TSR's "If Everything Was Normal" D2 Top 25 XC Rankings: #5-1 (Women)

As mentioned in our rankings rubric article, we are aware that certain conferences and universities will not be competing this fall due to ongoing concerns surrounding COVID-19. However, for the sake of content, we have constructed these rankings as if a regular cross country season will happen.

5. Stefanie Parsons, Senior, Edinboro

Parsons capped off a sensational 2019 cross country season with a 17th place finish at the NCAA meet, 137 spots better than her 2018 result. Parsons made a clear jump in fitness during the fall of 2019 as she took home three victories, including the PSAC and the Atlantic region titles.

What’s even better about those two wins is the fact that she took home those victories by 14 and 17 seconds, respectively. A 6th place finish at the Paul Short Brown race was a nice result as well.

Parsons made sure to prove that she at least belonged in the conversation of top runners in the country after her performance at NCAA's. She continued to find success during the indoor track season where her newfound fitness in cross country helped her to a big 3k personal best of 9:41.

There are a plethora of women from last year's national meet who were not expected to return for the upcoming (and now altered) 2020 cross country season. In a year where everything is normal, Parsons would have had the experience and championship accolades to emerge as one of the best in the country.

4. Hanna Groeber, Senior, Grand Valley State

Groeber was going to be the top returner for Grand Valley State this fall as she seemed ready to carry the responsibility of being the Lakers' top scorer.

She was 3rd at the Lewis Crossover meet last fall behind only her recently graduated teammate Allie Ludge, as well as TSR #7 Alden Gruidel. She also finished 2nd at the GLIAC Championships and later 8th at the Midwest Regional Championships.

Her 2019 cross country season didn't exactly end the way that we expected it to, but it's hard to be disappointed with a 14th place finish at the National Championships.

The Grand Valley State ace later posted marks of 16:30 (5k) and 9:36 (3k) during the 2020 indoor track season, proving that she is still one of Division II's most elite distance runners both on the grass and the track.

Groeber has finished as high as 6th before at the NCAA XC Championships and there is good reason to believe she could have been better than that in 2020 had the national meet not been cancelled.

3. Elysia Burgos, Junior, Southwest Baptist

Burgos saw a tremendous leap in fitness from her freshman year to sophomore year. We knew that she would be a strong middle distance runner after year one, but we didn’t expect to see this strong of a runner during the cross country season.

After finishing 134th at the national meet in 2018, Burgos nearly moved into the top-10 with an 11th place finish at the national meet in 2019.

But that wasn't just some fluke performance as Burgos had been running well all season long prior to the National Championships. She was 3rd at the SBU XC Invite, 2nd at the Southern Stampede meet, 8th at the Louisville Classic, 1st at FHSU TIger Open, 1st at the GLVC Championships and 2nd at the Midwest Regional Championships.

Not only did she secure top finishes and take down major competition, but she consistently got better as the season went on with her peak coming at the national meet.

Her 11th place finish at NCAA's solidified Burgos as one of the next up-and-coming runners in Division II. We began to see some of that potential throughout the 2020 indoor track season as she even moved up in distance for some work in the 3000 meters. Her indoor track season ended with her running an outstanding mile time of 4:47 (mile) as well as a respectable 3k PR of 9:51.

There’s no doubt that Burgos will be near the top of the leaderboard in any race she runs whenever we return to competition. She is still making tremendous progress in each season she runs and she now has a significant amount championship experience on her resume. That is a dangerous combination that could make her the best of the best in a couple years.

2. Lauren Bailey, Senior, Indianapolis

Bailey might be the biggest threat to our TSR #1 runner solely because of what we saw during the indoor track season. But before that, let’s look at Bailey’s 2019 cross country season.

The Indianapolis star finished 4th at the Lewis Crossover over some very capable names, providing fans of the sport with a performance that introduced her as a top-level runner in the D2 ranks. Bailey later finished runner-up at the GLVC Championships (to the aforementioned Burgos) and placed 3rd at the Midwest regional meet.

However, her strong performance at the National Championships is what gives her the edge over Burgos. A 9th place result in Sacramento tells us that she has what it takes to compete (and thrive) on the big stage.

It’s a shame that we lost the indoor national meet this past winter as Bailey was fresh off of running outstanding personal bests of 16:17 in the 5000 meters and 9:28 in the 3000 meters. If she replicated that fitness on the cross country course, she might have been able to give our TSR #1 runner a challenge.

1. Stephanie Cotter, Junior, Adams State

I think everyone can agree that Cotter is the clear #1 pick for our preseason rankings as we venture into the (altered) 2020 cross country. After an impressive freshman campaign back in 2018, Cotter has since taken the NCAA by storm and hasn't looked back.

The Adams State star ran only three times during the 2019 cross country season. They were all wins. She won the RMAC Championships by 14 seconds. She won the South Central Regional Championships by eight seconds. She won the National Championships by 24 seconds.

What more could you have asked for?

It feels boarderline improbable that Cotter would have been dethroned by anyone in 2020. In fact, it might be worth betting that she may not be dethroned for the rest of her career...