Check out the Saucony Flo50 XC Countdown, where FloTrack ranks the top 31 cross country teams in the NCAA this season. The No. 15 spot goes to the Washington this year, and here's why:

Probable Top Five:

SO Charlotte Prouse (4:22 1500; 16:03 5K, 9:44 3K SC; 78th at '15 NCAA XC)
JR Katie Knight (4:21 1500; 15:52 5K; 33:20 10K; 95th at '15 NCAA XC)
JR Anna Maxwell (4:12 1500; 16:18 5K; 107th at '15 NCAA XC)
SR Kaylee Flanagan (9:36 3K; 16:19 5K; 33:43 10K; 134th at '15 NCAA XC)
SO Emily Hamlin (16:38 5K; 226th at '15 NCAA XC)

Impact Freshmen/Transfers:

Kaitlyn Neal via Skaneateles, NY (9:28 3K; 15th at '15 NXN)
Nikki Zielinski via Anaheim, CA (10:28 3200; 25th at '15 FL XC)

Analysis:

The Washington Huskies claimed a 10th-place finish at last year's NCAA championships, but they lost two key scorers in Maddie Meyers and Eleanor Fulton. Despite the loss of the seniors, Washington is still capable of finishing in the top 15 at the NCAA Championships this year. 

The Huskies could find a leader in young sophomore Charlotte Prouse--she's fresh off of a sixth-place finish in the steeplechase at the IAAF World Junior Championships, where she set a personal best of 9:44. The performance was a 17-second improvement from her previous best at the NCAA Championships, where she finished ninth overall as a freshman. Katie Knight should join Prouse up top after finishing 15th in the 10K at the NCAA Championships. Another key contributor will be Ann Maxwell, who had a breakthrough track season that included a 1500m personal best of 4:12.

Along with Prouse, Knight and Maxwell, the Huskies bring several more talented contributors to the table, including two quality freshmen in Kaitlyn Neal and Nikki Zielinski. Both incoming freshmen recorded top finishes at Nike Cross Nationals and Foot Locker.

Previously:
#16 Princeton
#17 Penn State
#18 Iowa State
#19 Syracuse
#20 San Francisco
#21 Kansas
#22 Weber State
#23 Cal
#24 North Carolina
#25 BYU
#26 Virginia
#27 Villanova
#28 Vanderbilt
#29 Texas
#30 Florida
#31 Minnesota