The field is WIDE OPEN wow. Angela Bizzarri, Jenny Barringer, Lisa Koll all gone. Kendra Schaaf is still there, but things might be shaky with her transfer and it's hard to get settled your first year. There really is no clear cut favorite, many women have a chance at this. How's it going to play out?
Running Times has a preview:
"The top four runners from last year’s NCAA Division I cross country season have progressed: Illinois’ Angela Bizzarri, Colorado’s Jenny Barringer and Florida State’s Susan Kuijken have graduated and runner-up Kendra Schaaf transferred from Washington to UNC. Perhaps the best distance runner in the field last year, Iowa State’s Lisa Koll (11th) has also moved on to greener pastures.
..."
ummm...ever hear of Jordan Hasay?
I predict Catherine White of Virginia to take the individual title. She is the top returner from last season, having finished 4th at Nationals last year.
Yasah Nadroj wrote:
ummm...ever hear of Jordan Hasay?
or the HS senior who beat her in the 3000 and then set the HS 5000 record ~15:4x.
jordan will destroy ncaa's this year
Yes but Emily Sisson is going to Wisconsin, so that doesn't bode well.
yea but.... wrote:
Yes but Emily Sisson is going to Wisconsin, so that doesn't bode well.
Maybe she'll run with the men.
I heard Liz Costello (Princeton grad) has a year of eligibility left and is going to grad school at Villanova. It might be just the place for her. This could be her year.
Coaching wise, Wisconsin... eh.....
White was my original 2010 pick with her Bizzarri-esque sprint last year. Then I heard she had to injury-redshirt track along with Schaaf and McLaughlin. They could all be way behind on training. Marino had to miss some of indoor and I don't think she quite made it to her peak in outdoors. Hasay wasn't meant to peak in XC last year, but they may train her up this time. I don't know what to make of Infeld, Kimaiyo and Lemmon. Reid is scary, had her in my top 5 last year. Babcock and Kosinski could make a big comeback. Saina may make the biggest leap if she can translate 10k success to XC.
All champs who only ran 6k for nats 1) finished in the top 10 in a collegiate nationals before they were NCAA champs and 2) never finished outside the top 30. That narrows it to Kimaiyo, McLaughlin and Schaaf. Kimaiyo is the only one of the 3 that I don't have a knock against, but I'd rate people who don't fit both prongs with better chances.
Costello is done with XC, ran nationals in 2006 (162nd), 2007 (247th), 2008 (15th), 2009 (20th).
Plus, Costello will be attending Tennessee, not Villanova.
Is CS running?
I know what to make of Lemmon now, too banged up and just trying to avoid missing her senior year at this point.
Yasah Nadroj wrote:
ummm...ever hear of Jordan Hasay?
QFE&T
Read it the first time, thanks. ;)
UNC is planning to have Schaaf compete this Fall.
I think Jessica Pixler (supposedly now at CU) has a real strong shot of winning. She has left D2 a legend, and she very well might leave D1 a national champion.
I think that Kosinski from Oregon is a definite threat based on how she was running 5K's on the track at the end of last outdoor season. Wouldn't she make a nice poster girl for NCAA track? Gorgeous.