2016 NESCAC Cross Country

can one of the Williams kids post that pic of me making a daft attempt on the bear?

~much appreciated~

See you soon @ L3s

Report from the Front:

ABSOLUTE CARNAGE as the Jumbo boys push Williams on the defensive. Decker the anti-Scrub and Peter ‘weak at the knees’ Hale couldn’t hold the line as Knuckles and Grumpy Boy blew past. Scenes of destruction everywhere. Rumors are flying that Knuckles crossed the 24-minute line. How this will affect the upcoming NESCAC meeting is tbd. Those who deny the supremacy of Tuft’s 1-2 can go ahead and SIGN AN ARMISTICE. Does it matter that their number 3 was 90 seconds behind Grumpy boy? POSSIBLY, but with some more field training, the Jumbo boys could TAKE THE OFFENSIVE come November.

Middlebury dooked it out in the brown and came first.

Roast Beph out

Has amherst raced this weekend? Has Bates run their race in KY yet?

How did they do? I need answers.

I don't know what happened to Bates' nice pack that was present against Tufts and WPI a few weeks ago... Seems the 2 through 7 dropped back. That freshman seems to be in good shape though.

Bates' rumored 9:20 "at altitude, so it converts to 8:59" 2 miler just went home devastated after losing to Reischling by 15 seconds!

Are we all just going to pretend that Williams' top 7 didn't run out of their minds this weekend?

I mean, I guess. Like their 3-6 spread was nice but the top two got rolled by some jumbronies. First two sprinkle in at nats in the high 20's-35. Everyone else comes in around the 60-80's?

Chalk that up for a trophy but either a bronze one or one with a 4 on it.

Their 5th runner didn't even break 25. Absolutely disgraceful. Very sad. Very very sad. Losers, they're all losers, the whole lot of them. Get them out, they're a disgrace.

Those Jumbos, they're winners. I mean it. They just win, all the time. I like that, I really do. I, the Ronald, ENDORSE Jumbo nation. Let's make NESCAC great again, folks.

Paul "Short" wrote:

Are we all just going to pretend that Williams' top 7 didn't run out of their minds this weekend?

Dude, they got stomped by Nichols and O'Connor. Those two are literally on another plane of fitness. Decker and Hale were nowhere close.

Williams excels at producing large packs of decent runners. They're decent. That's it. They won't beat Geneseo and they won't beat North Central, but they're an ok team. They'll win Little Threes, they'll take another conference title. Cool. They have more decent runners than the rest of the NESCAC. Good for them. But they're average at best.

Hale is average, Decker is average, the rest of the team is decent.

Agreed. Williams is good now, no doubt, but how good are they really going to be, even in the NESCAC? They don't have a Bijan or a Cotton anymore. Hale and Decker are good, but Nichols and O'Connor are better.

With Tickles solidifying his position as the unquestionable GOAT of 'cac xc and Grumpy Boy crossing the line an absolutely DEVASTATING 13 seconds ahead of Williams' own anti-scrub, it seems undeniable that NESCACs will be a competition for second place. The performances we saw this weekend from the jumbronies are really the kind that make the rest of your team irrelevant, folks.

It feels silly to even explain this, but we all know that meets are won with one thing and one things only: LOW STICKS. With Bijan on academic probation, Williams honestly doesn't have even have the raw talent to be a true powerhouse at the level of little threes, much less nationals. The only interesting race this season is going to be in Louisville when the Jumbos and UW-Platteville square off in what will basically be a dual meet.

Lets see some predictions for the team and individual nationals qualifiers.

I'm just going to talk about the contenders...

Williams is the clear favorite at this point in the season. Sure, they don't have a low-stick, but that pack at Paul Short was nasty. Plus, they beat some solid D1 schools.

However, a healthy Amherst is just as good, if not better at a larger meet (like regionals or nationals). This is assuming guys like Nelson and Conners can step-up like they did last year.

Despite their 1-2 punch, Tufts needs some help from their 3-4-5. Nichols is total stud though, on an off the course. ;)

Second to maybe Amherst, Colby has the greatest upside. Even just a 2014 Eastman + Chelimo would put them in title conversation. They have plenty of time still.

MIT is looking good, but knowing their past, they might have started too fast.

In comparison to Tufts, Bates has some work to do, I expect them to switch in the polls.

Predictions for NESCACs:

1. Williams

2. Amherst

3. Tufts

4. Colby

5. Middlebury

6. Bates

7. Conn College

Predictions for November 12th in Westfield:

1. Amherst

2. Williams

3. MIT

4. Colby

5. Tufts

6. Middlebury

7. Bates

8. Conn College

Tufts pushes Colby in. The New England Region will only qualify 5 teams to Nationals this year.

Looks about right but I would love to see some predictions for the individual qualifiers.

I might edit it slightly still.

Predictions for NESCACs:

1. Williams

2. Amherst

3. Tufts

4. Colby

5. Middlebury

6. Bates

7. Conn College

My edit: ***********(Colby beats tufts) (Bates Beats Middleburry)

Predictions for November 12th in Westfield:

1. Amherst

2. Williams

3. MIT

4. Colby

5. Tufts

6. Middlebury

7. Bates

8. Conn College

My edit (williams still beats amherst) (colby beats mit) (bates beats midd again)

How do you see Tufts coming in third when they have lost to both Middlebury and Bates. They have a great top two and are solid on paper but nothing they have done so far this season has them coming top three at NESCAC.

This seems crazy, but I'm going to defend Williams for once. I respect the above posters, and I totally agree that there are other teams in contention for the NESCAC title, but we shouldn't delude ourselves. Williams is only going to get better between now and November.

Look at Hale's times from last year's XC season. He placed higher at Nationals than he did at Purple Valley. He ran 25:24 at Paul Short, then set PR's in 3 out of the last 4 races. The same thing happened in indoor with the 3k. He's a championship-style racer who shouldn't be overlooked. He is not, as some have stated, a scrub.

Ben Decker may have shat the bed at Nationals last year, but he was on a similar trajectory to Hale, cutting down times after Paul Short. Both of these guys are running better then they ever have before. I would imagine that after another month of training/racing, we'll see these guys close the gap on early season favorites like Mo and Tim Nichols.

Also, Williams has historically been very good at peaking when it counts. They hold it together late into the post season while teams like Amherst and MIT fall apart.

Amherst is still in contention, and could pull an upset win at NESCAC's or Regionals, but I wouldn't put my money on it. There are too many ifs with the other teams: Tufts could be good if their 3 through 5 made drastic improvements. Colby could be good if Chelimo returns to form and Silas Beastman wakes up from hibernation.

I'm putting my money on Williams.

The Redeemer wrote:

I'm such a Williams fanboy wah wah wah I got waitlisted at my state school.

Found the Williams runner. Your team is fine. Nice spread at Paul Short. Paul Short was almost certainly short by ~200 meters this year. And even if Williams does get better as the season goes on, which shouldn't be counted on ever--those art history midterms can be tough on their psyche--they aren't going to beat those times from Paul Short at nationals. And those times indicate two all-American finishes by Hale and Decker in the low 30s, and then a slew of runners in the 80-100 range. Maybe podium--maybe--but certainly not national contenders. And yeah, they're the favorites for NESCAC, but Amherst has come on strong these last few years.

I agree with the poster above me, your Williams is showing. You cannot possibly say Amherst and MIT fall apart when it counts. I'm not sure how long you've been around, but Amherst lost by a single point to Williams last year at regionals, and in 2014, Amherst was 2nd, MIT was 3rd, and Williams, the team that "is historically good at peaking when it counts" placed 4th. On their home course that they get to train on wheneve they want. And Chelimo is a XC all-American, and Eastman is a tank. They will contribute, the question is how much? Lastly, Mo and Tim are on a different level than the entire Williams squad. If Bijan couldn't beat him all of last year, I certainly wouldn't expect Ben Decker to.

Gentlemen, why are we even discussing these Williams SCRUBS?

Did we not already establish this? Do I need to repeat myself? The Willy Boys are the running equivalent of a dry handjob. UNDESIRABLE.

The Jumbo Boys wet my loins. Absolutely no scrubs. Their team is UNBLEMISHED.

The Genny boys? What a team. They have scrubbed themselves clean of all SCRUBBERY, and my God, does it show. I still have wet dreams about the pickups they ran after Purple Valley. I would do anything to rewatch the Genny Boys from my vantage point in the treetops. Genny boys, you can scrub me clean any time you like.

Rumor has it the Peppermint Lads from Illinois haven't seen a single scrub in 30 years. Zach Kerplunk, I'll lick your peppermint stick. Call me.