NCAA XC Countdown #1: OSU Men and Duke Women

Sep 5, 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 Isaac Wood on Twitter, too.

View the full NCAA Top 31 Countdown HERE.

Editor's note: 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.

#1 Oklahoma State
Head Coach: Dave Smith (8th Season)

2012 National Finish- 1st

Key Returners from 2012

Tom Farrell (Sr., 3:58 Mile, 7:51 Open 3k, 13:15 5k, 9th NCAA XC '12)
Shadrack Kipchirchir (Sr., 7:56 Open 3k, 13:38 5k, 29:08 10k, 18th NCAA XC '12)
Joseph Manilafasha (Sr., 24th NCAA XC '12, 8:16 Open 3k)
Kirubel Erassa (Jr., 3:58 Mile, 7:49 Open 3k, 13:47 5k)
Shane Moskowitz (Jr., 3:59 Mile, 8:07 Open 3k, 53rd NCAA XC '12)
Craig Nowak (So., US Jr. Nat'l Champ XC '12, 24th World Cross '12, 8:15 Open 3k,
Brian Gohlke (So., 14:11 5k, 29:28 10k)
Taylor Monaghan (Sr., 4:06 Mile, 8:56 3k Steeple)

Impact Recruits/Transfers

Matthew Fayers (Fr., 1:50 800m, 3:45 1500m, 4:01 Mile (17 yr old)
Brigham Hedges (Fr., 4:10 1600m, 9:12 3200m, 14:28 5k, 3 X NXN Qualifier)
Luis Martinez (Fr., 4:11 1600m, 9:13 3200m, 3rd NXN '12)
Chad Noelle (Transfer from Oregon- So., 3:59 Mile, FL FInalist '10- 10th place)
Charles Mathenge (So., From Kenya-

Season Preview

Was this ever really a question? When only one runner is gone (Girma Mecheso) from the National Championship winning team, it is an easy decision. After a dominant 2012 campaign, the Pokes are ready to come back and do it all over again in 2013. With the majority of the team returning from 2012 (Fabian Clarkson left), Coach Dave Smith looks to have the overwhelmingly best team in the NCAA as we head into the 2013 season.

Tom Farrell is the top returner from 2012 and is as good of a no. 1 runner than any team has in the NCAA. When Farrell is on, he is very good. His 13:15 5k PR is one of the best in the country and having him for one more season makes the Cowboys that much better. Farrell is the leader on this squad and really is the metronome for Oklahoma State. His speed has really come around quite well recently as he broke the four minute barrier this past track season.

Shadrack Kipchirchir is in his final season in the bright orange kit for the Pokes as well. Kipchirchir came up huge for Oklahoma State in 2012 where he finished 18th individually and added one more All-American for the Cowboys to help solidify their title. He will be just as needed this season and in fact will be needed to help push Farrell up front. With these two leading the way, they will be able to help push each other in the key races. Both Farrell and Kipchirchir are capable of top 10 finishes at NCAAs in Terre Haute.

The athlete that really solidified the NCAA title last fall in Louisville, was the efforts of Burundi-native Joseph Manilafasha. Stepping up huge for the Cowboys, Manliafasha found himself finishing 24th in the biggest race of the year. Being a pure cross country runner, Manilafasha does not have the track chops that some of his teammates do, he needs to stay healthy after xc season. Nevertheless, he is another All-American that the Cowboys can throw into the mix of things as we look at the 2013 season.

The beauty of what the Cowboys have going for them is that all of their runners get a chance to train with some of the most talented athletes in the country day in-and day out. This allows their young athletes to improve at rates others cannot because of the quality of talent surrounding them to train with. This is exactly the case with Shane Moskowitz. After a year or so to be around some of the big-time runners in Stillwater, Moskowitz himself has now turned himself into one of the better harriers in the NCAA that returns from 2012. A breakout year helped Shane finish 53rd at NCAAs. He also had a very good following track season where he broke the 4-minute mile barrier. Moskowitz spent the summer injured, but when he gets healthy he is going to be ready to deliver when it matters most, just like he did in 2012.

This only begins to describe what Oklahoma State has coming back from their 2012 team alone. I mean we have not even touched Craig Nowak and his awesome post-NCAA XC season where he won the US Jr. XC Individual National Title and led the US team in Poland and finished 24th individually there. He will be a strong addition to their top seven (the fact that he was not in their top seven in 2012, shows how unbelievably good this team is).

Brian Gohlke and Taylor Monaghan have really come around as of late as well and are products of being a part of a team of this caliber. Who knows, maybe they will be the next Shane Moskowitz's and finish top 60 this season at NCAAs?

The Cowboys also bring in a very good recruiting class mixed with some good transfers to implement into their top seven and to provide even more depth to their squad. One of the studs of this class is British youngster Matthew Fayers. As a seventeen year old Fayers ran 4:01 for a whole mile, and Dave Smith is very good at getting his miler-types to be good cross country runners, so this is a perfect fit for Fayers.

Luis Martinez and Brigham Hedges were both prep standouts and have quality experience running at a high-level in high school. I could see them redshirting because the 'Pokes are just that deep.

No team really ever wants to have the target on their back, but if there is a squad that can handle it, the Cowboys are as fit a team in the country for the spot. At this point it looks like it would take a bad day from Coach Dave Smith's team to not win a national title in Terre Haute. Colorado, NAU, Arkansas and a few others are champing at the bit at any opportunity to beat these guys. With the athletes returning and the studs they're bringing in, the overall favorites to win the National Championship in 2013--are the Oklahoma State Cowboys

#1 Duke
Head Coach: Kevin Jermyn (10th Season)

2012 National Finish- 7th

Key Returners from 2012

Juliet Bottorff (Sr., 9:21 Open 3k, 15:49 5k, 33:18 10k, 27th NCAA XC '12)
Kelsey Lakowske (So., 9:41 Open 3k, 16:41 5k, 20^th NCAA XC ’12, 6^th ACC XC ’12)
Carolyn Baskir (Jr., 9;49 Open 3k, 81^st NCAA XC ’12, 20^th ACC XC ’12)
Ashley Brasovan (Sr., 35:41 10k, 22^nd ACC XC ’12)
Jessie Rubin (Jr., 9:47 Open 3k, 16:30 5k, 44^th ACC XC ’12)
Gabby Levac (Jr., 16:13 5k, 61^st ACC XC ’12)
Sophia Ziemian (Sr., 23^rd ACC XC ’09, 146^th NCAA XC ’09, 16:48 5k)
Lindsey Olivere (Redshirt Soph- 4:56 1600m, 10:35 3200m, 7^th 2 Mile NBIN ’11)
Colleen Schmidt (Redshirt Soph- 9:40 3k (HS), FL Finalist ’09 -27^th)

Impact Recruits/Transfers

Wesley Frazier (Fr., 4:45 1600m, 9:57 3200m, 15:55 5k (HS))
Haley Meier (Fr., 4:42 1600m, 3^rd Dream Mile- 4:42)
Hannah Meier (Fr., 4:18 1500m (HS), 2^nd Dream Mile- 4:40)
Olivia Anderson (Redshirt Frosh- 4:56 1600m (HS), 10:33 3200m (HS), FL Finalist ’11)
Allison Sturges (Redshirt Frosh- 4:47 1600m (HS))
Colette Whitney (Tr- Sr.- 4:55 1600m (HS), 10:27 3200m (HS)
Briana Jackucewicz (Transfer from Harvard – 16:43 5k)

Season Preview

Coach Kevin Jermyn is a very good recruiter and quite possibly the most underrated recruiter in the NCAA. After looking at the recruiting classes that he has brought in over the past few years in Durham, its unbelievable the kind of talent he has snagged. To be frank, the more and more this team was studied and the quality of runners on this team, he it almost became laughable--the overall level of talent that Duke has.

Finishing 7th last year at NCAAs was big time for this program and they saw some awesome performances out of some unproven talent. With three of those athletes returning from 2012 and the best recruit in the country (and two other dang good recruits), Duke is looking like the best team in the country for 2013 (on paper).

It all starts with the veteran leader Juliet Botorff. Her chops on the track and on the cross country course, make her the most valuable member of this Blue Devil squad. All-American finishes indoor and in xc last year, and a National Title in the 10k Outdoors in 2011 on her belt, she is the no. 1 runner on this team going into the 2013 season.

The surprise on this Duke team last year was then-freshman, Kelsey Lakowske. Actually beating Botorff at NCAAs, Lakowske was surprisingly very good when it counted and ended up 20th individually in Louisville. Although her track season was cut to only a few indoor races and an ACC Championship 5k (finished 8th), Lakowske should be able to come back this xc season and provide the same fire up front that she did in 2012. If she can stay healthy and continue to progress as a runner, she will be another shoo-in All-American for the Blue Devils.

Duke has so many quality girls that are coming back from 2012 that it would be hard to give in depth highlights on them, but as you can see above they have a lot of talent. Carolyn Baskir is a solid 4-5 girl on this team in 2013 and if she ends up being no. 5 and does just as well as she did last year (81st), Duke is in for a great year. Gabby Levac made huge strides on the track this past spring, running 16:13 outdoors. If her progression is where it looks like, she could be the no. 4 runner for this squad. Jessie Rubin is another girl that improved a ton on the track and who knows where she could end up. Rubin would be a very solid 6-7 runner. Sophia Zieman will be back in action this year and has quality experience at the NCAA level. Lindsey Olivere and Colleen Schmidt are both coming off of redshirt years and have talent, it will be interesting to see where they end up on the depth chart.

For the rest of the country, things for Duke only get scarier. Bringing in the no-brainer best senior distance runner in high school last season, Wesley Frazier, was huge for the Devils. Running 15:55 as a senior in high school is out-of-this-world good and she is the epitome of the phrase "instant offense." It she is not All-American this year, that would be a huge surprise. So you can count up at least three "shoo-in" All-Americans already.

It gets deeper. The Meier twins from Michigan add depth to this already star-studded class. Hannah and Haley were outstanding on the track in 2013 and were 2nd and 3rd behind none other than Wesley Frazier in the dream mile. Both of the Meier girls are excellent track athletes, but will be able to help them in xc as well.

Three high school studs that redshirted or transferred in will also be helpful for Duke. Allison Sturges, Colette Whitney, and Olivia Bischof, are also very unproven, but capable athletes. Briana Jackucewicz rounds out the runners that have not yet had a chance to prove themselves in a Duke uniform that are more components of a very, very deep squad.

The ACC is going to be a big test for the Blue Devils as Florida State has won six straight titles. An upset-bid to do so is likely as Duke is loaded. In fact, they have 10 different girls that would be a lot of schools 1-5 in the NCAA. With the freshman Frazier pushing the veterans up front, it's a perfect balance of youth and naivety and experience and ability to make the Duke Blue Devils the number one team in the country headed into the 2013 season. They are the heavy favorites, as of right now, to win the NCAA title in Terre Haute