the NCAA with Yared Nuguse on their anchor leg has a chance to win any collegiate DMR race they are in. That is probably the least controversial statement I'll ever make.
We know Nuguse is great and we know that he'll keep the Fighting Irish in the mix once he gets the baton on the anchor leg, but that's not really where our discussion starts.
Dylan Jacobs, a traditional 1200 meter leg of this always-competitive Notre Dame DMR, just ran 13:14 for 5000 meters last weekend, essentially making him a lock to run the 5k at the indoor national meet in March.
Because of that, Coach Sean Carlson may opt to leave Jacobs, a recent 3:57 miler, off of this DMR lineup in favor of a replacement 1200 meter runner who could end up running at the NCAA Indoor Championships.
There is a world where Carlson sees 1:45 man Samuel Voelz as a better option for the 1200 meters. In that case, he would likely opt to put either Tim Zepf or Bashir Mosavel-Lo at the 800 meter leg.
However, much like Ole Miss, it's best not to overcomplicate these lineups.
Voelz will likely run the 800 meter leg of this relay. In turn, Mosavel-Lo, who has run 1:48 this season and owns a 3:59 mile PR, would likely be the best option for the 1200 meter leg. It also doesn't hurt that he has run 2:22 for 1000 meters before.
There are two objectives for the 1200 meter and the 800 meter legs of this Notre Dame DMR.
The first objective is to match the firepower that we're going to see out of Texas and Ole Miss. The Longhorns and Rebels have, without question, the best 1200/800 relay combos in this field, and maybe even the nation.
While Notre Dame could certainly contend with them, it's going to be tricky to find someone on that 1200 meter leg who could match their up-front potency.
The second objective is to get as far ahead of the Michigan State men as possible.
The Fighting Irish are leaps and bounds better than the Spartans are through the first few legs. However, Beadlescomb is the only anchor in this DMR field who could contend with Nuguse if he's close enough.
As long as the first few legs of Notre Dame's DMR out-run the Spartans, which should happen, then the Irish shouldn't have to worry about Beadlescomb...in theory.
Texas Longhorns
I'm fairly confident that Crayton Carrozza, a flat-track converted 3:55 miler, is going to be the anchor for this Texas relay. After that, I have absolutely zero clue who is going to run what leg, and that includes the 400 meters.
Jonathan Jones is undoubtedly Texas' best 400 meter runner, but he just ran 1:46 for 800 meters and would actually be the best 800 meter option for the Longhorns' relay based strictly on personal bests.
At the same time, with a few others on this roster boasting 800 meter marks in the sub-1:49 range, would there be a greater net-gain by keeping Jones at the 400 meter spot and letting someone like Bizimana or Lindhorst take the 800 spot?
I honestly don't know the answer to that.
And if that does happen, then who goes to the 1200 meter leg? Would it be Bizimana or Lindhorst (whoever doesn't get picked for the 800)? Or would it be a sub-four miler like Yaseen Abdalla (3:57) or Cruz Gomez (3:57)?
Honestly, I have no idea who Texas will field in this DMR or in what order they will be in.
However, much like Ole Miss, this team is built for the DMR. Their lineup is optimized for each leg to offer massive middle distance firepower and honestly, I would argue that there isn't a team in this field that is more complete through all four legs than the Longhorns are.
This is a national-contending team that will finish 3rd place at the worst this weekend. However, trying to battle Ole Miss and fending off Notre Dame will prove to be a major challenge.
Princeton Tigers
Prior to this season, I wouldn't have necessarily expected the Princeton men to boast a DMR lineup that could theoretically contend with the likes of Texas, Ole Miss and Notre Dame.
Yet, here we are.
Between Sam Ellis, Samuel Rodman and Duncan Miller, this team is actually primed for a major DMR performance this weekend...but everything has to go right for them.
3:56 miler and long-time veteran Sam Ellis would, on paper, be the best anchor leg for this relay. However, between his recent 3:56 mile PR and his recent 1:48 PR for 800 meters, there is actually a good argument to be made that Ellis would be best positioned for success in the 1200 meters.
That would be the perfect medium for Ellis who could truly keep this Princeton relay competitive early-on in the race.
Doing so would allow 1:48 man Samuel Rodman to match the firepower of Ole Miss, Texas and Notre Dame on the 800 meter leg. Meanwhile, 3:57 miler Duncan Miller would essentially need to hang on while facing numerous sub-3:56 milers on the anchor leg.
I like this relay a lot, but they're about to face a major challenge.
Rodman is still a true freshman and is fairly inexperienced. In a high-pressure situation like this which involves so much chaos, leaning on a youngster to deliver his best performance on a major stage could be a challenge.
Miller, meanwhile, is an outstanding miler, but trying to have him fend-off top-tier talents on either the 1200 meter leg or the anchor leg will not be easy. Keep in mind that Miller has only run the mile twice in his career (4:02 and 3:57) and has only run faster than 3:46 for 1500 meters once in his career (3:43).
Princeton can be very much be one of the top finishing teams in this field, but all three of their legs need to have their absolute best days to be in the top-four conversation.
Wisconsin Badgers
This Wisconsin roster is sneaky-good and on paper, they actually mimic the Princeton men.
A lot.
This team has a 3:56 mile veteran (Olin Hacker) leading the way, as well as a surprise 3:57 mile star (Adam Spencer) which gives this team a potent 1-2 mile punch. They also boast an elite middle distance underclassman (Abdullahi Hassan) who has run sub-1:49 before.
If you were to replace "Olin Hacker" with "Sam Ellis", "Adam Spencer" with "Duncan Miller" and "Abdullahi Hassan" with "Samuel Rodman", then those above two sentences still perfectly apply. Everything I said about the Tigers could be said about the Badgers.
Hacker is a reliable veteran, Spencer is a great talent who needs to back up a past national-caliber mile performance and Hassan, for as incredible as he is, could be argued as someone who is a bit more inexperienced.
Now, that said, I do think Hacker is a stronger relay piece than Ellis and I actually think that Hacker will run the anchor while Spencer will run the opener.
Hassan, who just ran 1:47 the other weekend, also has a longer resume of success compared to Princeton counterpart Samuel Rodman, so I'd take the Wisconsin star over the young Princeton standout for this weekend.
Whichever way you slice it, the success of this Wisconsin relay is ultimately going to come down to whether or not Adam Spencer can replicate his 3:57 mile performance from the other weekend.
If he can, then Wisconsin should be able to hang with the likes of Notre Dame, Ole Miss and Texas.
Michigan Wolverines
Ah, the Michigan men. I really like this team.
They have some fairly underrated names and on paper, they could put together a relay that is fast enough to qualify for the indoor national meet (if they have a really good day).
However, I struggle to see this team contending for a top spot in this field.
Nick Foster and Olli Raimond are two men who are often overlooked in terms of the value that they bring to this team. In fact, they ran 3:58 and 3:59 miles, respectively, the other weekend.
But in a year where nearly everyone is running under the four minute barrier, those times, for as good as they are, just aren't quick enough to match the scoring potency of these other teams.
Despite running a 3:58 mile the other weekend, Foster likely wouldn't be in DMR lineups for Ole Miss, Texas, Wisconsin or Princeton. He could have, however, theoretically run the 1200 meter leg for Notre Dame.
The trade-off to those mile marks is the fact that freshman Miles Brown has run 1:47 for 800 meters, a time that he recently posted at the Windy City Invite in Chicago the other weekend.
Brown could be the name who keeps this team in contention with other top programs.
Even so, just like we mentioned with Samuel Rodman, Brown is fairly inexperienced and has only ever run under 1:50 once (which came last weekend).
The Wolverine rookie would need to have one of the top-three races of his career to keep the Michigan men in this race. While that is certainly possible, it is also not an easy task.
On paper, Michigan may not be able to keep pace with some of the better relays in this field, but there are always one or two teams that surprise us in the DMR each and every year.
The men of Big Blue could certainly be that team in 2022.
Indiana Hoosiers
When the Indiana Hoosiers upset the Ole Miss men in the DMR earlier this season, I struggled to figure out how that exactly happened. Was it just Ole Miss having a bad day? Or was it Indiana having a great day?
Both?
Now, obviously, Ole Miss wasn't fielding their best-possible lineup. However, their DMR still consisted of James Young, John Rivera and Everett Smulders, so it's not like Indiana beat a non-varsity team of inexperienced youngsters. That win was legit.
Look, this Indiana team isn't going to be able to match what some of these other programs can bring to the table this weekend. They do, however, have some really underrated talents on this roster.
True freshman Camden Marshall has been huge this year for the Hoosiers, running 1:49 (800) and 4:02 (mile) while also holding off James Young (Ole Miss) earlier this season on the 1200 meter leg of a DMR, splitting 2:55 in the process.
Parker Raymond, meanwhile, has run as fast as 1:48 in the open 800 meters in his career while Ben Veatch just ran a 3:59 mile earlier this season (as well as a time of 7:45 for 3000 meters).
Marshall has proven that he can be poised against top-tier talents despite his youth, Raymond has past success that matches the firepower of these other legs and Veatch, who was already a national-caliber talent, is in the best shape of his life.
Even so, every single member of this relay needs to be at peak performance to even be competitive in this field. They already have a mark of 9:33 this season, but there's no guarantee that a time like that will hold up for national qualifying.
Yet, despite all of that, something about this Veatch-led relay says, "team of destiny".
I guess we'll see if that's true...
Michigan State Spartans
There are ultimately two narratives that you could have for this Michigan State DMR. The first narrative is that this relay is only as good as Beadlescomb is. The second narrative is that every non-Beadlescomb leg in this relay will determine how well the Spartans do this weekend.
I'll go with the latter.
Beadlescomb just ran 3:52 in the mile. Even if he fails to come within three seconds of that time, then he could still run 3:55 and change. That alone could still be enough to put Michigan State in the mix this weekend and in the national qualifying conversation.
However, Beadlescomb's split largely doesn't matter if his teammates don't give him a chance to at least chase the lead pack. Or, at the very least, can his teammates run fast enough for Beadlescomb to chase a national qualifying time?
Andrew Nolan is Michigan State's best 800 meter runner this season with a time of 1:52 while veteran Joe Petruno, who has run 3:41 for 1500 meters before, has run 4:04 in the mile this winter.
I don't see a scenario where Petruno isn't on the 1200 meter leg and where Nolan isn't on the 800 meter leg. Petruno's sneaky-good 1500 meter PR could make him somewhat competitive during that opening leg, but even then he would need to have the best race of his career in order for that to happen.
At the end of the day, this Michigan State relay is racing against the clock rather than against their NCAA opponents. Whether or not they qualify for the indoor national meet will be the real uncertainty to gets answered this weekend.
Stanford Cardinal
I can't believe I'm saying this, but is freshman John Lester the best relay piece on Stanford's DMR this year? With a personal best of 1:47 and a seasonal best of 1:48, that may be the case.
The opening leg and anchor leg of this Stanford DMR is a bit of a mystery. Callum Bolger sits as the team's fastest miler this season with a mark of 4:02, but I'm not even sure if Bolger will be slotted into this relay.
While star talent Charles Hicks has run 3:43 for 1500 meters before, he has proven to be more of a long distance-centric talent and doesn't seem to offer the same level of mile firepower that a few of his teammates do.
Cole Sprout is likely going to be on the 1200 meter leg or the anchor leg, likely the latter. His times of 7:49 (3k) and 13:24 (5k) this season suggest that he could split at least 3:58 this weekend.
However, who will take over the other leg, whether that be the 1200 meters or the 1600 meters? Bolger could certainly be that guy, but would the Stanford coaching staff instead put recent 5000 meter star Ky Robinson on this relay in hopes that his recent 5k translates to a quick mile or 1200 meter time?
It all depends on how risk averse Stanford is here. They know what they have with Bolger, but Robinson could give them a ton of potential upside despite having little-to-no 1500 or mile experience.
Given how much uncertainty already surrounds this relay, it may be best to bite the bullet and go all-in on the idea that Robinson will carry this relay to a national qualifying spot wit a big-time split.
With how much faster the rest of the NCAA has become, and Sprout not offering much certainty as to what he could split, putting Robinson on this relay seems like a necessary risk.
Northeastern Huskies
The Northeastern men may be one of the most underrated teams in the country right now. They have a handful of really solid talents, many of which could be perfect fits for a top-tier DMR this weekend.
Let's start with their presumed anchor leg, Alex Korczynski. The Northeastern veteran had a major breakout season last spring, running a vey impressive time of 8:44 in the steeplechase. This season, he has gone after the sub-four mile barrier twice, coming up just short with times of 4:00 and 4:01.
On the 800 meter leg, we need to give some love to Reed Cherry, a guy who was overlooked by TSR earlier this season. However, after running 1:48 twice, both times at Boston University this season, Cherry has proven that he can not only run at a high-level, but also run at a high-level on a consistent basis.
Back in late January, the Northeastern men produced a very solid time of 9:37 in the DMR. In that race, Nicholas Young ran 3:00 while Cherry split 1:48 and Korczynski split 4:01.
However, keep in mind that the Northeastern men actually have Tyler Brogan on their roster as well, a guy who has run 2:22 for 1000 meters. If Brogan were to take over the 1200 meter leg for Northeastern, could he cut-off some time from their relay? Like Young, he has also run 4:06 this year, so it's hard to say how much of a difference that change would make.
There are two scenarios that could happen with Northeastern this weekend. They will either thrive in this ultra-competitive field and throw down top performances that their past competition didn't bring out of them, or they will be completely overwhelmed by the sheer amount of distance talent in this field.
A lot needs to go right for the Huskies on Saturday. A lot.
They really need to cut-down on time from their opening leg and having Korczynski under four minutes on his anchor split seems like a requirement in this field. If they do that, then this team can definitely go to the national meet.
And I hope they do! But for now, I don't see them beating many of these teams.
I hope they prove me wrong.
Final Predictions:
Notre Dame Fighting Irish -- 9:24
Ole Miss Rebels -- 9:25
Texas Longhorns -- 9:25
Wisconsin Badgers -- 9:28
Princeton Tigers -- 9:31
Michigan State Spartans -- 9:33
Stanford Cardinal -- 9:34
Michigan Wolverines -- 9:35
Indiana Hoosiers -- 9:36
Northeastern Huskies -- 9:37
WOMEN's ELITE DMR
Ole Miss Rebels
Could the Ole Miss women win this race? Honestly, I think they could. In fact, I would even argue that on paper, they're the favorites! No, my reason for that is not just because Sintayehu Vissa is the best runner in this field, but that certainly helps.
Instead, it's because of the other women who could be on this relay.
Loral Winn is an outstanding talent who has been super underrated this season while Vissa has received all of the attention. Winn has run 4:39 in the mile this winter, but has gone a step further to run 2:46 for 1000 meters as well.
On paper, there might not be another woman in this field who is a better fit for the 1200 meter leg than Winn. She has top-level times in multiple events which are distances that often translate to a strong opening leg of a DMR.
When pairing Winn with a 4:32 miler in Vissa, I'm not quite sure I see a scenario where this relay loses.
Of course, for those astute readers, you may notice on TFRRS that Ole Miss doesn't have a runner who has broken 2:30 for the 800 meters this season which is flat-out concerning.
Even so, that stat is a bit misleading.
Those 800 meter times were run by pentathletes and Lydia Van Dijk, who has run 2:48 for 1000 meters this winter, could bring her 2:10 personal best to the 800 meter distance this Saturday and get the job done.
The Ole Miss women should win this race...unless the Georgetown women or Indiana women have something to say about that.
Wisconsin Badgers
The Wisconsin Badgers have a very solid and very respectable group of women on their roster. They have great experience, plenty of depth and promising up-and-coming talent. However, I do wonder where they'll get the firepower to match the top teams in this field.
Victoria Heiligenthal seems like the obvious anchor choice for this relay, owning a personal best of 4:40 for the mile which she ran last weekend. In theory, she could at least stay competitive with the likes of VanderLende from Michigan or Olivia Markezich from Notre Dame.
After that, Danielle Bellino will likely be the 800 meter with a personal best time of 2:07 while Lucinda Crouch is probably the best 1200 meter option that Wisconsin has, boasting a recent 4:44 mile PR.
Overall, this is a solid relay, but the Badgers clearly lack the same firepower that some of these other relays boast. I doubt they'll have a poor race given the steadiness they have in their lineup, but their ceiling is somewhat limited unless someone has a massive breakout performance.
Georgetown Hoyas
If the Ole Miss women don't win, then the Georgetown women certainly could.
Based on their recent results, the Hoyas have the necessary middle distance firepower to match what the Rebels will bring to the table. However, their projected lineup, which may seem simple at first glance, is actually fairly complicated.
Sami Corman is the team's top miler this season, owning a personal best and a seasonal best of 4:36 this winter. While there could be arguments for her to run the 1200 meters, the safest bet is for her to run the anchor leg.
After that, things get tricky, particularly because of Melissa Riggins. The Hoya freshman has been phenomenal this year, running 2:05 in the 800 meters and 2:43 for 1000 meters. Those two times, however, leave us with a challenging question...
Should Riggins run the 800 meter leg or the 1200 meter leg? The answer to that question ultimately depends on what Georgetown's alternatives are in those respective distances.
Rachel Sessa has run 2:50 for 1000 meters this season while teammate Keira Bothwell has run 4:42 in the mile. If Riggins runs the 800 meter leg, then which of those performances does the Georgetown coaching staff believe will best translate to the 1200 meter leg?
Conversely, if Riggins runs the 1200 meter leg, then does that mean Sarah Dineen, who has run 2:08 this season, would run the 800 meter leg? If Dineen is the best alternative, then does that mean Riggins running the 1200 meter leg is actually a net-gain than if she were to run the 800 meter leg?
If this seems overly complicated that's because A) it is and B) I like to overthink things.
Overall, I don't see a scenario where this Georgetown relay isn't competing for a top-three finish. However, trying to perfectly optimize the best DMR possible could prove to be a major challenge.
Michigan Wolverines
When it comes to the DMR, it's fairly common to see the longer legs, like the 1200 meters and the 1600 meters, be the deciding factors of success for most teams. However, when it comes to the Michigan women, it's actually their middle-lineup entrants who could could carry this relay.
400 meter specialist Ziyah Holman is known for her ability to make up massive deficits in small windows, specifically on relays. She has run 52.92 for 400 meters this winter and owns a personal best of 51.41 in the event. Then there is Aurora Rynda who has been on a tear this year. The half-mile star ran 2:01 in the 800 meters last spring and has since translated that fitness to the indoor oval, running 2:02 for the same distance this winter.
Together, Holman and Rynda should be, without question, the best 400 meter and 800 meter duo in this entire field. Unbelievably, they could be the two women responsible for putting this Michigan DMR on the national stage.
With Samantha Tran projected to be the 1200 meter leg and Ericka VanderLende projected to be the anchor leg, all these two women need to do is just get by and replicate one of their better times.
VanderLende has run no faster than 4:41 in the mile, both this season and in her career, while Tran has run a combination of 2:09 (800) and 4:42 (mile) marks. With Holman and Rynda being as good as they are, the opposite ends of this relay just need to do enough to get by.
While the Michigan women may not contend for the win, they could very easily battle for a national qualifying time when all is said and done.
Indiana Hoosiers
Following Bailey Hertenstein's outstanding 4:35 mile performance from last weekend, I honestly believe that this Indiana relay could win it all come Saturday. I don't know if they will win it all, but it could certainly happen.
The best move for the Hoosiers is to put Hertenstein on the anchor leg. She's a true star-level talent who could realistically keep things competitive with Vissa and company.
As for the 1200 meter legs and the 800 meter legs of this DMR, this seems like a no-brainer. Hannah Stoffel should run the opening leg while Kelly Mindak should run the 800 meter leg.
Both of those women ran a huge pair of 2:47 marks for 1000 meters earlier this season, making them both realistic (and very strong) options to start this relay.
However, the trade-off can be found on the 800 meter leg. Mindak has run a very quick time of 2:05 for the half-mile distance while Stoffel is a few seconds back this season. That makes things easy in terms of relay inputs.
On paper, there may not be a DMR lineup in this field that is more complimentary of each other's strengths than what the Indiana women could put together. This theoretical cohesion could go a long way, especially with a top-notch anchor in Hertenstein seemingly peaking at the perfect time this winter.
Don't surprised if this team pulls off the win.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
I'm not super confident I know what kind of lineup Notre Dame is going to field this weekend, but I'll certainly make my best guess.
The anchor leg will undeniably be Olivia Markezich. Based on Notre Dame's current depth chart, there isn't a better option than her. Even so, she has only run 4:46 in the mile this season, seven seconds off of her 4:39 mile personal best.
Regradless, that past 4:39 PR is too good to forget about and Markezich's recent 9:08 effort for 3000 meters leads me to believe that she can still be an effective sub-4:40 anchor for Notre Dame this weekend.
The Fighting Irish, however, have a much trickier decision to make after placing Markezich on the anchor. Should Kaitlyn Ryan run the 800 meter leg? Or the 1200 meter leg?
With a personal best of 2:06 for 800 meters, which was run this season, the easy instant reaction is to suggest that Ryan should run the 800 meter portion of this relay.
However, Ryan has also run 2:51 for 1000 meters while the next-best miler on Notre Dame's roster this season has been Megan Scott with a 4:47 mile time. Based on that, you could also argue that Ryan is also Notre Dame's best option for the 1200 meter leg.
It is important to note that Madeleine King, a transfer from Ole Miss, has run 4:43 during her time with the Rebels and could be considered a good option for the lead-off leg of this DMR.
However, King has run no faster than 4:50 in her two attempts at the mile this winter.
And what about Erin Sullivan? She has run 2:09 for the 800 meters this winter and owns a personal best of 2:06. If Ryan was to run the 1200 meter leg, then Sullivan would be a fairly strong option for the 800 meter leg of this relay.
That last scenario is the one I see most likely happening, but it's hard to say with certainty.
Overall, there are a lot of solid pieces that Notre Dame could utilize for a distance medley relay, but there is also a lot of uncertainty that would need to break in the Irish's favor in order for them to be major players this weekend.
Can Ryan fully translate her 800 meter success to the 1200 meter leg? Can Sullivan reproduce her past 800 meter PR? Will Markezich match her mile personal best? Is this even the correct relay lineup for Notre Dame?
If the answers to all of those questions are a resounding, "YES" then Notre Dame should be able to shatter expectations and upset a few teams.
Utah Utes
BYU transfer and star miler Simone Plourde is the clear ace for this Utah relay. The indoor national qualifier from last year has run 4:38 this winter as well as 2:08 for 800 meters.
Plourde is going to be the clear choice for the anchor spot on Utah's DMR and could even contend with some of the top anchors in this field if she's close enough to them.
However, the rest of this lineup, much like Notre Dame, has a ton of question marks surrounding it.
Brooke Manson has run 2:09 for the 800 meters this season, but can she replicate her personal best of 2:06 from last spring? Sophie Ryan has run 2:53 for 1000 meters and 4:45 for the mile, but will that be enough to keep her competitive amongst the other lead-off legs in this race? Could long distance standouts like Emily Venters, Cara Woolnough or Keelah Barger somehow play a role?
I largely see this team in a similar light as Notre Dame. A lot of things need to go right in order for Plourde to be in the mix with the top anchors at the tail-end of this race. However, that doesn't mean that it can't happen.
Final Predictions:
Ole Miss Rebels -- 10:57
Indiana Hoosiers -- 10:59
Georgetown Hoyas -- 10:59
Michigan Wolverines -- 11:04
Wisconsin Badgers -- 11:09
Notre Dame Fighting Irish -- 11:14
Utah Utes -- 11:15
