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TSR's 2024 Preseason D1 XC Top 50 Rankings: #30-21 (Women)
- TSR Collaboration
- Jul 28, 2024
- 15 min read
Written by Rachel Hickey & Finn Birnie, edits & additional commentary via Garrett Zatlin
30. Annastasia Peters, Sophomore, Utah
As a true freshman, Annastasia Peters broke out in a big way last fall, earning a fantastic 33rd place finish at the NCAA XC Championships to earn her first All-American honor. Along with veteran teammate Mckaylie Caesar, Peters helped the Utah women to their second-highest finish in program history at 13th place.
The question going into this fall is...can she do it again?
Peters flexed plenty of talent coming to Utah out of high school, having earned Gatorade Player of the Year honors for girl's cross country in her home state of Idaho. In that season, she was the first Idaho female athlete to produce multiple sub-17 finishes at the 5k distance. She was a multi-time Idaho state champion in cross country and track, ultimately carrying that momentum into her first collegiate season with the help of head coach Kyle Kepler.
Performing as well as she did on the nation's biggest stage as a true freshman is difficult, but it is even more challenging to replicate an outstanding performance year after year. Thankfully, the rising sophomore proved throughout last fall that she was a true low-stick -- her national meet success wasn't a fluke.
A 3rd place finish at the Griak Invitational was her opening statement to the country and her 23rd place finish at the Nuttycombe Invitational was massive validation that she was among the very best freshmen in the country. Of course, her PAC-12 performance wasn't quite as exciting, finishing in 16th place before going on to earn her All-American finish on the national stage.
So why is she not ranked higher?
Well, we have not seen Peters compete since the winter months. And when she did, we have to admit, it was a bit underwhelming. Her performance at the 2023 national meet proved that she is plenty capable of racing at a national-caliber level, but we have no idea what form she is in as we enter the 2024 cross country season.
Is she as fit as last year? More fit? Less fit? Only time will tell.
29. Melissa Riggins, Senior, Georgetown
Fans of the sport should not look at Melissa Riggins' DNF result at last year’s NCAA XC Championships as an indication of her capabilities on the cross country circuit.
If anything, that result will keep her hungry to further assert talent on the grass.
Reportedly having been ill last November, Riggins unfortunately struggled over the 6k distance on the biggest stage of the year. However, we would expect her to return this fall with a vengeance to have the national meet result that she should have had last year.
Riggins in the regular season was a genuine national-caliber threat as she placed no lower than 15th individually over the 6k distance in the regular season -- and her racing schedule leading up to the national meet was absolutely stacked. When taking a deeper dive into her 2023 fall campaign, Riggins placed 13th at the Virginia Invitational, 15th at Nuttycombe, 3rd at the BIG East XC Championships and was the runner-up finisher at the Mid-Atlantic regional meet.
Naturally, with results as consistently excellent as that leading up to the national meet, we had high All-American expectations for the Georgetown star. Had she been fully healthy and firing on all cylinders, we fully believe that she would have been a top-40 finisher -- and even a top-30 finisher.
We also should not ignore Riggins' middle distance success and her phenomenal range from 800 meters to 6k on the cross country course. This past spring, she posted PRs of 2:01 (800m) and 4:07 (1500m) over the course of the season on her way to a stunning 4th place finish in the metric mile at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. Riggins also ran 4:29 for the indoor mile and 8:52 over 3000 meters.
Some people may look at Riggins as a track-centric runner and ignore her cross country accolades given her tough outing at the NCAA XC Championships. That, however, would be a mistake. Riggins has proven to be aerobically just as strong as nearly every other woman in this portion of our rankings and we wanted to reward her as such with a TSR #29 ranking.
28. Nicola Jansen, Senior, New Mexico
I have to start by saying that I LOVE Nicola Jansen’s racing style.
A lot.
Anyone who has followed Jansen from the start when she ran at Bradley University would know that she loves to be an aggressive front-runner. It does not matter the distance of the race or the caliber of the field -- you can bet that you will find Jansen right at the front of a pack early in a race.
Sometimes, even a quarter mile away from the field.
And for that, we have massive respect for her.
The rising South African star transitioned to New Mexico to follow her coach Darren Gausen when he left Bradley for the coaching job in Albuquerque. While Jansen has always displayed flashes of talent while running for the Braves, the move has proved beneficial in many ways.
In her first season repping the Lobos, Jansen opened her fall campaign at the Griak Invitational, surprising some of the women in the field with an excellent runner-up finish. Jansen continued to have a fantastic cross country season by finishing 21st at the Nuttycombe Invitational, 2nd at both the Mountain West XC Championships and the Mountain regional meet before earning her first All-American finish at 36th at the NCAA XC Championships.
And sure, she maybe didn't have the same front-running for aggressive for each of those races, but at the very least, she earned top finishes and was able to stay competitive with the fields got significantly larger.
Jansen found herself with the leaders in the first-half of the national meet last fall before fading a bit to finish outside the top half All-Americans. However, what is even more admirable about that bold tactic was the fact that it was Jansen’s first national meet appearance…ever.
Assuming she makes it to the national stage again, and that she continues to develop the way she has since she transferred, I would imagine this same strategy paying off big in 2024.
Jansen has been able to ensure a baseline level of nationally competitive consistency despite utilizing an often risky racing style. In theory, that could lead to a massive breakout performance. The possibility of her finishing in the top-20 at this year's national meet is certainly not out of the question.
27. Kimberley May, Senior, Providence
What is there to say about Kimberley May?
So. Much.
How could we not talk about May after the breakout year she had on the track? Yes, she did qualify for the outdoor national meet in 2023, but she never truly established herself as an All-American threat.
Until she did.
May shattered expectations during the indoor track season by posting PRs of 4:27 (mile) and 8:54 (3k) to flex some incredible range and middle distance prowess. After finishing 3rd in a very deep mile field at the NCAA Indoor Championships, May continued her hot streak into the outdoor track season.
On the outdoor oval, her 1500-meter PR improved from 4:13 to 4:07. May also proved that she could run virtually any distance at a nationally competitive caliber by running 2:03 for 800 meters and 15:26 for 5000 meters. That kind of range is wildly impressive.
We could go on and on about May’s success on the oval. But this season, of course, is cross country. And as we all know, mile performances don't always translate to the national stage. After all, just look at her history at the NCAA XC Championships: 213th place in 2021, 138th place in 2022 and 116th place in 2023 at the NCAA XC Championships.
So...why are we ranking her in our top-30?
You could argue that the entirety of May's 2023 cross country was truly when she had a breakout race. Her 10th place finish at the Virginia Invitational was a fantastic indication that she could be a low-stick star. May later validated that performance with a huge 19th place finish at the Nuttycombe Invitational and a runner-up effort at the BIG East XC Championships behind Chloe Scrimgeour (but ahead of Melissa Riggins).
It's abundantly clear that May is a top-50 talent on the grass. She was fantastic in a variety of different fields last fall and showcased some tremendously valuable scoring prowess. And given her recent success on the track, there's reason to believe that she could be even more dangerous in 2024.
Will May finish in the top-30 at this year's national meet? Maybe. That stage has admittedly not be too kind to the Providence miler. Even so, May is more than talented enough to be an All-American and we highly doubt that we will see her finish in the triple-digit placements again this fall.
26. Addie Engel, Senior, Ohio State
When it comes to Addie Engel, let’s start by acknowledging the fact that she is a two-time BIG 10 champion (back-to-back, actually) in women’s cross country. Since the BIG 10 started running the 6k in 2003, this alone already puts her in the company of star-caliber names such as Erin Finn and Alicia Monson.
As if that wasn't impressive enough, if Engel were to win her third-straight BIG 10 cross country title this fall, the she would be the first woman to ever accomplish such a feat. Yes, Michigan's Erin Finn did win three BIG 10 individual cross country titles, just not in a row.
No pressure, right?
The Buckeye star has paved a new path for Ohio State’s distance running history as she is the first female OSU runner to win an individual conference title in this league. She will look to solidify her legacy in Columbus with another All-American finish to put a cherry on top of a groundbreaking career.
All of that, of course, is not to say her trajectory has always been perfect.
Engel surprised many in 2022 when she won her first BIG 10 title and then went on to earn a monster finish in the top-10 at the NCAA XC Championships that fall. With her breakout year behind, expectations were very high for her in 2023.
Truthfully, Engel's 2023 fall campaign wasn't quite as strong as what she had shown us in 2022. Even so, prior to her national meet performance, Engel still looked plenty strong, finishing in the top-two in every race she contested besides the Virginia Invitational (where she finished an applause-worthy 11th place). However, the Buckeye ace struggled to replicate her top-tier performance in her season finale, finishing outside of All-American honors with a still respectable 61st place finish overall.
So...was her national meet performance from last fall just a fluke?
If Engel is healthy, she should be able to compete with the best of the best, and possibly finish within the top-half of All-Americans once more. Of course, without seeing her compete on the track this past spring, there is no way to truly know how fit she is heading into this fall.
Historically, Engel is a true ace, qualifying for the national meet every year when she has competed in cross country. We know how incredibly lethal her upside can be and her experience is far more extensive than many of the top women on this list.
Look for her to end her Buckeye career on a high note and hopefully trend back in the right direction.
25. Paityn Noe, Sophomore, Arkansas
Paityn Noe needed little-to-no time to adjust to the rigor of the NCAA ranks last year. The former high school star burst onto the collegiate scene in 2023, flexing every ounce of talent that we saw from her at the prep level.
Last fall, the Razorback newcomer opened her collegiate account with a 2nd place finish at the Cowboy Preview and a commanding win at the Chile Pepper XC Festival. Sure, those fields weren’t necessarily the deepest, but Noe’s front-running display, particularly at her home meet, not only showcased the pedigree we saw from her in high school, but it also suggested that she was comfortable enough with NCAA competition to be as aggressive as she was.
The only question that remained was, “How will the Arkansas rookie fare as the races get larger and the competition becomes more challenging?”
Well, the answer to that question came just a matter of weeks later as Arkansas’ newest low-stick produced an outstanding 3rd place finish at Pre-Nationals and led the Razorback women to a silver medal with her tremendous 5th place finish at the SEC XC Championships!
Noe's lead-up to the national meet had all the indications of an All-American performance. She was showcasing surprisingly great consistency, taking down top low-sticks on other teams and was brimming with youth-based upside.
Unfortunately for her, that didn’t come to fruition as she faded to 101st place at the NCAA XC Championships. A national meet finish such as that isn't indicative of Noe’s full talent and it feels like her showing was largely due to a lack of experience on the national stage. Just look at how well she ran at Pre-Nationals and the SEC XC Championships as more accurate indications of her talent.
It's important to note that between those two meets, Noe defeated star-studded names including Margot Appleton, Jenna Hutchins and teammate Sydney Thorvaldson, the latter of whom went on to finish 11th at the NCAA XC Championships. And if Noe’s talents needed any more justification, then you only have to look to her track success from this past spring.
The Razorback ace ran a very impressive 32:57 PR for 10,000 meters, a time which was good enough for 9th place at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. She also clocked an eye-catching 15:34 (5k) PR en route to bronze at the SEC Outdoor Championships.
When at her best, Noe is a top-25 athlete on the grass. She was a former high school ace who has shown tremendous aerobic promise and ease in mixing it up with the NCAA’s top distance runners. With exceptional pedigree and more experience under her belt, we fully expect to see Noe make the always beneficial sophomore leap...but will she reach the heights that her fitness suggested last fall?
24. Jenna Hutchins, Rs. Sophomore, BYU
For BYU’s Jenna Hutchins, her preseason rank is more a reflection of the immense potential that we believe she brings to the grass rather than her current accomplishments on it.
The Tennessee native was a high school megastar, breaking countless records and putting herself in the company of the all-time greats in girls' high school distance running. With such an impressive pedigree, there was naturally a lot of hype around her heading into the 2022 fall season. Unfortunately, that excitement was short-lived as we didn’t see Hutchins race past October.
Last fall told a different story, however, as the BYU youngster flexed tremendous consistency and cemented herself as one of Cougars' scoring five.
Leading into the national meet, Hutchins was yet to falter, consistently finishing among the top-10 in highly competitive fields. A 5th place finish at Pre-Nationals and a 6th place finish at the exceedingly deep BIG 12 XC Championships were certainly the picks of the bunch.
Both of these performances reflected every ounce of talent we had seen from her at the high school level and were our first real indicators on the grass that she could vie for an All-American accolade. Sadly for Hutchins, it wasn’t meant to be in Virginia as she faded back to 174th place at the national meet.
Given her elite pedigree, a performance like this was in no way indicative of Hutchins’ talent and could largely be attributed to a lack of experience on the national stage. Thankfully for the still-young Cougar star, she will enter this fall with some added experience on the national stage after excelling at both the indoor and outdoor national meets earlier this year.
Between winter and spring months, Hutchins ran under 15:40 (5k) on five separate occasions with her 15:31 (5k) clocking at the NCAA Indoor Championships being good enough for 9th place.
However, her most impressive feat on the track was her ability to step up to the 10,000-meter distance with ease. In her first season over the 25-lap distance, the redshirt sophomore showed serious aerobic promise, finishing in 6th place (running 32:44 for 10k) at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, earning her first set of All-American honors.
When it comes to talent, Hutchins has an abundance of. She has an upside that we feel is yet to be tapped into and her performance at the NCAA Outdoor Championships proved that she belongs among the best women in the NCAA.
With more experience, more consistency and a ceiling nearly higher than anyone on this list, we feel the BYU star has done enough to warrant a spot in our top-25.
23. Margot Appleton, Senior, Virginia
Virginia’s Margot Appleton is a perplexing name to rank. She is one of the nation's most reliable and consistent runners, yet on the grass, it feels like her full potential is still waiting to be fully unleashed.
Last fall, the Cavalier star validated her outstanding breakout year on both the indoor track and outdoor track. A downright incredible 3rd place finish at the Virginia Invitational, an excellent 4th place at Pre-Nationals and a strong 5th place finish at the ACC XC Championships suggested that Appleton was a top 15-caliber cross country athlete. In our eyes, she was someone who was certainly going to vie for a top-half All-American finish.
Plus, with Virginia set to be the host site for the NCAA XC Championships, we felt that the combination of her proven form and home-course advantage would play favorably into Appleton's hands.
Unfortunately for her, the Cavalier star slipped back to 51st place at the national meet, just missing an All-American honor for the second-straight year.
Realistically, is 51st place a bad result at the national meet? No, it's certainly not, but considering what Appleton’s resume suggested that she was capable of, we can't help but feel like there should have been more. However, on the oval, she did anything but disappoint as she was simply superb over both the winter and spring months.
A blistering 4:29 mile mark en route to a 5th-place finish at the NCAA Indoor Championships, an ACC gold medal over 1500 meters, a jaw-dropping 15:18 (5k) PR and a 4th place All-American honor in that very same event was exactly the standard that we had come to expect from Appleton.
Her track exploits on the national stage show just how high her ceiling can be and her new shiny 5k PR of 15:18 flexes an aerobic prowess that only a handful of women in the NCAA are able to tap into.
To put it simply, we know what Appleton's floor is -- and that floor is still exceptionally high. We also know how high her ceiling on the grass could be, especially after witnessing her heroics on the track. I mean, a 15:18 (5k) PR alone suggests that she could crack the top-15 on the national stage if it's her day.
Of course, the question we are left with is, when are we going to see her reach those heights we feel she is capable of? With all the pieces in her possession, will we see Appleton complete the puzzle come November? I suppose we'll find out...
22. Phoebe Anderson, Senior, Columbia
Columbia’s Phoebe Anderson was, without a doubt, one of the biggest and best breakout stars of last fall. The Lioness ace utilized her newfound fitness to great effect, transforming into one of the most consistent runners in the nation.
Make no mistake, prior to the 2023 fall season, Anderson had already produced some very respectable results on the grass, acting as Columbia’s ever-reliable low-stick. Yet, despite her consistency and new 15:44 (5k) PR from the previous spring, we didn’t expect to see her become such a nationally competitive name.
The then-junior burst onto the scene last fall with an extremely impressive 4th place finish at the Virginia Invite, a result that far exceeded our expectations and sent a legitimate statement to the rest of the nation.
Any concerns about Anderson's ability to validate her run at the Virginia Invite were quickly put to bed as she crossed the line in 17th place at the hotly-contested Nuttycombe Invite.
Heading into the national meet, all signs pointed to an All-American finish for the junior, and sure enough, she delivered, crossing the line in 29th place -- a 162-place improvement on the previous year.
Anderson’s tremendous leap in fitness, paired with her innate ability to consistently produce results of such a high caliber, should make her competitors legitimately concerned as we approach the fall. Not only this, but similar improvements were made on both the indoor and outdoor ovals. That progression has hinted that Anderson may have a level of fitness beyond what we have already seen from her.
With times of 32:54 (10k), 15:29 (5k), 8:59 (3k) and 4:35 (mile) now to her name, Anderson has sharpened just about every tool in her arsenal. Her improvements, particularly over the longer distances, indicate that she will be hitting the grass with some serious aerobic momentum.
In our eyes, Anderson has done everything to suggest she is a top 25-caliber athlete, maybe even a top-20 or top-15 athlete. However, after making such a significant leap in fitness last year, we are left wondering whether the Columbia athlete has reached her ceiling or if the senior has more in store for us.
21. Leah Stephens, Sophomore, NC State
If NC State wanted to win their third-straight national title last fall, then they needed one of their youngster to step up to the plate.
And Leah Stephens did just that.
Despite it being her very first collegiate season, the NC State newcomer proved to be an integral cog in the Wolfpack machine last fall. Without her impeccable consistency, they may not have completed the three-peat.
Finishing 4th place at the Joe Piane Invite, 14th place at the Nuttycombe Invite, 8th place at the ACC XC Championships and 43rd on the national stage, Stephens showed a dependability greater than some of the nation's most seasoned veterans.
While she may have narrowly missed out on All-American honors, the poise she showed all season was comparable to athletes well beyond her years. Yes, Stephens' talent was undeniably elite at the high school level, but I don't think anyone was expecting her to transition so seamlessly to the rigor of the NCAA in her first-ever season.
A 14th place finish at the Nuttycombe Invite, the second-most competitive meet of the season, was truly a special performance. That result suggested that, despite her youth, the Wolfpack star was more than comfortable battling with the very best in the country.
After such a stellar season on the grass, we fully expected to see Stephens flex her aerobic talents on the track. However, we were ultimately left wanting more after her season came to a premature close.
A victory over 10,000 meters at the Penn Relays and a 15:50 mark for 5000 meters are both very respectable results. But for someone whose consistency is one of their biggest assets, her lack of availability for the remainder of the spring months was a legitimate concern.
That being said, Stephens’ seamless transition to the NCAA can't go unnoticed. Displaying such consistent poise in her very first season is nothing short of remarkable. With the likes of Tuohy and Chmiel gone, Stephens has some big shoes to fill as she will most likely become one of the leading ladies in the Wolfpack’s new quintet.
