2022 D3 XC: Conference Weekend Massive Preview
Ah, the fall. In the morning, you’re wearing your favorite crewneck and by the afternoon you’re sweating through it. Things change very quickly and in a blink, we’re at the conference weekend. A favorite weekend for many teams as they have their conference traditions, hopes of winning a conference title, and, for some seniors, their last cross country race in college. A lot of emotions go into this weekend and we’re here to break everything down for you. This is one of the biggest previews we’ve ever done. Every conference has Top 3 Teams and Top 5 Individuals predictions. Some conferences have blurbs about them as well. We have upsets, we have perfect scores, we have it all. Will we be right? Who knows. Like what you see? Don’t like what you see? Leave a comment below and give us your take!
We wrote 8,797 words for this preview. If you enjoy it, or think it’s worth $1 to read - consider Venmoing us $1. We’ve never asked for something like this in an article but with how much time went into this, it would be very much appreciated. We’ll continue to bring you paywall-free content no matter what!
American Rivers Conference
Men’s
All eyes in the men’s race will turn to Christopher Collet and the Wartburg Knights. Collet’s only loss this year was to Eastern Illinois graduate student Jaime Marcos, who won the Redbird Invite off of a lean. The steeplechase national champion comes off of a dominating performance at the Augustana Interregional Invitational two weekends ago in which he kicked down a strong field to a 23:47 win, one of the fastest times posted in D3 this season. He leads the No. 4 Wartburg squad of Morgan Shirley-Fairbairn, Connor Lancial, Sam Schmitz, and Jacob Green, who will be the favorites over No. 25 Loras headed into this ARC weekend. Watch, too, for individual national qualifier Spencer Moon of Simpson as well as the squad from Central College to mix it up in leaderboards.
Top 3 teams:
Wartburg (No. 4)
Loras (No. 25)
Central College
Top 5 individuals:
Christopher Collet (Wartburg)
Spencer Moon (Simpson)
Morgan Shirley-Fairbairn (Wartburg)
Luke Guttormson (Loras)
Ryan Harvey (Loras)
Women’s
If you’re in the American Rivers Conference, it can certainly be intimidating to kick off the postseason lined up next to defending XC national champion Kassie Parker. While it’s hard to recall a time when Parker didn’t dominate the women’s D3 distance running headlines, Parker has not always dominated the ARC.
Last year in 2021 was her very first XC ARC victory. Wartburg’s Aubrie Fisher took the victory in 2020, while Wartburg’s Carina Collet was the twice-defending champion in 2018 and 2019. Though Collet has graduated, look for Fisher to put up a strong fight against Parker. Fisher leads No. 2 Wartburg to what could be a 2-7 sweep with teammates Riley Mayer, Shaelyn Hostager, Lexi Brown, Ellie Meyer, and Natalie Paulson. No. 16 Loras will be in strong contention for runner-up, while Central College looks to be in good shape for third.
Top 3 teams:
Wartburg (No. 2)
Loras (No. 16)
Central College
Top 5 individuals:
Kassie Parker (Loras)
Aubrie Fisher (Wartburg)
Riley Mayer (Wartburg)
Shaelyn Hostager (Wartburg)
Lexi Brown (Wartburg)
American Southwest
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
UT Dallas
LeTourneau
McMurry
Top 5 individuals:
Garbiel Sanchez (McMurry)
Nathaneal Rankin (Ozarks)
Spencer Gambrell (LeTourneau)
David Dugan (LeTourneau)
Devan Bailey (UT Dallas)
Women’s
Top 3 teams:
McMurry
UT-Dallas
UHMB
Top 5 individuals:
Kylah Holland (Hardin-Simmons)
Jazmin Chacon (McMurry)
Janeth Chacon (McMurry)
Rebeca Betanzo (UT-Dallas)
Madylin Herrera (UT Dallas)
Atlantic East
Top 5 individuals:
Jack Baronski (Marywood)
Michael McCann (Marywood)
Bryce Ryder (Marywood)
Josephy Cardillo (Marywood)
Andrew Konieczny (Neumann)
Women’s
Top 3 teams:
Marywood
Marymount
Immaculata
Top 5 individuals:
Hayley Gaines (Marywood)
Avery Finnegan (Marymount)
Kaitlyn Newberry (Marywood)
Paige Redman (Marywood)
Alyssa Williams (Marywood
CCIW
Men’s
The men’s North Central Cardinals haven’t lost a CCIW title since 1973. This weekend they will contend for their 48th straight title, an honor they are sure to achieve as the current No. 3 nationally ranked team. They come off of a runner-up finish to No. 1 Pomona-Pitzer and an upset victory over No. 4 Wartburg at the Augustana Interregional Invitational, momentum they have been building up throughout the entire season. Look for a dominating performance out of the cardinals this coming weekend, which may just involve a perfect 15-point score.
Look for the teams from Millikin and Carthage in the battle for runner-up, as well as Carroll’s Spencer Kirsteatter to break up the pack of North Central red and white vertical stripes.
Top 3 teams:
North Central (No. 3)
Millikin
Carthage
Top 5 individuals:
Connor Riss (NCC)
Max Svienty (NCC)
Braden Nicholson (NCC)
Julian Higueros (NCC)
Andrew Guimond (NCC)
Women’s
The team from Wheaton is the one to watch out for in the women’s CCIW race this weekend. They come off of a fifth place finish at Tori Neubauer, where they were led by Alyssa Mantia and Susannah Bennett, both of whom will be in contention for the individual CCIW title. Their biggest competition comes from Carroll’s Elizabeth Reddeman, who comes off of a victory at the Wisconsin Private College Championship two weekends ago. Millikin and North Central will be in a tight battle for second–they just faced off at the Bradley Pink Classic, in which Millikin overtook NCC by 32 points.
Top 3 teams:
Wheaton
Millikin
North Central
Top 5 individuals:
Elizabeth Reddeman (Carroll)
Alyssa Mantia (Wheaton)
Susannah Bennett (Wheaton)
Patrycja Miazek (North Park)
Annalese Chudy (Illinois Wesleyan)
CSAC
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
PSU Behrend
Alfred State
Valley Forge
Top 5 individuals:
Gavin Bathgate (Alfred State)
William Rodriguez (St. Elizabeth)
Kody Klein (PSU Behrend)
Aidan Domencic (PSU Behrend)
Nick Temel (PSU Behrend)
Women’s
Top 3 teams:
PSU Behrend
Valley Forge
Alfred State
Top 5 individuals:
Olivia Nola (PSU Behrend)
Savanna Carr (PSU Behrend)
Hannah Kopec (Valley Forge)
AyliGrace Munro (Cairn)
Lindsey Hartle (PSU Behrend)
CUNYAC
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
Hunter
Baruch
CCNY
Top 5 individuals:
Mateo Penafiel (Hunter)
Brian Guillermo (Hunter)
Adam Tarsia (CCNY)
Daniel Sedgh (Baruch)
Jose Perez (Baruch)
Women’s
Top 3 teams:
CCNY
Hunter
John Jay
Top 5 individuals:
Isabella Gentile (John Jay)
Evelin Gomez (Lehman)
Taylor McClay (Hunter)
Zara McPartland (CCNY)
April Kurtz (CCNY)
Centennial Conference
Despite being in the same conference, this weekend will be the first time the men’s teams from No. 10 Johns Hopkins and No. 18 Haverford face off head-to-head. Earlier in the season, Haverford took third in the Paul Short Brown race, while Hopkins was the second-place D3 team in the Gold race with a 35-second split. Both teams have strong frontrunners in Ryan Kredell (Haverford) and Matthew Kleiman (Hopkins), but Hopkins makes a strong case for the title with their tighter pack time. Look for Hopkins’s Gavin McElhennon and Emmanual Leblond as well as Haverford’s Aaron Bratt to be in the hunt for top five. This race will be a frenzy of Hopkins and Haverford runners up front, each team hoping they have what it takes on that day to pull off the win.
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
Johns Hopkins (No. 10)
Haverford (No. 18)
Swarthmore
Top 5 individuals:
Ryan Kredell (Haverford)
Matthew Kleiman (JHU)
Gavin McElhennon (JHU)
Emmanuel Leblond (JHU)
Aaron Bratt (Haverford)
Women’s
Johns Hopkins women have long dominated the Centennial Conference. They will look to add another notch in their belt to what has already been a 13-year winning streak for the Jays. Currently ranked No. 6 in the nation, Hopkins is led by Alex Ross, the favorite to win this weekend. Ross has spent much of the season beating D1 and D2 athletes. Early in the season, she was the first D3 finisher at MSU, ahead of Geneseo’s Kathleen McCarey as well as several Grand Valley and Michigan State athletes. She went on to finish well within the upper quadrant of the mostly D1 Paul Short race, and just two weeks ago, was the top D3 finisher at the Panorama Farms Invitational in Virginia, finishing just eight spots behind former Messiah 800m multi-time national champion Esther Seeland. With all this practice racing big D1 names, a win over the Centennial Conference should come easily to the XC All-American. She leads the Hopkins squad of Sara Stephenson, Sydney Fridel, Paloma Hancock, and Viviana Li to what could be a clean sweeping score and what they hope will be their 14th straight conference victory.
No. 30 Dickinson is in strong contention for runner-up. The squad has been gearing up for this weekend since their last race on October 1st when they placed runner-up to No. 3 SUNY Geneseo by 70 points. Gettysburg shows to be promising for third following a sixth place finish in the Paul Short White Race ahead of TCNJ and a third place finish just behind D1 program Saint Francis at Aubrey Shenk.
Top 3 teams:
Johns Hopkins (No. 6)
Dickinson (No. 30)
Gettysburg
Top 5 individuals:
Alex Ross (JHU)
Sara Stephenson (JHU)
Sydney Fridel (JHU)
Paloma Hancock (JHU)
Viviana Li (JHU)
Collegiate Conference of the South
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
Berea
Piedmont
Belhaven
Top 5 individuals:
Luke WIlson (Berea)
Robert Immell (Berea)
Mac Brooks (Huntingdon)
Josiah Mellott (Covenant)
Silas Fair (Berea)
Top 3 teams:
Piedmont
Covenant
Berea
Top 5 individuals:
Madison Stonestreet (Berea)
Jaycie Ponce (Piedmont)
Carah Anteck (Berea)
Skyler Seeber (Piedmont)
Izzy Juda (Maryville)
Commonwealth Coast Conference
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
Suffolk
Endicott
Roger Williams
Top 5 individuals:
Nathan Tassey (Roger Williams)
Thomas Novy (Suffolk)
Sean Jacobson (Suffolk)
Shawn Tobin (Nichols)
Tim Barry (Suffolk)
Women’s
Top 3 teams:
Suffolk
Endicott
U of New England
Top 5 individuals:
Nina Parziale (U of New England)
Ellie Davis (Suffolk)
Caitlin Boufford (Roger Williams)
Skyler Goodman (Suffolk)
Hannah Shepard (Endicott)
Coast-to-Coast
Spanning from Santa Cruz, California to Salisbury, Maryland, the Coast-to-Coast conference truly boasts talent from across the country. C2C competitors will travel to Salisbury this year for their conference championships. On both the men’s and women’s sides, UC Santa Cruz comes in as the only nationally ranked team on the start line. Ranked No. 23 on the men’s side, the Banana Slugs are led by Eric Jackson, who took 22nd overall at Augustana two weeks ago. His biggest competition will come from Christopher Newport’s Nathanael Ferrante, who took fourth at Rowan ahead of Lynchburg All-American Sam Llaneza. Even with a frontrunner like Ferrante, however, CNU does not have the depth Santa Cruz brings to the starting line. Their biggest competition for runner-up will be the squad from Salisbury, who they just took down by over 100 points at Rowan two weeks ago.
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
UC Santa Cruz (No. 23)
Christopher Newport
Salisbury
Top 5. Individuals:
Eric Jackson (Santa Cruz)
Nathanael Ferrante (CNU)
Raymond Ingersoll (Santa Cruz)
Luke Holland (Santa Cruz)
Walter Tietelbaum (Santa Cruz)
Women’s
In the women’s race, watch for a storm of Banana Slugs to wipe out the competition. Led by Riley Martel-Phillips and Ash Baudin, the No. 21 West region team took ninth at Augustana, sandwiched between Great Lakes frontrunner programs Calvin and Hope. Look for Martel-Phillips and Baudin to be in strong contention for the C2C title as they pull along teammates Faith Dyogi and Iris Abegglen to top finishes as well. CNU’s Maddy Rawlings is likely to mix up the pack following her 22nd place finish at Rowan en route to bringing her team to a runner-up finish. CNU just bested conference rival Salisbury at Rowan by 122 points, a victory they are likely to replicate even in a smaller race.
Top 3 teams:
UC Santa Cruz (No. 21)
Christopher Newport
Salisbury
Top 5 individuals:
Riley Martel-Phillips (Santa Cruz)
Ash Baudin (Santa Cruz)
Faith Dyogi (Santa Cruz)
Iris Abegglen (Santa Cruz)
Maddy Rawlings (CNU)
Empire 8
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
Nazareth
St. John Fisher
Houghton
Top 5 individuals:
Nate Bowers (Nazareth)
Ethan Billings (St. John Fisher)
Matt Reimann (Nazareth)
Cade Eels (Nazareth)
Ethan Kenyon (Nazareth)
Women’s
Top 3 teams:
St. John Fisher
Nazareth
Houghton
Top 5 individuals:
Riley Corey (St. John Fisher)
Emily Weaver (Nazareth)
Gianna Welker (Utica)
Lauren DeMichele (St. John Fisher)
Amanda Burrichter
Great Northeast AC
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
Colby-Sawyer
Norwich
St. Joseph’s
Top 5 individuals:
Dylan Flewelling (Colby-Sawyer)
Troy Hendricks (St. Joseph’s)
Devin Abbot (St. Joseph’s)
Colby Makin (Norwich)
Judson Nash (Norwich)
Women’s
Top 3 teams:
Colby-Sawyer
Regis
Emmanual
Top 5 individuals:
Ashleigh Kelley (Regis)
Shannon O’Connell (Colby-Sawyer)
Erin Kelley (Regis)
Samantha Carus (Colby-Sawyer)
Tess Millette (Colby-Sawyer)
HCAC
The Rose-Hulman Engineers will look to contend for their fifth HCAC title following a ninth place finish at Jenna Strong two weeks ago. There, they bested conference teams Transylvania, Hanover, and Earlham, all teams they will face again this weekend. Their biggest competition comes from Manchester and Franklin, who placed 19th and 20th, respectively at Oberlin two weeks ago. The two programs were separated by a mere seven points, so consider this weekend a rematch between the two Indiana schools.
Manchester’s Enrique Salazar comes off an impressive victory at Oberlin where he kicked down Case Western’s Jack Begley in an exciting finish to the 8k varsity race. Look for Salazar to cruise to an easy victory en route to a potential NCAA qualification at the Great Lakes Regional championship. Other names in the mix include Manchester’s Connor Haven, Earlham’s Connor Del-Carmen, Hanover’s Ethan Weston, and Rose-Hulman’s John Sluys.
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
Rose-Hulman
Manchester
Franklin
Top 5 individuals:
Enrique Salazar (Manchester)
Connor Del-Carmen (Earlham)
Connor Havens (Manchester)
Ethan Weston (Hanover)
John Sluys (Rose-Hulman)
Women’s
The women’s HCAC race is shaping up to be between the teams from Manchester, Franklin, and Hanover. Two weeks ago, Manchester emerged victorious over Franklin by 20 points at Oberlin. Earlier in the season, just two points separated Franklin and Hanover on Hanover’s home course. Franklin just barely edged out Hanover, but another look at this team this coming weekend could yield different results. Manchester is led by Hannah Brubaker, while Haley Makowski leads the way for Franklin. Look for both to be in contention for the title in addition to Transylvania’s Kaycee Moore, Bluffton’s Basil Gates, and Mount St. Joseph’s Kayla Hess.
Top 3 teams:
Manchester
Franklin
Hanover
Top 5 individuals:
Hannah Brubaker (Manchester)
Kaycee Moore (Transylvania)
Basil Gates (Bluffton)
Haley Makowski (Franklin)
Kayla Hess (Mount St. Joseph)
Landmark Conference
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
Moravian
Catholic
Elizabethtown
Top 5 individuals:
John O’Rourke (Catholic)
Shane Houghton (Moravian)
Owen Nahf (Moravian)
Tobias Gaynor (Drew)
Paul Ames (Catholic)
Women’s
Top 3 teams:
Elizabethtown (No. 32)
Scranton
Susquehanna
Top 5 individuals:
Jessica Hoffmann (Scranton)
Kallan Carter (Susquehanna)
Bridget Kennedy (Elizabethtown)
Melissa Fitzgibbon (Elizabethtown)
Kelly Oaster (Elizabethtown)
Liberty League
Men’s
The men from RPI continue their illustrious season into the Liberty League Championships this weekend. As the only nationally ranked team in this conference, look for a dominating performance from the No. 6 Engineers. At Rowan, power duo Matthew Lecky and Cory Kennedy ran their ways to a 1-3 punch to lead RPI to a 39-point meet victory over nationally ranked teams SUNY Geneseo and Lynchburg. Look for Lecky and Kennedy to set the tone early, paving the way for teammates Patrick Smyth and Mitchell Dailey to also finish within the top five. Don’t expect a clean sweep, however, as Vassar’s Miles Takiguchi comes off of a top-20 finish at Connecticut College following his 12th place finish in the Paul Short Brown race.
Top 3 teams:
RPI (No. 6)
St. Lawrence
Vassar
Top 5 individuals:
Matthew Lecky (RPI)
Cory Kennedy (RPI)
Miles Takiguchi (Vassar)
Patrick Smyth (RPI)
Mitchell Dailey (RPI)
Women’s
No. 26 St. Lawrence will take on No. 29 RPI for the first time this season. St. Lawrence comes off of an eighth place finish at Connecticut in which they just edged out No. 29 Tufts. They beat conference rival Vassar by over 100 points, a much larger separation from their 20-point victory over them earlier in the season at the Mideast Preview. They are led by Alison Sibold and Emma Palumbo, both of whom only have a single finish each outside of the top 10 of a race this season. With this duo working together up front and a strong finish from runners three through five, St. Lawrence is certain to bring the heat this weekend.
Their biggest competition will come from nationally ranked RPI, who finished third at Rowan two weeks ago behind No. 3 Geneseo and No. 8 Carleton. Their frontrunner, Morgan Lee, placed runner-up behind Carleton standout Clara Mayfield and ahead of Geneseo frontrunner Kathleen McCarey, putting her in strong contention for the Liberty League victory. She has a strong counterpart in Nia Goddard, who finished sixth overall ahead of Geneseo’s second placer. In a smaller race such as the conference meet, RPI’s third through fifth runners are likely to be able to find each other much more easily in order to condense their pack time this weekend. The bottom three scorers are likely what this race will come down to. Look for the team from Vassar, led by Augusta Stockman, to hang on for a third place finish.
Top 3 teams:
St. Lawrence (No. 26)
RPI (No. 30)
Vassar
Top 5 individuals:
Morgan Lee (RPI)
Emma Palumbo (St. Lawrence)
Allison Sibold (St. Lawrence)
Nia Goddard (RPI)
Augusta Stockman (Vassar)
Little East
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
Plymouth State
Eastern Conn. St.
UMass Dartmouth
Top 5 individuals:
James Cannon (UMass Boston)
Michael Olson (Plymouth State)
Jake Pearl (Keene State)
Ryan Escoda (Eastern Conn. St.)
Jacob Gallaher (Plymouth State)
Women’s
Top 3 teams:
Keene State
Eastern Conn. St.
RIC
Top 5 individuals:
Alexa VanVoorhis (UMass Dartmouth)
Margaret St-John (Keene State)
Grace Furlong (Keene State)
Olivia Mosca (Southern Maine)
Haley Oliver (RIC)
MASCAC
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
Westfield State
Bridgewater State
Fitchburg State
Top 5 individuals:
Tabon Manyok (Fitchburg)
Will Buckley (Westfield)
Mike Mahar (Westfield)
John Nekitopoulos (Westfield)
Matthew Hall (Westfield)
Women’s
Top 3 teams:
Westfield State
Bridgewater State
Fitchburg State
Top 5 individuals:
Julianne Kelly (Westfield)
Abby Murphy (Fitchburg)
Tealei Chandonnet (Westfield)
Nicole Major (Bridgewater)
Ariann Lecours (Westfield)
MIAA
Men’s
A team with almost as much conference history as North Central in the CCIW, No. 32 ranked Calvin will contend for their 35th consecutive conference title this coming weekend. Led by Brandan Knepper, the Knights come off of a ninth place finish at Augustana last weekend, just ten points behind No. 29 U of Chicago. Knepper placed 21st overall and was the second MIAA finisher at Augustana behind Hope’s Connor Vachon, who is the favorite to win this weekend. Look for Knepper’s teammates Thaine Nederveld and Eric Swinson as well as Trine’s Joseph Packard to also mix results up in the front en route to leading their respective teams to top three finishes.
Top 3 teams:
Calvin (No. 32)
Trine
Hope
Top 5 individuals:
Connor Vachon (Hope)
Brandan Knepper (Calvin)
Thaine Nederveld (Calvin)
Eric Swinson (Calvin)
Joseph Packard (Trine)
Women’s
A rematch between No. 19 Calvin and No. 22 Hope is in store this weekend following Calvin’s upset victory over MIAA rival Hope at Augustana two weeks ago. Both teams bring forth strong rosters–Hope is led by experience with XC All-American Ana Tucker, while Calvin returns a few youngsters who have built momentum this year in Jenna Allman and Sienna Ruiter-Diaz. Hope’s Rebecca Markham, who typically runs as their number three, fell uncharacteristically outside of scoring at Augustana. If Markham plugs back into Hope’s scoring lineup, this squad is sure to take back the reins from Calvin, but look for the scores to be tight between these two teams. The squad from Trine has strung together a consistent season and will be in the hunt for top three. They are led by Lydia Randolph, who, in her breakout season, will likely finish within the top five.
Top 3 teams:
Hope (No. 22)
Calvin (No. 19)
Trine
Top 5 individuals:
Anna Tucker (Hope)
Jenna Allman (Calvin)
Ellie Jankowski (Hope)
Sienna Ruiter-Diaz (Calvin)
Lydia Randolph (Trine)
Middle Atlantic Conferences
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
Messiah
Lebanon Valley
Misericordia
Top 5 individuals:
Logan Horst (Messiah)
Andrew Hutchinson (Messiah)
Jordan Berger (Lebanon Valley)
Stephen Kober (Misericordia)
Noah Griffin (Lebanon Valley)
Women’s
Top 3 teams:
Widener
Misericordia
Desales
Top 5 individuals:
Cera Gaston (Alvernia)
Gabriella Nye (Widener)
Lauren Bunke (Lebanon Valley)
Carly Gable (Widener)
Alexa Thompson (Misericordia)
MWC
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
Ripon
Cornell College
Grinnell
Top 5 individuals:
Aaron Davidson (Cornell College)
Sam Forstner (Ripon)
Adam Bruce (Lawrence)
Brian Goodell (Grinnell)
Jonah Decleene (Ripon)
Women’s
Top 3 teams:
Ripon
Lawrence
Grinnell
Top 5 individuals:
Cristyn Oliver (Lawrence)
Ali Denamur (Ripon)
Keely Miyamoto (Grinnell)
Mikayla Flyte (Ripon)
Emma Schaefer (Grinnell)
MIAC
The story in the MIAC has been about Mohammed Bati. The first year has taken the country by storm and has yet to lose to a D3 runner this year. He’ll look to continue his undefeated season this weekend to win his first ever MIAC title. St. Olaf’s depth and fire power should carry them to a team title. They’re led by Logan Bocovich and Will Kelly who should be in that front pack. Whenever Bati makes his move, the Oles will need to stay together and cruise in for a victory.
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
St. Olaf (No. 14)
St. John’s
Carleton
Top 5 individuals:
Mohammed Bati (Augsburg)
Logan Bocovich (St. Olaf)
Will Kelly (St. Olaf)
Lloyd Young (St. John’s)
Andrew Skemp (St. Olaf)
Women’s
This weekend will feature a much anticipated head-to-head battle between St. Olaf and Carleton. This rivalry runs deep between these programs and it won’t stop this year. You’ll have the pack of St. Olaf with their small spread versus the top-heavy team from Carleton. The key for Carleton is for their four and five runners to be under 90 seconds back from front runner Clara Mayfield. If they do that, they should have the victory in hand. St. Olaf will need to continue to run as a pack in order to give themselves a chance for the win. Any opportunity to move up in the last 1k will be crucial for their chances. The fans also get a Fiona Smith vs. Mayfield matchup. Smith took the lone win earlier this season as they only squared off once. She took down Mayfield by 28 seconds. Look for the gap to be a lot closer this time around as everyone rallies for conference weekend.
Top 3 teams:
Carleton (No. 8)
St. Olaf (No. 9)
St. Benedict
Top 5 individuals:
Fiona Smith (St. Benedict)
Clara Mayfield (Carleton)
Hannah Preisser (Carleton)
Sophie McManus (Carleton)
Sofia Carlson (St. Olaf)
NACC
Top 3 teams:
MSOE
Wisconsin Lutheran
St. Norbert
Top 5 individuals:
Patrick Lee (MSOE)
Karan Shetty (Benedictine)
Zeke Micheel (Wisconsin Lutheran)
Peyton Hartman (Wisconsin Lutheran)
Xander Gottner (MSOE)
Women’s
Top 3 teams:
Edgewood
Aurora
St. Norbert
Top 5 individuals:
Ally Verbauwhede (Edgewood)
Deyanneira Colon-Maldonado (Auror
Rachel Ehrhart (Edgewood)
Kaitlyn Rodman (MSOE)
Abby Liesen (Aurora)
NESCAC
Men’s
One of the marquee conferences in all of Division 3 will deliver another exciting race this weekend. Similar to other conferences, you never know what could happen at the NESCAC. They’re a deep conference this year again with six ranked teams, and these results can help them get that many teams to the national meet. Williams looks to make it a three peat, their seventh since 2013. The individual battle will be fun to watch as all these teams and individuals were battling at the Conn College invite. The fans will be treated to another Elias Lindgren vs. Tyler Morris matchup—a matchup that the nation will see come November. Lindgren will look to continue his undefeated season and Williams’s depth will be too much for the rest of the NESCAC.
Top 3 teams:
Wiliams (No. 7)
Middlebury (No. 13)
Bates (No. 28)
Top 5 individuals:
Elias Lindgren (Williams)
Tyler Morris (Colby)
Grahm Tuohy-Gaydos (Williams
Matt Carter (Connecticut College)
Jeffrey Love (Connecticut College)
Women’s
Similar to the men’s side, we’ll get to see a repeat of the Conn College Invite. Williams took down Amherst by a point, but Amherst was without 3k national qualifier Sidnie Kulik. If Kulik returns to the lineup, that will be a big boost for the Mammoths. Amherst’s duo of Mary Kate McGranahan and Sophie Wolmer have led the way all season and will look to take control of the race up front. Genna Girard looks to be back in her All-American form and will have plans to join them as she’ll need to be the low stick for Williams. We’ve seen a strong pack from Bates at the Conn College invite so if a team up front slips up, their pack could do some heavy work in the later stages of the race.
Top 3 teams:
Amherst (No. 12)
Williams (No. 11)
Bates (No. 15)
Top 5 individuals:
Mary Kate McGranahan (Amherst)
Sophia Wolmer (Amherst)
Genna Girard (Williams)
Jillian Richardson (Bates)
Ella Ball (Williams)
NEWMAC
Men’s
It’s going to be all MIT at the NEWMAC this year. The No. 2 team in the country shouldn’t be challenged this year as they’re too deep and too strong of a team. It feels strange to predict a perfect score, but it’s hard to see anyone breaking them up.
Top 3 teams:
MIT (No. 2)
WPI
Springfield
Top 5 individuals:
Sam Acquaviva (MIT)
Matthew Kearney (MIT)
Vedang Lad (MIT)
Andrew Mah (MIT)
Ryan Wilson (MIT)
Women’s
Since 2007, MIT has been atop of the NEWMAC podium and there should be no reason why that stops this year. They have been on a roll this season and are coming off a win at the Connecticut College Invite. Look for them to run as a pack to make sure the trophy goes back to Cambridge. They’ll be joined by Mount Holyoke’s Lauren Selkin and Coast Guard’s Claire Semerod. Selkin likes to push the pace early as they saw her do at the Conn College invite. Ultimately, MIT’s depth and patience will be too much for the rest of the field.
Top 3 teams:
MIT (No. 5)
Smith College
Coast Guard
Top 5 individuals:
Einat Gavish (MIT)
Lauren Selkin (Mount Holyoke)
Claire Semerod (Coast Guard)
Anna Haddad (MIT)
Christina Crow (MIT)
NJAC
This year's NJAC race is shaping up to be a fierce battle on both the team and individual front. The harriers will battle it out over the manicured grass of TCNJ’s Green Lane field this Saturday, October 29th for their chance at glory.
Men’s
TCNJ and Rowan, ranked third and fourth in the Atlantic Region respectively, are the clear favorites for the team title on the men’s side. The two have yet to face each other in the regular season and it looks like the race could go either way. Rowan’s strength is in their pack. Their two through five runners have consistently finished within ten seconds of one another while TCNJ has put up some faster times, but with a larger spread. While both teams have strong runners up front expect the race to be decided by where Rowan’s pack falls into the mix. On the individual side it looks as though three men are in position to run for the win. Cooper Knorr of Stockton, Kevin Christensen of TCNJ, and Justin Kelly of Rowan have all earned individual NJAC titles of their own with Knorr being the defending champion. Expect one of them to come away as the victor this Saturday.
Top 3 teams:
Rowan
TCNJ
Stockton
Top 5 individuals:
Justin Kelly (Rowan)
Cooper Knorr (Stockton)
Kevin Christensen (TCNJ)
Noah Cziryak (Rowan)
Jacob Riley (Rowan)
Women’s
The women’s race is looking like it will be a lot closer on both the team and individual sides. Between TCNJ, Stockton, and Rowan it is too close to call a clear favorite. Stockton has a very close spread up front and looks ready to take the win on a good day, but Rowan and TCNJ have been building all season and are rounding into great form. Each team has had their top runners go back and forth and a clear pecking order is yet to be established. At the moment Anna Sasse of Rowan, Jaelyn Barkley of Stockton, and Emily Hoegler of TCNJ are running extremely well and look ready to contend for the title, but other women such as TCNJ’s Cassidy Quinn and Savannah Hodgens, Stockton’s Jessie Klenk, and Rowan’s Abigail Churchill could all be players going for that individual win. Expect the race to stay bunched up in a large front pack for a long time before someone breaks away.
Top 3 teams:
TCNJ
Stockton
Rowan
Top 5 individuals:
Anna Sasse (Rowan)
Jaelyn Barkley (Stockton)
Emily Hoegler (TCNJ)
Suzanne Zaugg (Ramapo)
Abigail Churchill (Rowan)
North Atlantic Conference
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
Cobleskill
Delhi
Maine Martime
Top 5 individuals:
Nick Logan (Cobleskill)
Aidan Cutting (Delhi)
Jack Gemmett (Cobleskill)
Seth Bywater (Delhi)
Jarrod Hooper (Thomas College)
Women’s
Top 3 teams:
Husson
Delhi
Maine Farmington
Top 5 individuals:
Alexa Wolcott (Delhi)
Payton Goodwin (Husson)
Ava Dowling (Husson)
Miranda Dunton (Delhi)
Charlotte Wentworth (Maine Farmington)
North Coast AC
Men’s
The DePauw men have been on top of the NCAC since 2017 and look to continue to stay atop the conference this year. With Jacob Kissling and Bailey Scott both leading the way this year, DePauw has the strongest duo in the conference. Add in senior Ford Baker and the Tigers’ top three have a great opportunity to lock down their fifth title in a row. It would be quite the upset if DePauw does not travel back to Greencastle without a title. Wittenberg’s Connor Kolka will look to add to his resume after his outdoor 5k NCAC win. He’ll be joining the DePauw guys in the pack up front. Adding to the lead pack should be Wooster’s Will Callender who’s having a breakout season after PRing in every track event. Look for Keegan Minahan from Kenyon to round out the top pack. He’ll look for his consistency of running 25:59, 25:55, 25:58 in his last three races to guide him to an All-Conference finish.
Top 3 teams:
DePauw
Denison
Oberlin
Top 5 individuals:
Jacob Kissling (DePauw)
Ford Baker (DePauw)
Conor Kolka (Wittenberg)
Keegan Minahan (Kenyon)
Bailey Scott (DePauw)
Women
Since 2009, only two teams have been crowned Conference Champions: Oberlin and Allegheny. With Allegheny moving to the PAC and Oberlin experiencing a down year, it may be time for a new team to hoist the conference trophy. The battle should be between two different packs of tigers, one in red and white and the other in black and gold. Since joining the conference in 2011, DePauw has yet to win a title after dominating the SCAC for years. Wittenberg has been a team on the rise in the NCAC and are in the best position they have been in years. Isabelle Hoover enters as the favorite after winning three conference titles in track but will have tough competition from Witt’s Corin Turkovich. Hoover edged Turkovich by five seconds earlier in the season, but those two could be joined by the DePauw duo of Meredith Sierpina and Sophie Porter.
Top 3 teams:
DePauw
Wittenberg
Oberlin
Top 5 individuals:
Isabelle Hoover (Wooster)
Corin Turkovich (Wittenberg)
Meredith Sierpina (DePauw)
Sophie Porter (DePauw)
Sage Reddish (Oberlin)
Northwest Conference
Men’s
Slowly but surely the Northwest Conference has been climbing back as a conference to watch. With the resurgence of George Fox and individual qualifiers from Pacific Lutheran and Lewis & Clark in track, the NWC has some fire power again. Typically these teams will stay in their scenic backyard of the Pacific Northwest and brag about their cool trees, but we’ve seen these teams venture to the midwest to better understand where they fall amongst the nation’s best. George Fox has proven they are legit and will bring that confidence to this meet. They’re led by freshman Caden Hildenbrand who has not shied away from being a top runner. He was tenth at Pre Nats and will look to win his first conference title. With him will be Ryan Stracke from Pacific Lutheran and his teammate Peter Weiss. All three have a legit shot at winning the conference title. Stracke looked to have an off-day at Pre Nats but bounced back weeks later to finish sixth at the Lewis & Clark Invite. NWC will be an exciting day for the Pacific Northwest schools.
Top 3 teams:
George Fox (No. 24)
Pacific Lutheran
Lewis & Clark
Top 5 individuals:
Caden Hildenbrand (George Fox)
Ryan Stracke (Pacific Lutheran)
Peter Weiss (George Fox)
Austin Gappa (George Fox)
Will Wada (Pacific)
Women’s
Similar to the men’s side, the women from George Fox have upped their game this year and entered the national conversation. They’re led by first-year Kayla Aalpoel who’s having a great year with a 15th place finish at Pre Nats. Right behind her was Sarah Paquet from Pacific Lutheran which will make this individual battle exciting. Throw in Riley Buese from Lewis & Clark and the race for the NWC title is up in the air. All three women mentioned have a great chance at bringing home a title for their programs and will help in the team battle. The common race all three have had recently was the Lewis & Clark invite where Paquet took down Buese and Aapoel. On the team front, look for No. 20 George Fox’s depth to be too much for the rest of the conference as they look to complete their three peat.
Top 3 teams:
George Fox (No. 20)
Pacific Lutheran
Lewis & Clark
Top 5 individuals:
Sarah Paquet (Pacific Lutheran)
Riley Buese (Lewis & Clark)
Kayla Aalpoel (George Fox)
Brenna Sclair(George Fox)
Annie Berry (Pacific)
Ohio Athletic Conference
Men’s
With three nationally ranked teams, three returning XC All-Americans, and one returning national champion in the men’s race, the OAC Championships is sure to be one of the more competitive meets of the whole weekend as teams from across Ohio take to the hilly loops of Muskingum. The biggest showdown will take place between No. 17 JCU and No. 21 Otterbein who have yet to race each other this year in full force. Though JCU has raced in much more crowded races this year, they have yet to see a pack time under 90 seconds. Otterbein, on the other hand, has kept a tight pack under 60 seconds in every varsity race so far this year. Even with frontrunner Cal Yackin’s third place finish at Augustana last weekend, their fifth finisher crossed just 57 seconds later. Pack time could just play to the Cardinals’ favor this coming weekend, allowing them to pull off an upset victory over JCU.
The biggest name in this race is that of defending national champion Alex Phillip, who is undefeated amongst D3 competition so far this year. Last year, Phillip showcased his fitness against several Ohio teams when he won the All-Ohio meet and the Oberlin Interregional Rumble in the regular season. This year, he has flown more under the radar, targeting just two big regular season race opportunities before laser-focusing on his final cross country postseason as a JCU Blue Streak. OAC weekend will be his first race within the state of Ohio this year and if the race plays out at all like it did last year, Phillip is ready to send a message.
Wilmington’s Simon Heys and Otterbein’s Yackin make up the remaining returning XC All-Americans in this race. Both have had momentous seasons so far this year–Heys took third at All-Ohio (first D3 finisher), fifth at Pre-Nats, and first at Jenna Strong, while Yackin took fifth at All-Ohio (second D3 finisher), and third in a stacked Augustana field two weeks ago. Look for both to key off of each other this weekend. Will they challenge Phillip or play a 24-minute-long game of patience to ensure runner-up? Mount’s Jeff Joseph, Otterbein’s Bill Daily, and JCU’s Ethan Domitrovich are likely to also be in the mix up front. Watch out, too, for No. 26 team Wilmington, who, in addition to Heys, has Noah Tobin and George Rickett catching fire at the right time.
Top 3 teams:
Otterbein (No. 21)
JCU (No. 17)
Wilmington (No. 26)
Top 5 individuals:
Alex Phillip (JCU)
Simon Heys (Wilmington)
Cal Yackin (Otterbein)
Jeff Joseph (Mount Union)
Bill Daily (Otterbein)
Women’s
No. 25 John Carroll will look to cruise to an easy victory in the women’s OAC race this weekend. Led by 10k national qualifier Erica Esper, the Blue Streaks are coming off of a landslide victory at the Oberlin Interregional Rumble two weeks ago. From runners one to five, they landed a 45-second split, beating second place team UW-Stevens Point by almost 100 points. In this same race, Baldwin Wallace’s Hope Murphy was the only athlete to run under 22 minutes, using her 1500m All-American speed to close hard in the final 400m toward the win.
Watch for Murphy, the defending OAC XC champion, to be in strong contention for the win in addition to Ohio Northern’s Tessa Pitcovich and Mount Union’s Brittany McCauley, who placed second and third, respectively, last year. Other names to watch for are Muskingum’s Macy McAdams, who is likely to take the field out at a hot pace as she did at Oberlin, as well as JCU’s Esper, Sydney Jenko, and Cameron Bujaucius. Jenko and Bujaucius went 1-2 in the 2019 championships. Jenko has yet to race this season, but is listed on JCU’s roster. With a competitive lineup up front, the individual title will likely go to the athlete who can best navigate the rolling hills of the new Muskingum course.
Top 3 teams:
John Carroll (No. 25)
Ohio Northern
Mount Union (No. 31)
Top 5 individuals:
Hope Murphy (BW)
Tessa Pitcovich (ONU)
Erica Esper (JCU)
Macy McAdams (Musky)
Cameron Bujaucius (JCU)
ODAC
Lynchburg swept the ODAC last year and this year appears to be no different. Their ranked squads are ready to take on what the ODAC has to offer. Their biggest challengers from both sides will be Washington and Lee. However, the Hornets’ depth will be too much for the Generals. The bright spot for the men will be grad transfer Charles Scharf as he’ll try to ensure Lynchburg doesn’t get the clean sweep. He’s been in the mix with their top runners this season and should be the same here this weekend.
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
Lynchburg (No. 20)
Washington and Lee
Roanoke
Top 5 individuals:
Frank Csorba (Lynchburg)
Sam Llaneza (Lynchburg)
Charles Scharf (Washington and Lee)
Bryce Davis (Lynchburg)
Corbin Green (Lynchburg)
Women’s
Similar to the men, the women from Lynchburg should run away with this one - pun absolutely intended. They’ll face off against a strong duo from W&L, but their depth will overcome Carolyn Todd and Elise Molinaro. Look for Lynchburg to pack things up to ensure they ring the bell back at campus.
Top 3 Teams:
Lynchburg (No. 18)
Washington and Lee
Bridgewater
Top 5 individuals:
Sarah James (Lynchburg)
Kelsey Lagunas(Lynchburg)
Carolyn Todd (Washington and Lee)
Molly Silva (Lynchburg)
Elise Molinaro (Washington and Lee)
Presidents AC
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
Franciscan
Allegheny
St. Vincent
Top 5 individuals:
Tim Patterson (St. Vincent)
Miguel Daez (Franciscan)
Conal Delaney (Franciscan)
Kevin Arseneaux (Geneva)
Sean Heintzleman (Allegheny)
Women’s
Top 3 Teams
Allegheny
St. Vincent
Geneva
Top 5 Individuals
Claire Walters (Franciscan)
Carmen Medvit (St. Vincent)
Cassie Carr (Washington & Jefferson)
Kristen Prince (St. Vincent)
Megan Aaron(Allegheny)
SAA
Top 3 teams:
Berry
Centre
Oglethorpe
Top 5 individuals:
Bradshaw Lathbury (Berry)
Ashton Deriso (Ogelthorpe)
Sam Polio (Centre)
Grady Coppock (Berry)
Zachary Benner (Ogelthorpe)
Women’s
Top 3 Teams
Centre
Berry
Rhodes
Top 5 Individuals
Meghan Owens (Centre)
Sophie Bouldin (Centre)
Kate Freyaldenhoven (Rhodes)
Nora Bailey (Centre)
Erin Haugh (Centre)
SCAC
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
Trinity
Colorado College
St. Thomas
Top 5 individuals:
Will Salony (Trinity)
James Settles (Colorado College)
Devlin Swanson (Colorado College)
Ben Whittemore (Trinity)
Jhancarlos Carpio (St. Thomas)
Women’s
Top 3 Teams
Colorado College (No. 23)
Trinity
Texas Lutheran
Top 5 Individuals
Kendall Accetta (Colorado College)
Elliot Singer (Colorado College)
Cassie Carr (Colorado College)
Elaine Kaster (Trinity)
Jane Mallach (Colorado College)
SLIAC
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
Greenville
Webster
Principia
Top 5 individuals:
Gianni Estrada (Greenville)
Joe Gomez (Greenville)
Jeremiah Perry (Greenville)
Rex Heath (Principia)
Kaleb Carlson (Greenville)
Women’s
Top 3 Teams
Greenville
Webster
Principia
Top 5 Individuals
Kyanne Williams (Webster)
Gretchen Carie (Greenville)
Megan Bartz (Webster)
Karissa Heffernan (Eureka)
Brook Schutt (Greenville)
SCIAC
The SCIAC had the most All-Americans out of any men’s conference last year and the goal this year will be the same. It’s hard to imagine PP letting the SCIAC slip through their fingers but we’ve seen it happen in the past. PP is coming off a dominating performance at Augustana and CMS will be fresher as they haven’t raced since October 8th. The Sagehens will be packed up tight with a few Stags mixed in there. The La Verne team has been running strong late led by last year’s freshman standout, TK Berhe. The Sagehens were without Colin Kirkpatrick for the first few meets but he returned to his old self. PP could get a perfect score if everything goes right, but knowing the rivalry between PP and CMS, CMS is not about to let that happen. While on paper it looks grim for CMS, cross country races are run on the course, not on a website.
Top 3 teams:
Pomona-Pitzer (No. 1)
CMS (No. 16)
La Verne
Top 5 individuals:
Lucas Florsheim (PP)
Colin Kirkpatrick (PP)
Adam Sage (CMS)
Ian Horsburgh (PP)
Derek Fearon (PP)
Women’s
The women’s SCIAC is the reverse of the men’s side. CMS is the clear favorite and has been running very strong all year. That’s not to say PP hasn’t run well but the way in which CMS has handled their business this season, it will be difficult for them to be defeated. Their 1-2 punch of Natalie Bitetti and Meredith Bloss has led CMS to a No. 4 ranking this season and earned them a big win at the Paul Short Run. Genevieve DiBari from PP finished 25th last year at the National meet and has been guiding PP throughout the season. She’ll be the Sagehens' hope to ensure a perfect score out of CMS doesn’t happeN. As we said for the men’s side, the race is run on the course and not here on D3GD. We wouldn’t be surprised if PP gives CMS a fight.
Top 3 Teams
CMS (No. 4)
Pomona-Pitzer (No. 13)
Caltech
Top 5 Individuals
Natalie Bitetti (CMS)
Meredith Bloss (CMS)
Genevieve DiBari (PP)
Anika Kimme (CMS)
Angela Gushue (CMS)
SUNYAC
On both sides, Geneseo comes in as the clean favorites and will be walking away with a lot of SUNYAC hardware. Cortland’s Ryan Cory appears to be the only hope at stopping a SUNY Geneseo clean sweep. He’s been running well all year and after winning the White Race at Paul Short, appears up for the challenge.
Top 3 teams:
Geneseo (No. 19)
Brockport
Cortland
Top 5 individuals:
Nick Andrews (Geneseo)
Ryan Cory (Cortland)
William Hall (Geneseo)
Alex Hillyard (Geneseo)
Dillon McClary (Geneseo)
Women’s
Geneseo women have been ranked in the top 3 all year, and as they enter the postseason, will certainly be on a mission to prove why. The SUNYAC has an electric atmosphere and will continue this weekend. The long traditions in the New York conference makes it a must see conference due to the fans’ dedication to their teams. Last year, Geneseo put on a show by sweeping the conference and will look to do the same this year. The only question for Geneseo is will Windsor Ardner be back in the line up? She was missing from the squad at Rowan. It won’t have too much of an impact this weekend but they will want Ardner back in the squad come regionals and nationals.
Top 3 Teams
Geneseo (No. 3)
Brockport
Cortland
Top 5 Individuals
Kathleen McCarey (Geneseo)
Windsor Ardner (Geneseo)
Rachel Hirschkind (Geneseo)
Marcie Hogan (Geneseo)
Erin Eivers (Geneseo)
UAA
Men’s
With four top 15 teams (based on the D3GD rankings) and UChicago at No. 28, the UAA is about to bring the heat. On paper it’ll be a top-heavy conference with postseason contenders going head-to-head. Watch out for lEmory (No. 8), Wash U (No.9), Carnegie Mellon (No. 11), and Case Western (No.15). The only head to head match up we’ve had this year was at the Paul Short Race where Carnegie Mellon took down Emory. Recently, Case Western has been on a hot streak and only lost to Carnegie Mellon by ten points at the Oberlin Interregional Rumble. With Emory surging since Paul Short and Case making things close, the field is wide open right now for a team battle. Wash U has been without top runner Cullen Capuano since September. If he can return to the lineup, that will help increase WashU’s chance at a UAA title. For prediction purposes, we’ll air on the side of him not running. The top pack will feature a runner from almost every school. Look for Jack Begley (Case Western), Colin McLaughlin (Carnegie Mellon), Spencer Moore (Emory), John Hood (UChicago) and Jeff Candell (WashU) to be mixing it up. Emory and Case could make things interesting if they each get a second runner inside the top eight. Robert St. Claire (Case) and Brett Lucas (Emory) have been running well for their schools. Run this meet ten times and there’s a good chance you’d get ten different outcomes.
Top 3 teams:
Emory (No. 8)
Case Western (No. 15)
WashU (No. 9)
Top 5 individuals:
Jack Begley (Case)
Colin McLaughlin (Carnegie Mellon)
Spencer Moore (Emory)
Robert St.-Clair (Case)
Jeff Candell (WashU)
Women’s
Rocking the No. 1 ranking for the first time in school history, UChicago will come in as the heavy favorites. While you should never count out WashU in October and November, UChicago is fresh off winning the Augustana Interregional where they took down the Bears by 37 points. A new team that will look to be in contention for the podium is NYU. They are on a tear right now and resetting program expectations. They’ve received a bolt of fresh new energy from Vivian Kane that has propelled the school from the Big Apple back on the map. From an individual perspective, we’ll see Annika Urban take on stiff D3 competition once again. She won a deep field at Paul Short and has yet to lose a race this year. Kane took down strong competition on her way to winning the Connecticut College Invite, so this will be another test for the first year. While it wouldn’t be a surprise if Urban goes from the gun, and with Kane potentially giving chase early, look for WashU and UChicago’s packs to be patient and move up throughout the race. UChicago’s depth and a 17-second spread allowed them to take down the field at Augustana and cancel out WashU’s top two. Whenever you have two top teams going at it, you never know what is going to happen. Regardless of the hype, it will be another fantastic UAA Conference meet.
Top 3 teams:
UChicago (No. 1)
WashU (No. 7)
NYU (No. 17)
Top 5 individuals:
Annika Urban (Emory)
Emily Konkus (WashU)
Vivian Kane (NYU)
Frances Schaeffler (UChicago)
Anna Kenig-Ziesler (UChicago)
UMAC
If you didn’t think the midwest could be any more midwest, let me present to you the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference. With schools from Wisconsin and Minnesota, the UMAC is the cousin of the WIAC and MIAC. UW-Superior has been dominant over the last six years as they have claimed five titles in the span. They’ll look to be the favorites as they try for a repeat from last year’s win. On the individual side, last year’s champ Jeremiah VanAcke from Crown will be challenged by UW-Superior’s breakout star Michael Butterfield. He’s dropped over two minutes from last year and has continued his rise after winning the steeple at outdoor track. Look for Minnesota Morris duo Gregory Peterson and Rory Shackelford to be in the mix as well to try to get their team a trophy.
Top 3 teams:
Wis.-Superior
Minnesota Morris
Martin Luther
Top 5 individuals:
Michael Butterfield (UW-Superior)
Jeremiah VanAcke (Crown)
Gregory Peterson (Minnesota Morris)
Rory Shackelford (Minnesota Morris)
David Collins (UW-Superior)
Women’s
We’re witnessing some history on the women’s side in Martin Lurther. They grabbed their first conference titles since 1995 and have the squad to repeat as conference champs. Anytime you can make history for your team, you’re not gonna let it slip by again. They’re led by Maya Habben who is having a strong season and looks to be in contention for the conference title. The entire top five from last year is returning which should make for some fireworks. Last year, 16 points separated Martin Luther and Minnesota-Morris. Look for that to be a little closer this year. Look for Kayla Tobin, Abigail Buege, Abby Pausch, and Briahna Hensel to be up front with Maya Habben.
Top 3 teams:
Martin Luther
Bethany Lutheran
UW-Superior
Top 5 individuals:
Maya Habben (Martin Luther)
Kayla Tobin (Bethany Lutheran)
Abigail Buege (Martin Luther)
Abby Pausch (Crown)
Briahna Hensel (Minnesota Morris)
United East
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
Lancaster Bible
PSU-Harrisburg
Morrisville State
Top 5 individuals:
Christopher Mayers (Lancaster Bible)
Mitchell Gray (Lancaster Bible)
Mitchell Campbell (Penn College)
Michael Wade (St. Mary’s)
Patrick O’Donnell (PSU Berks)
Women’s
Top 3 teams:
St. Mary’s
Morrisville State
PSU-Harrisburg
Top 5 individuals:
Madeleine Blaisdell (St. Mary’s)
Lauren Sapp (St. Mary’s)
Tatyana Gibson (PSU-Harriburg)
Dana Keller (Lancaster Bible)
Elizabeth Robey (St. Mary’s)
USA South
Men’s
Top 3 teams:
Southern Virginia
Brevard
Methodist
Top 5 individuals:
Dylan May (Southerrn Virginia)
Drew Topoly (Methodist)
Dalton Hawley (Brevard)
Devon Brodmyer (Brevard)
Garret Spangler (Brevard)
Women’s
Top 3 teams:
Southern Virginia
Meredith
Covenant
Top 5 individuals:
Madison Lowery (Pfeiffer)
Corrine Weaver (Meredith)
Sasha Willie (Southern Virginia)
Courtney Drumm (Methodist)
Kyandra Chandler (Southern Virginia)
WIAC
Men’s
The WIAC is one of the most exciting conference races in all the country. To steal the SEC slogan, ‘It just means more.’ The WIAC is historically one of the deeper conference meets and this year is no different. Through our time interviewing those in the WIAC, we’ve learned anything can happen. La Crosse and Whitewater have been battling each other over the last year. La Crosse edged Whitewater by four last year and Whitewater came back at regionals to take them down by one. Given how strong both teams' top two are, we wouldn’t be surprised if they were separated by four again this year.
Top 3 teams:
UW-Lax (No. 5)
UW-Whitewater (No. 12)
UW-Stout (No. 22)
Top 5 individuals:
Ethan Gregg (UW-Lax)
Christian Patzka (UW-Whitewater)
Spencer Schultz (UW-Stout)
Isaac Wegner (UW-Lax)
Gunner Schlender (UW-Whitewater)
Women’s
Since 2007, UW-Eau Claire has dominated the WIAC, but the new wave from UW-La Crosse is starting to cover the Wisconsin conference. Last year, the Eagles ended a three-peat from the Blugold with their first title since 2016. Despite being only separated by 84.5 miles, La Crosse and Eau Claire have yet to face each other. It should be a great battle between two top 15 teams in the country. What makes La Crosse strong as a team is having a front runner in Maddie Hannan and a tight pack from 2-5 that traverses the race together. In their last race, La Crosse’s 2-4 runners were separated by 0.7 seconds. Not only will this help at the conference level, but will carry them into the postseason. Eau Claire has a bright spot in their number one runner, Carolyn Shult. Her sixth place finish at the Augustana Invite shows she belongs with the top of the country and could finish in the top 20 next month in Michigan. Add in their pack from Augustana that stayed close with an 18-second split from 2-5, and Eau Claire will look to take back the WIAC crown. While Shult will come in as the favorite, look for her to be joined by Maddie Hannan and Rachel Krouse up front. La Crosse’s pack will be joined by Amelia Lehman from Oshkosh. On paper, we’re expecting an update based on the rankings. No matter who is first or second, expect the championship to be separated by less than five points.
Top 3 teams:
UW-Eau Claire (No. 14)
UW-Lax (No. 10)
UW-Stevens Point
Top 5 individuals:
Carolyn Shult (UW-Eau Claire)
Maddie Hannan (UW-Lax)
Rachel Krouse (UW-Stevens Point)
Amelia Lehman (Uw-Oshkosh)
Katelyn Chadwick (UW-Lax)
If you made it this far, thank you! We hope you enjoyed this massive D3 Cross Country Preview. Have fun this weekend.
Like what you see? Don’t like what you see? Leave a comment below and give us your take!
We wrote 8,797 words for this preview. If you enjoy it, or think it’s worth $1 to read - consider Venmoing us a $1. We’ve never asked for something like this in an article but with how much time went into this, it would be very much appreciated. We’ll continue to bring you paywall free content no matter what!