NCAA XC Countdown #24: Virginia Tech Men and Florida Women

Jul 30, 2013 by Isaac Wood

For the next month, The Wood Report will be counting down projected team finishes in this year's NCAA Cross Country Championships in Terre Haute, IN. Make sure to stay up-to-date with The Wood Report throughout the season. You should follow him on Twitter, too.

View the full NCAA Top 31 Countdown HERE.

#24

Florida Women

Head Coach: Mike Holloway (7th Season)

2012 National Finish- 23rd

Key Returners from 2012

Agata Strausa (Sr., 4:11, 16:09, 10:21 3k Steeple)
Cory McGee (Sr., 4:06.67, 9:15, 16:21)
Shelby Hayes (Sr., 4:19, 9:43)
Stephanie Strasser (Sr., 4:23, 16:59, 10:19 3k Steeple)

Season Preview

The reigning SEC champion and national-qualifying Gators return four of the their top seven for the 2013 season. The fact that Florida finished 23rd as a team in 2012 and lose their number one does not immediately scream a solid returning team for this next season, but here is how they will still be a very good team.

The Gators do lose solid and steady no. 1 Florence Ngetich to graduation. Without her leadership, they desperately need someone to step up and fill her role as a leader and as a low-stick.

All of the options that Florida has to become their new no. 1 runner are 1500m runners. In fact, there might not be a better 1500m crew in the country than what the Gators currently have in Gainesville.

Here is the skinny. Agata Strausa has been one of the more consistent metric milers in all of the land for the past few years and has very good xc experience and range (see PRs above) and is the most logical person to lead the Gators.

Shelby Hayes has good PRs and looks to have some decent range that will come in handy for the longer-than-1500m-6k that these women run. Stephanie Strasser is more suited for cross country and will need to be a solid no. 3-4 in order to keep the spread tight. Julie Macedo, a redshirt freshman and multiple time Delaware State champ, is a cross country runner who happens to run track (unlike the majority of the team) and could make a splash into the Gators top five as the season goes on.

The real question mark lies in 1500m World Championship qualifier Cory McGee. Now, McGee did not run cross country in 2012, and has struggled a bit on the cross country course in her career. But,one thing that has been prominent recently, is that more and more metric milers have been able to step up in distance and be quality cross country runners. Amanda Mergaert of Utah finished 14th (4:13 PR) and Shelby Houlihan of Arizona State finished 31st (4:13 PR), in 2012, proving that the going from 1.5k to 6k is not all that hard.

McGee will need to be smart making her way back from the World Champs in order to be even a factor in the Gator top seven. If that is the case and she is able to return in time for the important races in cross, there is no doubt that she is capable of All-American at Nationals (similar to how Shalaya Kipp did it in 2012).

With a very deep and tough South Regional, Florida will need to be on their game early in order to earn the credential points to be sure to qualify for the National Championships. If McGee can get back in time to help, with Strausa, Strasser, and Hayes, this team has a solid four and when a five makes it's way through their depth, the Gators are going to surprise many in Terre Haute.

#24

Virginia Tech Men

Head Coach: Ben Thomas (13th Season)

2012 National Finish- 22nd

Key Returners from 2012

Brayden Burleigh (Jr., 8:08 Open 3k, 30:00)
Thomas Curtin (Jr., 8:07 Open 3k, 13:58, 30:07)
Leoule Degfae (Sr., 3:46, 14:08, 29:45)

Impact Recruits/Transfers

Patrick Joseph (Fr., 4:06, 9:19)
Neil Gourley (Fr., Scottish National Champion, 3:50 1500m)

Season Preview

Similarly to the women's #24 Florida, Virginia Tech brings back only a few of their top seven from 2012 and lose their critical no. 1 runner and low stick. The loss of Will Mulherin is huge. Mulherin spent the majority of the 2012 season in the top five of the races he ran and had a good nationals race which helped propel their team finish from high 20s to 22nd.

Without Mulherin, the Hokies also need to find a leader among the small group of returnees. Among this group are several very experienced cross country runners who have the track times to back up what they are capable of doing out on the course.

Leoule Degfae is the man with the best 10k PR returning who also was a solid asset for Va Tech throughout the 2012 season. Degfae has good leg speed, but also has good range which will help him as the season wears on. When others legs are tired during a long season, Degfae should be able to step up and lead the Hokies.

Thomas Curtin is also another consistent harrier and should be looked at as a challenger to Degfae for the no. 1 spot. With a better 5k PR, but a lacking 10k PR, it will be interesting to see who is able to go longer between the two.

Brayden Burleigh is an interesting case. After a very good ACC conference meet where he finished 6th overall, he struggled bad in the Southeast Regional finishing in the mid-60s. Obviously this could be for many reasons. He could have been sick, hurt, or a myriad of issues. Regardless of what it may be, it impacted his indoor season as well where he only ran a few races before he was done for the year and did not run outdoors.

Burleigh is the critical piece to the puzzle. If he is fit and running as well as he did at ACCs, he is capable of placing high at the regional and national championships.

A solid recruiting class was drawn in by coach Thomas and will be utilized right away. UK transfer Neil Gourley will be counted on from the get go to help fill the void left by Mulherin and Michael Hammond especially. Gourley has some good xc credentials along with a solid 1500m PR. He seems to be a similar type runner as Degfae is, which will benefit him as Ben Thomas is good at turning 1500m types into good xc runners. Patrick Joseph is a 4:06 1600m kid and if Thomas can do the same for him, the Hokies will be ready to roll on the big stage.

In order to make the Big Dance, Va Tech must stay healthy. If any of the above names get hurt, it could get ugly real fast for the Hokies. If that situation arises, Brian Welch, Ryan Kuhns, or Jared Berman are some other guys who will be called upon to step up.

Virginia Tech has the talent to get to Terre Haute and if their core guys can take care of themselves, they will be looking at another flight to Indianapolis.

A source has mentioned that Brayden Burleigh has transferred to Shippensburg.