NCAA DI Women's Weekly Roundup Week 3
NCAA DI Women's Weekly Roundup Week 3
1. (-) Washington
Weekend Performance- The Washington women looked great on Saturday winning the White race at Pre-Nationals scoring 59 points. The Huskies were lead by Kendra Schaaf (2nd), Katie Follett (4th), and Christine Babcock (5th). Washington’s depth was highlighted by great finishes from Kailey Campbell (15th), and Allison Linnell (33rd). Campbell finished 36 places higher than last year at Pre-Nats, and Linnell made her debut on the championship course.
Analysis- UW proved once again that they are comfortable running in Terre Haute with a great win over a quality field. With the return of Mel Lawrence and Lauren Saylor, look for Washington to keep improving over the next few weeks.
2. (-) Villanova
Weekend Performance- Villanova won the UVA Panorama Farms Invitational Saturday in dominant fashion. The Wildcats, led by junior Sheila Reid, finished 1-2-3-4-7 respectively. The top four runners for Villanova all broke the previous course record set by Florida State’s Susan Kuijken.
Analysis- It looks as if any team has the depth and front-runners needed to take down Washington, it may be Villanova. The Wildcats have already had two great wins this season, but have a challenging road ahead. In the Big East Conference Championships next weekend, they will face West Virginia (4), Georgetown (9), Syracuse (10), Providence (24), and Notre Dame (30).
3. (19) Colorado
Weekend Performance- The Buffs made a huge jump in the rankings this week with a great win in the White race at Pre-Nationals. Senior Jenny Barringer easily blew away the competition winning in 19:50. True freshman Allie McLaughlin also had a great day finishing 10th overall. Colorado proved they belonged in the top 10 by defeating four top ranked teams.
Analysis- This could be Colorado’s strongest team in the last few years. Barringer is basically a lock for a top 3 finish at NCAA’s and McLaughlin looks like a solid top 20 pick at nationals. If the Buffaloes’ 3-5 runners continue to run well, Colorado should be a podium team at nationals.
4. (3) West Virginia
Weekend Performance- West Virginia must have been happy picking up some points for defeating Providence (24) at Penn State, but they may have retained their spot at #3 had they raced at Pre-Nationals. Either way, the Mountaineers looked great in their 27-point victory over Penn State (18). Seniors Keri Bland, Marie-Louise Asselin, and Clara Grandt, lead the team finishing 1st, 3rd, and 4th respectively.
Analysis- Next week will be a great matchup between West Virginia and Villanova at the Big East Conference Championship. The results of that meet will show us how strong each team really is.
5. (9) Florida
Weekend Performance- Florida picked up some major points at Pre-Nats while beating Princeton (7), Syracuse (10), and Illinois (13). All five of Florida’s scorers were in the top-30 as Stacey Johnson (8th) and Rebecca Lowe (9th) lead the charge.
Analysis- The Gators must be thrilled with their performance last weekend. They had the third best team time of the day, barely edging rival Florida State. These two teams have basically locked up the spots in the South region as the only ranked teams.
6. (11) Florida State
Weekend Performance- After a rough outing at Notre Dame a few weeks ago, FSU has clawed back into the top-10 with a 2nd place finish in the Blue race at Pre-Nats. Susan Kuijken (2nd), Pasca Cheruiyot (7th), and Pilar McShine (20th) all ran very well.
Analysis- The Seminoles will need a strong performance out of their 4th and 5th runners if they want to crack the top four at Nationals. Florida State is strong up front, but they know as well as anyone that your 3-5 runners need to have great days to do well at nationals.
7. (5) Princeton
Weekend Performance- Princeton finished 3rd in the White race while defeating five ranked teams. Liz Costello was 6th overall, and the Tigers had a nice pack with runners 2-5 running within 23 seconds of each other.
Analysis- Princeton looks like they deserve to be in the seven spot since they were 6th overall with their team time at Pre-Nats. The Tigers are clearly the class of the Ivy League, but will face tough competition in the Mid-Atlantic Region. I’m sure they were happy to grab some points for defeating Syracuse (10), Illinois (13), and Minnesota (15).
8. (4) Oregon
Weekend Performance- The Ducks dropped down in the rankings once again due to a disappointing performance at Pre-Nats. Jordan Hasay showed that she’s still improving after having perhaps the best high school running career in U.S. history. Hasay was fairly quiet at the Dellinger meet running a controlled race but looked like she pushed a little harder this week at Pre-Nats finishing 3rd overall. Nicole Blood and Alex Kosinski were the only two on the team that had run the course, so overall, I’m sure it was a good learning experience for the Ducks.
Analysis- It will be interesting to see how the Ducks fair this year against the Huskies. Washington had a perfect score last year in the meet, but I can guarantee the Ducks won’t let that happen again.
9. (13) Georgetown
Weekend Performance- The Hoyas moved up to #9 by finishing 3rd in the Blue race at Pre-Nats. They were lead by sophomore Emily Infeld (9th) and Emily Jones (22nd). Georgetown also barely edged Stanford by six points, which helped them tremendously.
Analysis- On paper, Georgetown is only the 4th best team in the Mid-Atlantic Region. Grabbing a point for beating Stanford and Iowa State this weekend was huge step toward the Hoyas’ run to the national championship.
10. (15) Syracuse
Weekend Performance- Syracuse had a great day finishing 4th in White race, narrowly defeating Illinois (13) and Minnesota (15). The orange displayed great pack running as all seven of their runners finished within 36 seconds of each other.
Analysis- Syracuse looks like the dominant team in the Northeast Region as Providence continues to slip. The Big East meet will obviously be competitive, but otherwise, Syracuse should look forward to smooth sailing on the way to nationals.