Over the weekend, nearly all of the nation's top-ranked programs took their talents to Madison, Wisconsin and Charlottesville, Virginia for the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational and Pre-Nationals. 

This past weekend's racing provided a lot of interesting storylines, especially as we shift toward Conference, Regionals and the NCAA National Championships in November. 

While some athletes and programs did what was expected, others exceeded all expectations. Here are five of the key storylines from the weekend that everyone should watch closely. 

NAU's Chances Of Sweeping 

What. A. Day🤩#RaiseTheFlag | #BigSkyXC pic.twitter.com/aiujwKtFi7

— NAU Track & Field/XC (@NAUTrackFieldXC) October 13, 2023

In NCAA Championship history, just three programs have ever pulled off the championship sweep between the men's and women's races. The first to do it was the University of Wisconsin in 1985, followed by Stanford in 1996 and 2003 and then Colorado, which pulled it off most recently in 2004. 

So how about Northern Arizona? After their showing at the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational this weekend, the chances of the Lumberjacks becoming the fourth program to sweep is very real. 

The Northern Arizona men, winners of the last three titles, are back in their usual form. Here's why. 

Nico Young and Drew Bosley continue to look like a championship 1-2 punch. For the second straight year, the pair took out Nuttycombe and held on for top 10 finishes. Young was runner-up again, this time crossing in 23:10, while Bosley was eighth in 23:32.1. 

The trio of Aaron Las Heras, Theo Quax and Santiago Prosser went 12-25-29, while the Lumberjack's sixth and seventh runners took 33rd and 43rd. Not only did NAU put five runners in front of every other team's third runner, but they managed to put all seven runners ahead of every other team's fourth runner. Simply put, it's dominance at a level you don't often see. 

On the women's side, Elise Stearns led NAU with a fourth-place finish in 19:54.6, followed by Gracelyn Larkin, Annika Reiss and Ali Upshaw in eighth, 10th and 12th. The trio were separated by just seven seconds, as they went 20:01.5, 20:06.8 and 20:08.7. Much like the men, the NAU women squeezed their top five runners ahead of everyone else's fourth and all seven runners were ahead of every other team's five scorers. 

Granted, NC State's typical scorer Samantha Bush had an uncharacteristic DNF, but in spite of her absence, the performance from Mike Smith's squad is monumental. 

Podium For Florida With Mazza-Downie?

Way back in the first week of January, former Alabama Head Coach Will Palmer made the move from Tuscaloosa to Gainesville. Since his arrival, he has rapidly elevated Florida's cross country program to a new level. 

At Nuttycombe, the Gators had their chance to show off the work they've been putting in since the beginning of the summer -- specifically with the reigning national runner-up Parker Valby.

But the new wrinkle is that the Gator women could also be competing for a team title, thanks to a few additions via the transfer portal, including All-Americans Flomena Asekol, Amelia Mazza-Downie and Elise Thorner. 

In Madison, the NCAA finally got a glimpse of the new Gator squad. As a team, Florida finished fifth, beating out a handful of ranked programs without Amelia Mazza-Downie. That spells good news.

Mazza-Downie would have most likely been somewhere around the top 30 finishers, but she very well could be much closer toward the top 15. If you hypothetically insert the former New Mexico Lobo into the Gator's top five, the women would improve from a distant fifth to a close third, within an earshot of NC State. 

Razorback Men Raise The Roof

2023 Virginia Pre-Nationals

Arkansas sophomore Ben Shearer comments on a special day of racing that produced an individual and team victory for the Razorbacks pic.twitter.com/AhhUMA4Hwx

— Arkansas Track & Field (@RazorbackTF) October 15, 2023

It was tough to say what the ceiling was for the Arkansas men heading to Pre-Nats, but now it would be a bold take to not think this squad isn't capable of ending their season on the podium -- or at the very least, close to it.  

First off, let's start with Ben Shearer. His performance was a total and utter shock. Shearer clocked a 41-second PR and paired it with a huge victory. That's nothing short of perfection. Shearer held off a familiar face in the SEC, beating Yaseen Abdalla by three seconds (22:55.0-22:58.6). 

Right behind those two were three Razorbacks in third, fifth, and sixth. Kirami Yego, the transfer from South Alabama, continues to adjust to life in Fayetteville just fine. He ran 23:04.2, which was the second-fastest time of his collegiate career. 

Patrick Kiprop and Jacob McLeod were a few seconds back, running 23:11.5 and 23:17.1. Myles Richter rounded out the scoring for Arkansas, taking 20th in 23:40.0. In a larger field, similar to what they'll see when they return to Panorama Farms, those 23 seconds may prove pivotal for the Razorbacks, but if that gap can be closed, even just by a little bit, then Woo Pig Sooie.

Valby Beats Tuohy. What Now?

For the first time in her collegiate career, Florida's Parker Valby finished ahead of reigning national champion Katelyn Tuohy of North Carolina State. 

It took just less than 2,500 meters for the pair to leave the field in their dust, but it wasn't too long before Valby started to put space between her and Tuohy.  

By 4K, seven seconds separated the pair and by the finish, 12 seconds was the margin of defeat. The tactics displayed on the Thomas Zimmer Championship Course were not new to either athlete. For those that remember, Valby made a similar move last November at NCAAs before Tuohy covered the distance and won by a mere three seconds. 

On Friday, Valby measured it just right. That in itself IS the story. Will Tuohy let Valby go the next time they face each other? 

The two won't get another rematch until their final clash of the season at nationals, but each should likely have a pair of races left to put the finishing touches on their fitness before they collide for their last go-around of the season. 

It's also worth nothing that this was Valby's first summer of training under Palmer.

BYU Women Earn Statement Win

While the bulk of national contenders took their talents to Madison, Diljeet Taylor's BYU women's program opted for a final preview of the NCAA National Championship course at Panorama Farms. The trip was pure business for the Cougars, as they flexed their muscles with a commanding win over Arkansas and Virginia, winning with 32 points. 

It was an all-around dominant performance for the 2021 national champions.

In her first race in over a month, it was junior Carmen Alder who came out on top over the field, winning in 19:36.2. That time lowered her previous 6,000m best (20:23) by 47 seconds. Just 22 seconds back was freshman Jenna Hutchins, who ran 19:58.3 for fifth, her first time under 20:00 -- and for fans of high school cross country, most will remember Hutchins' sub-16 minute performance for 5K over her junior cross country season; her 15:58 at the RunningLane XC Championships still holds as the fastest time by a high school female in history.  

After Hutchins, it took just eight seconds for the rest of BYU's top five to cross the line, as Aubrey Frentheway, Lexy Halladay-Lowry and Riley Chamberlain finished in seventh, ninth and 10th. 

There aren't too many teams that have both a low-stick runner and this strong of a pack behind her, making BYU a very tough team to leave off of the podium next month. 

Meet memories>> pic.twitter.com/fMc4qY51EH

— BYU Track & Field/Cross Country (@BYUTFXC) October 14, 2023