TSR's 2023 D2 Outdoor Top 25 Individual Rankings (Women): Update #3

TSR Collaboration
May 8, 2023
15 min read

Written by Marissa Kuik & Grace McLaughlin

Additional edits and commentary by John Cusick & Garrett Zatlin

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25. Precious Robinson, Junior, Adams State (-2 / 23)

Precious Robinson comes in at TSR #25 after a solid 5k performance at the Portland Twilight Meet this past weekend.

The Grizzly distance talent ran 33:54 for 10,000 meters at the Bryan Clay Invitational earlier this season and currently sits at NCAA #4 on the D2 leaderboard in that event. Naturally, we were eager to see what she would deliver over 5000 meters.

Robinson ran a 16:31 (5k) mark to put herself at NCAA #23 on the D2 national leaderboard. That's not necessarily a bad performance, but after her impressive 10k effort, we were expecting her to at least run under her 5k PR of 16:23.

We aren’t worried too much about this performance. Running 16:31 for 5000 meters is still a respectable time and truthfully, the 10k will likely be her focus for the national meet anyways.

24. Josii Johnson, Senior, Westminster (UT) (Unranked)

Josii Johnson enters our outdoor track rankings after several impressive middle distance performances this season. The Westminster veteran has consistently been one of the top 800 meter runners in the country this year and is excelling in her final spring campaign.

After a 6th place finish in the half-mile at the NCAA Indoor Championships, the Utah-based talent opened up her outdoor track campaign with a 2:09 mark over 800 meters, then a 2:08 effort and now a fantastic time of 2:07 via an altitude conversion.

Oh, and she was the runner-up finisher at the RMAC Outdoor Championships the other weekend where she ran that latter mark to put herself at NCAA #3 on the D2 leaderboard.

Johnson’s highly underrated consistency and speed-based talent, along with her current momentum, indicates that she is a fringe national title contender over 800 meters and undoubtedly deserves a spot in our top-25 rankings.

23. Marissa D’Atri, Junior, Chico State (-2 / 21)

Marissa D’Atri has quickly become one of the top steeplechasers in the country and has shown major improvements over the past year.

The Chico State ace won that event, as well as the 5000 meters, at the CCAA Outdoor Championships. Her times weren't anything super impressive, but she showcased her ability to race competitively in tactical scenarios.

D’Atri sits at NCAA #5 on the D2 national leaderboard in the steeplechase and has recorded PRs in every event from the 800 meters to the 5k this season. Her talent and strength in the steeplechase, and her momentum this season, puts her at TSR #23 in our rankings.

22. Katie Fankhouser, Junior, Fort Lewis (Unranked)

Katie Fankhouser finds herself in our rankings after a stellar performance in the 1500 meters at the RMAC Outdoor Championships. The Fort Lewis ace pulled off a major upset to win gold last weekend in a converted time of 4:23 (1500), putting her at NCAA #11 on the D2 national leaderboard.

And although it's just one performance of that caliber, Fankhouser suddenly feels like she could be a major dark horse name to compete for an All-American spot later this month. A win like that doesn't just happen by accident.

Fankhouser has been on the national stage before and was successful on the grass this past fall with her 26th place finish at the NCAA XC Championships. Her indoor track season was rather quiet, but certainly not bad, and up until this past weekend, her outdoor track campaign was solid, but nothing remarkable.

Of course, her recent win and converted 4:23 mark at the RMAC Championships was one heckuva breakthrough race. We believe her consistent improvements and current momentum going into (and coming out of) last weekend is worthy of a spot in our rankings.

21. Najwa Chouati, Senior, Stanislaus State (-2 / 19)

Najwa Chouati moves down two spots in our rankings this week.

The Stanislaus State ace raced at the CCAA Outdoor Championships and finished with gold and silver medals, winning the 1500 meters in 4:31 and placing 2nd overall in a tactical 5k race with a 17:07 mark.

These performances were focused on earning team points and admittedly don't tell us much about what to expect from Chouati at the outdoor national meet.

Still, we know that she is fit and one of the top runners in the country from her previous performances this season. The Stan State ace has run personal bests in every event and sits in the top-13 of the national leaderboard in both of those aforementioned races.

So while she may be dropping two spots in our rankings, just know that in the grand scheme of things, Chouati is no less talented that she was during our last rankings update.

After an All-American performance in the 5k at the NCAA Indoor Championships and her 34:00 mark in the 10,000 meters, Chouati could potentially end her season as an All-American in two events.

20. Lauren Kiley, Freshman, Grand Valley State (-2 / 18)

Lauren Kiley comes in at TSR #20 this week after some solid 1500 meter races.

The Grand Valley State rookie ran 4:27 in the metric mile at the GVSU Extra Weekend Meet and then posed a 4:30 mark for a 4th place finish at the GLIAC Outdoor Championships. These times only put her at NCAA #34 on the D2 leaderboard, so the 5k will still, unsurprisingly, be her main event for the NCAA Outdoor Championships.

Admittedly, these recent performances don't tell us anything new about Kiley and her current fitness other than she is working on her closing speed and turnover. Kiley is an endurance-based talent and has excelled on the cross country course, but it's clear that she'll need to gain any advantage, tactically, to overcome her rookie inexperience.

That said, her 16:17 (5k) mark from the Bryan Clay Invitational is still an impressive head-turner and it shows us that there is potential for Kiley to earn another All-American performance this year. And despite her youth, she has been overall great this year.

19. Katie Doucette, Junior, Western Colorado (Unranked)

Katie Doucette enters our rankings yet again after an impressive race at the RMAC Outdoor Championships. The Western Colorado veteran has shown an incredible amount of talent and potential in the past, but has struggled with consistency this year.

Luckily, her most recent win in the 5000 meters via a converted mark of 16:13 showed us that Doucette is rounding into form at the right time. She beat several top names and sits at NCAA #8 on the D2 national leaderboard, indicating that her last race in a Western Colorado uniform should be a good one.

There's no doubt in our minds that this RMAC ace can be an All-American at the end of this season, but just how high she can place on the national stage is our greatest uncertainty. Her overall fitness is closer to the highest tier of D2 than the next-best level, but championship execution will be the biggest thing to monitor with her.

18. Megan Roxby, Senior, Simon Fraser (-1 / 17)

Megan Roxby comes in at TSR #18 in our rankings after running a strong 2:09 mark for 800 meters at the Oxy Invitational.

The Simon Fraser talent has been incredibly consistent in that event this year and has run 2:09/2:10 in every race that she has toed the line for. That consistency, combined with running a new 1500 meter PR of 4:24 earlier in the season, makes her one of the top middle distance talents in all Division Two right.

The Canadian-based collegiate had a disappointing end to her indoor track season, but her current momentum shows us that she is on the right trajectory to finish her spring campaign on a high note.

17. Kate Hedlund, Sophomore, UC-Colorado Springs (-1 / 16)

Kate Hedlund moves down one spot in our rankings to TSR #17 after "just fine" performances at the RMAC Outdoor Championships.

The Mountain Lion ace placed 7th in the 800 meters in 2:11 and 4th in the 1500 meters with a converted time of 4:25. Her 4:22 mark in the metric mile from the Bryan Clay Invitational is still faster, and we would have liked to see some greater competitiveness in the half-mile, but these performances at least showed ongoing consistency and competitive prowess from Hedlund.

The UCCS standout has established herself as one of the best 1500 meter runners in the country as far as combining tactics and raw talent are concerned. After a somewhat disappointing end to her winter campaign, her current momentum feels promising as we continue into the championship portion of the season.

16. Amanda Montplaisir, Senior, Minnesota State (-1 / 15)

Amanda Montplaisir comes in at TSR #16 this week.

The Maverick senior ran 10:19 in the steeplechase at the Drake Relays, just a few seconds shy of her PR. She then extended her momentum into the next weekend where she ran a PR of 4:26 for 1500 meters at the MSU-Mankato Maverick Open.

Montplaisir is an aerobic-based talent who has shown incredible strength and consistency in the steeplechase this season. She has maintained her momentum from her top-10 finish at the NCAA XC Championships and her 8th place finishes in both the DMR and the 3000 meters at the NCAA Indoor Championships.

Now, she is currently sitting at NCAA #4 on the D2 national leaderboard in the steeplechase and is part of the battle for a silver medal on the national stage this year behind Eleonora Curtabbi in that event.

Montplaisir is a true veteran who has proven that she can be legitimately competitive at national meets. And while she does drop one spot in our rankings this week, that shouldn't overshadow the edge that we think she has over her competitors at the upcoming NCAA Outdoor Championships.

15. Kaylee Beyer, Junior, Winona State (-1 / 14)

Kaylee Beyer moves down one spot this week after running at the Phil Esten Challenge and the Drake Relays.

Beyer ran 17:05 in the 5000 meters at the Phil Esten Challenge which was a PR for the Winona State middle distance talent. She followed up that performance with a 4:28 (1500) effort at the Drake Relays. Both of these races were solid, but just like we mentioned with Kiley and Chouati, they don't tell us anything about Beyer that we didn’t already know.

Of course, after her 4th place finish from the NCAA Indoor Championships, we know that Beyer knows how to peak at the right time. She clearly has the potential to match that kind of performance on the outdoor oval later this month and maybe, just maybe, earn as high as 2nd place in this event at the outdoor national meet.

14. Cailee Peterson, Senior, Minnesota-Duluth (-1 / 13)

After racing at the Drake Relays, the Minnesota-Duluth senior comes in ranked at TSR #14 this week. On one the nation's bigger regular season stages, Peterson ran a new 1500 meter PR of 4:24 for an impressive 4th place finish in a competitive field.

Peterson’s season thus far has been pleasantly consistent and her recent two-second PR shows us that she is on the right trajectory as we head into the NCAA Outdoor Championships.

The Minnesota-Duluth veteran shocked us this past winter with her runner-up finish in the mile at the NCAA Indoor Championships. Of course, we now know what to expect from her in a few weeks time. Because when it comes to blending talent and tactics, few women in D2 are better at doing exactly that than Peterson.

13. Celine Ritter, Senior, Lee (Tenn.) (+7 / 20)

Celine Ritter moves up seven spots this week after two busy weeks of racing.

The long-time Lee veteran ran 2:10 in the 800 meters and 4:18 in the 1500 meters at the Georgia Tech Invitational two weekends, giving her seasonal resume a massive boost.

Those performances alone were enough to establish herself into our top-15, but she then put together a crazy-strong triple at the Gulf South Outdoor Championships. There, the Flames ace took home three gold medals in the 800 meters, the 1500 meters and the 10,000 meters.

Her times of 2:10, 4:22 and 34:55 in those respective events are solid, but running that kind of triple within a 24-hour period is extremely impressive and it further showcases her dynamic talent.

Ritter is now sitting at NCAA #2 in the 1500 meters and NCAA #16 in both the 5k and the 10k on the D2 national leaderboard. Any lingering doubts about her fitness, especially in the 1500 meters, are gone and we believe that she has even more in the tank in the 5k as we head into the NCAA Outdoor Championships.

Simply put, there's a good chance that she ends this season inside our top-10.

12. Taryn Chapko, Sophomore, Grand Valley State (-1 / 11)

Taryn Chapko has contested a total of three individual events since our last rankings update.

The Grand Valley State half-miler toed the line for her main event at the GVSU Extra Weekend Meet where she ran 2:09 for the two-lap affair. Then, at the GLIAC Outdoor Championships, we saw Chapko contest the 400 meters. She set a personal best in that event, running 57.65 seconds, and secured a 4th place finish. Not too shabby for someone who is considered to be more of a middle distance athlete than a sprinter.

It's clear that Chapko is working on her finishing speed as she gears up for the outdoor national meet in a couple of weeks' time. We should see a relatively sharp race plan from the Laker star which could easily earn her a top-three result.

Of course, trying to win gold will be the greater challenge for this always-reliable GVSU star.

11. Zoe Baker, Junior, Colorado Mines (+1 / 12)

Baker jumps up one spot in our rankings after two solid races.

The Colorado Mines veteran ran a converted 34:32 mark in the 10,000 meters at the Mines Mini Meet to lead several of her teammates to national qualifying marks in the event as well. She later continued her momentum into the RMAC Outdoor Championships where she earned a silver medal in the 5000 meters with a converted 16:15 result.

The Oredigger ace is currently sitting at NCAA #5 and NCAA #12 in the 5k and the 10k, respectively, and has historically been a front-runner in these events at championship meets.

And although Baker hasn't been at her best on championship stages in the past, her recent consistency in the endurance events gives us a greater feeling of comfort as we head into the rest of this month.

10. Ava O’Connor, Sophomore, Adams State (0 / 10)

Ava O’Connor has not raced since our last rankings update.

9. Natalie Graber, Junior, Grand Valley State (0 / 9)

Natalie Graber lowered her steeplechase PR down to 10:13 at the GVSU Extra Weekend Meet, putting herself at NCAA #3 on the D2 national leaderboard. Then, this past weekend, Graber raced the 1500 meters at the GLIAC Outdoor Championships where she ran an impressive time of 4:23 for the overall win.

Graber is clearly coming into form right when she needs to and she's doing so by flexing her fitness in a variety of different events. She is now only a few seconds behind Ava O’Connor in the steeplechase and running a great mark of 4:23 in the 1500 meters means that she is ready to run fast in (mostly) any situation.

This Grand Valley State ace continues to impress us and she will be an athlete to watch in the steeplechase. It may be too much to say that she can pass up Curtabbi for the national title, but...never say never.

8. Klaudia O’Malley, Junior, Grand Valley State (-1 / 7)

Klaudia O’Malley opened up her outdoor track season with a bang when she ran 4:19 in the 1500 meters in late March at the Raleigh Relays. Since then, O’Malley has not run faster in that event, but she has backed up that performance with a fantastic time of 16:07 in the 5k and a handful of consistent marks in the metric mile.

Over the past two weekends, O’Malley has run 4:23 in the 1500 (at the Lakers' home meet) and then chose to race the 800 meters at the GLIAC Outdoor Championships where she took home gold.

She was also a part of the Lakers’ 4x400 meter relay, continuing to work on her foot-speed.

O’Malley has been a consistent name on the national stage and has been reliably elite name this whole season. As usual, we expect her to be competitive for an All-American honor, but whether or not she can fully translate her unreal raw talent into being a national title contender is the biggest question.

7. Helen Braybrook, Sophomore, CSU-Pueblo (+1 / 8)

Helen Braybrook has put together one of the better outdoor track seasons this spring of anyone in the RMAC, running personal bests in both the 800 meters and the 1500 meters.

This past weekend, Braybrook focused on her signature event at the RMAC Outdoor Championships as she ran 2:06 for 800 meters to win the conference title. Her time of 2:06 would earn her a small conversion down to 2:05 for the half-mile distance, good enough for NCAA #2 on the D2 national leaderboard.

She has run 4:20 in the 1500 meters and is easily qualified for the outdoor national meet in both events. We would guess that Braybrook would opt for the two-lap affair at the end of the month where she has the best chance of winning the national title.

It is hard to pick anyone other than Ukeyvia Beckwith for the 800 meter national title right now, but if we had to, then Braybrook has to be viewed as having the best shot of giving Beckwith the most trouble. She does, after all, have the home track advantage this year which could this Thunderwolf star a significant edge.

Plus, she may still have untapped potential given her recent improvement.

Braybrook finished runner-up at the indoor national meet and has ridden that momentum throughout the whole outdoor track season. And right now, we don't see a single flaw on her resume.

6. Brianna Robles, Junior, Adams State (-1 / 5)

Since our last rankings update, Brianna Robles has raced a couple of times, competing in the 1500 meters at the Don Kirby Invite and running the 5k at Portland Twilight.

The Adams State standout ran an unconverted time of 4:33 in the 1500 meters which was good, but not great. We don't think that's anything to be concerned about considering that Robles is not a 1500 meter runner and she was likely working on her speed.

Robles then raced in one of her specialty distances, the 5000 meters, running a time of 16:09 in Portland. Her 5k time was also good, but also nothing that surprises us. That was well within her wheelhouse.

To be honest, we expected more from Robles who has well under 16 minutes in the 5k during the indoor track season. However, this Grizzly superstar has always been able to perform on the national stage, so for now, we aren't too worried.

Not only that, but let's remember that Robles will be racing at altitude when we reach the national stage, something that could give her a massive advantage come late May.

5. Florance Uwajeneza, Senior, West Texas A&M (-1 / 4)

Just like her teammate Eleonora Curtabbi, Florence Uwajenza put her focus on the Lone Star Outdoor Championships where she won both the 5k and the 10k.

Uwajeneza still sits at NCAA #2 on the national leaderboard in the 10k and NCAA #3 in the 5k, so there really isn’t much else to analyze here. After getting the job done at the Lone Star Outdoor Championships, the Buffalo star will put her focus on the outdoor national meet where the idea of NCAA gold in the 10k doesn't seem totally unrealistic.

Simply put, Uwajenza is right where she wants to be this season and will be ready for something special come the national meet. At the moment, she may be primed to peak better than most women listed in our rankings.

4. Ukeyvia Beckwith, Senior, Embry-Riddle (+2 / 6)

Ukeyvia Beckwith has been at the top spot on the national leaderboard for 800 meters since the outdoor track season started and it's hard to see if anyone will be able to beat her for the national title.

The Embry-Riddle veteran started her outdoor track season at 2:09 (800) and lowered her time all the way down to 2:04 (800) which she ran this past weekend at the UNF East Coast Relays. She has improved by nearly a second almost every week that she has toed the line for this even which is somewhat unheard of.

Beckwith is having a very similar season to that of Vanessa Aniteye as far as her rate of improvement goes -- and let's not forget, Aniteye won the indoor national title! Holding Helen Braybrook off at her home track will be a challenge at this year's national meet, but Beckwith will clearly be the title favorite going into the last weekend of May.

3. Lindsay Cunningham, Sophomore, Winona State (0 / 3)

Lindsay Cunningham is known for racing solo and grinding out good times, but she did get to race in a competitive field at the Drake Relays over 5000 meters. In that field, she came away with a seasonal best of 15:45 (5k) and was just two seconds behind the winner.

That time places her at NCAA #1 on the national leaderboard in the 5k which joins her nation-leading time in the 10k as well.

It's really hard to dislike Cunningham who is a machine when it comes to hammering out fast times, whether it's totally solo or in a competitive field.

The biggest challenge for Cunningham may not even be another competitor, but rather the altitude she will run in at the national meet in Pueblo, Colorado. If Cunningham can handle the altitude, then she could pull off the 5k/10k double gold, cementing herself as the distance queen in Division Two.

2. Eleanora Curtabbi, Senior, West Texas A&M (0 / 2)

This past weekend, Eleonora Curtabbi put her focus on the Lone Star Conference Championships where she won both the 1500 meters and the steeplechase. That's not a total shock given how good she is, but it's still a nice sign of sustained fitness.

The steeplechase/1500 meter double will be challenging, but Curtabbi is almost certainly a lock to win gold in the steeplechase at the outdoor national meet. The 1500 meters will definitely be more of a trickier task.

Still, this West Texas A&M star has just as good of a chance at winning that event as anyone else in the field. And with Curtabbi already taking on that double at one championship meet, can she repeat as double champion again at the nation's biggest stage in Pueblo, Colorado?

1. Stephanie Cotter, Senior, Adams State (0 / 1)

Stephanie Cotter had not raced since the indoor national meet, but after a massive training block, she opted to make her season debut at the Oregon Twilight and Portland Twilight meets. There, she competed in both the 5k and the 1500 meters, running times of 15:53 (Portland) and 4:20 (Oregon), respectively.

It’s crazy to say, but this is actually the first time that Cotter has run a 5k in her track career. And for her first time running the event (after running the 1500 meters the night before), it feels like a pretty impressive performance.

Sure, her 1500 meter effort was solid, but it still leaves us wanting more, especially with how competitive the women's metric mile in D2 is expected to be this year.

Nevertheless, Cotter leaves us with no doubts that she can’t win the 1500 meter national title. But trying to figure out whether or not she'll also contest the 5k on the national stage is the bigger question.