2017 DII NCAA XC ChampionshipsNov 16, 2017 by Lincoln Shryack
NCAA Men's DII XC Preview: Title Contenders And Podium Dark Horses
NCAA Men's DII XC Preview: Title Contenders And Podium Dark Horses
The 2017 NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships are finally here. On Saturday, November 18, the best teams will duke it out in Evansville, Indiana. Will Adams State repeat? Or will someone like Colorado School of Mines challenge the throne?
The 2017 NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships are finally here. We've tracked months and months of invitations, regionals, individual competitions, team battles, and it's all led to this. On Saturday, November 18, the best DII squads in the nation will convene in Evansville, Indiana, to duke it out for ultimate glory. Will Adams State continue its streak of dominance? Or will someone usurp the throne?
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No. 1 Adams State
Region: 1st at South Central Region
Conference: 2nd at RMAC
2016 NCAAs: 1st
How They Will Win: The Grizzlies have five returning All-Americans, a transfer who ran 4:02 in high school, and they're the winners of seven of the last 10 NCAA Division II cross country crowns. If they run up to their ability in Louisville -- which they almost always do at nationals -- Adams State will not be beaten.
However, ASU's superstar No. 1 man from the past two seasons, Sydney Gidabuday, has only recently returned from injury and didn't quite look himself at regionals. Gidabuday was the preseason favorite to win the NCAA individual title, but a 19th-place finish at the South Central as Adams' No. 5 man all but eliminates that possibility.
Now, the Grizzlies are still mega deep; they beat No. 2 Colorado Mines two weeks ago by sweeping the top two places with Lucio Ramirez and Elias Gedyon. But a 1:06 spread like they had at regionals isn't going to get the job done this time. The key will be Gidabuday, who's playing a much different role than was anticipated for him this season. The Grizzlies put four in the top 10 at regionals and could get a similar figure in Louisville; the 12-time NCAA champs will make it 13 if Gidabuday can find a way to will himself to a top-30 finish.
Region: 2nd at South Central Region
Conference: 1st at RMAC
2016 NCAAs: 3rd
How They Will Win: The Orediggers are the DII equivalent of BYU. They bludgeon you with their depth and tiny 1-5 spread. Yes, Colorado School of Mines lost to rival Adams State at regionals by three points, but their 27-second spread was arguably more impressive than ASU's performance. If Mines repeats that type of pack running in Louisville and one of the Adams State studs struggles, go ahead and hand the Orediggers the trophy.
CSM has had a different No. 1 at each of their meets in 2017, but make no mistake: each of Ricardo Ocampo, Grant Colligan, and Matthew Kade is a top-15 threat. Mines' top returner, Logan Ramlet, was 20th at NCAAs last season, but he's been anywhere from fourth to seventh man in 2017. That's not a condemnation of Ramlet; he's had a solid sophomore year. His teammates have just been that much better.
Region: 1st at Midwest Region
Conference: 1st at GLIAC
2016 NCAAs: 2nd
How They Will Win: The Lakers may not quite have Colorado Mines' depth, but they're not too far off: their 1-7 spread at the GLIAC Championships was just 39 seconds. Grand Valley State will enter these championships will seven viable All-American threats and could win their program's first title if the low sticks finish at their highest levels and their freshmen can handle the big stage.
Everything starts with veterans Zach Panning and Wuoi Mach, who each look like top-10 candidates. Despite a hugely impressive season by Mach and two straight fifth-place NCAA finishes by Panning, neither is a complete lock to get the job done. Mach has never placed higher than 44th at nationals and despite running as GVSU's No. 1 man all season it might be too much to expect him to suddenly finish top 10.
Panning, meanwhile, sat out until the conference meet as he healed from a stress reaction that forced him to miss loads of training in the summer. He's looked solid in his two races, but it's tough to tell if he is ready to put the team on his back once more; neither conference nor regionals has been especially challenging races for Grand Valley. Additionally, the Lakers will count on two redshirt freshmen -- Enael Woldemichael and Abe Visser -- to help them defeat two experienced squads in Adams and Colorado Mines. Not an easy job for a rookie.
But a glass-half-full outlook should have the Lakers excited. Panning and Trevor Sharnas both finished top 20 last November, and neither man has looked as strong as Mach has all season. Visser and Woldemichael may be running their first NCAAs, but both have been in the team's top three on multiple occasions this season. It looked like the Lakers had blown their best chance to win an NCAA title last year when their fifth man imploded in the last kilometer, but this similarly talented group will definitely have a shot on Saturday.
Region: 1st West Region
Conference: 1st at CCAA
2016 NCAAs: 4th
How They Will Win: The gap between the top three teams and fourth-ranked Chico State appears large, but then again how much do we really know about the Wildcats? They didn't compete in a mid-season contest loaded with NCAA qualifiers like Grand Valley State or face a title contender at conference and regionals like Adams State and Colorado Mines. They've been quietly doing their own thing on the West Coast.
Even without the benefit of seeing Chico face one of the other elite teams this season, a lot is going to have to go right for the Wildcats to pull off such a massive upset. The title winner will likely field five All-Americans. Can Chico get there? Senior All American Kyle Medina is a great low stick with top-10 potential, but otherwise only one other member of their top seven has finished in the top 100 at NCAAs. Senior Connor Fisher should earn his first All-American nod on Saturday, which will go a long way to Chico getting back on the podium. With several NCAA first-timers, however, anything better than fourth is a going to be a tough ask.
Region: 2nd at Midwest
Conference: 1st at GLVC
2016 NCAAs: 13th
How They Will Make The Podium: The Screaming Eagles haven't made the NCAA podium in 35 years, but perhaps this experienced group running on their home course will be the USI squad to finally get it done. Southern Indiana will likely need at least two of the trio of Bastian Grau, Cain Parker, and Austin Nolan to finish as All-Americans to end their drought, and although none of those men have done it before, each seems capable.
Seniors Grau and Parker both finished top 10 at the Midwest regional, while Nolan beat both of them to win the conference title on October 21. USI's ceiling is likely limited to fourth considering the talent above them, but the squad from Evansville would surely be thrilled with that outcome as they host NCAAs.
Region: 2nd at West
Conference: 1st at Pac West
2016 NCAAs: 15th
How They Will Make The Podium: The Lancers have one of the better freshmen in the country this season in McMarshall Hartzenburg, who has finished top three in every race he's run. He may not finish that high on Saturday, but Cal Baptist will need their freshman to be excellent for them to have any shot at the podium.
CBU beat Southern Indiana earlier in the season, so they should at least have confident that they're knocking on the door. But the Lancers' best ever finish at nationals came last November when they placed 15th, so top four just might be a reach. Still, there's no doubt Cal Baptist is significantly better than they were a year ago: junior Jayden Emerson, who 86th and CBU's No. 2 man at NCAAs in 2016, wasn't even in the team's top five at regionals.
But in order to earn a trophy, this team will need to find a way to beat Chico State -- a squad that soundly beat them at regionals.
Watch the 2017 NCAA Cross Country Championships LIVE on FloTrack!
Title Contenders
No. 1 Adams State
Region: 1st at South Central Region
Conference: 2nd at RMAC
2016 NCAAs: 1st
How They Will Win: The Grizzlies have five returning All-Americans, a transfer who ran 4:02 in high school, and they're the winners of seven of the last 10 NCAA Division II cross country crowns. If they run up to their ability in Louisville -- which they almost always do at nationals -- Adams State will not be beaten.
However, ASU's superstar No. 1 man from the past two seasons, Sydney Gidabuday, has only recently returned from injury and didn't quite look himself at regionals. Gidabuday was the preseason favorite to win the NCAA individual title, but a 19th-place finish at the South Central as Adams' No. 5 man all but eliminates that possibility.
Now, the Grizzlies are still mega deep; they beat No. 2 Colorado Mines two weeks ago by sweeping the top two places with Lucio Ramirez and Elias Gedyon. But a 1:06 spread like they had at regionals isn't going to get the job done this time. The key will be Gidabuday, who's playing a much different role than was anticipated for him this season. The Grizzlies put four in the top 10 at regionals and could get a similar figure in Louisville; the 12-time NCAA champs will make it 13 if Gidabuday can find a way to will himself to a top-30 finish.
No. 2 Colorado School of Mines
Region: 2nd at South Central Region
Conference: 1st at RMAC
2016 NCAAs: 3rd
How They Will Win: The Orediggers are the DII equivalent of BYU. They bludgeon you with their depth and tiny 1-5 spread. Yes, Colorado School of Mines lost to rival Adams State at regionals by three points, but their 27-second spread was arguably more impressive than ASU's performance. If Mines repeats that type of pack running in Louisville and one of the Adams State studs struggles, go ahead and hand the Orediggers the trophy.
CSM has had a different No. 1 at each of their meets in 2017, but make no mistake: each of Ricardo Ocampo, Grant Colligan, and Matthew Kade is a top-15 threat. Mines' top returner, Logan Ramlet, was 20th at NCAAs last season, but he's been anywhere from fourth to seventh man in 2017. That's not a condemnation of Ramlet; he's had a solid sophomore year. His teammates have just been that much better.
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No. 3 Grand Valley State
Region: 1st at Midwest Region
Conference: 1st at GLIAC
2016 NCAAs: 2nd
How They Will Win: The Lakers may not quite have Colorado Mines' depth, but they're not too far off: their 1-7 spread at the GLIAC Championships was just 39 seconds. Grand Valley State will enter these championships will seven viable All-American threats and could win their program's first title if the low sticks finish at their highest levels and their freshmen can handle the big stage.
Everything starts with veterans Zach Panning and Wuoi Mach, who each look like top-10 candidates. Despite a hugely impressive season by Mach and two straight fifth-place NCAA finishes by Panning, neither is a complete lock to get the job done. Mach has never placed higher than 44th at nationals and despite running as GVSU's No. 1 man all season it might be too much to expect him to suddenly finish top 10.
Panning, meanwhile, sat out until the conference meet as he healed from a stress reaction that forced him to miss loads of training in the summer. He's looked solid in his two races, but it's tough to tell if he is ready to put the team on his back once more; neither conference nor regionals has been especially challenging races for Grand Valley. Additionally, the Lakers will count on two redshirt freshmen -- Enael Woldemichael and Abe Visser -- to help them defeat two experienced squads in Adams and Colorado Mines. Not an easy job for a rookie.
But a glass-half-full outlook should have the Lakers excited. Panning and Trevor Sharnas both finished top 20 last November, and neither man has looked as strong as Mach has all season. Visser and Woldemichael may be running their first NCAAs, but both have been in the team's top three on multiple occasions this season. It looked like the Lakers had blown their best chance to win an NCAA title last year when their fifth man imploded in the last kilometer, but this similarly talented group will definitely have a shot on Saturday.
No. 4 Chico State
Region: 1st West Region
Conference: 1st at CCAA
2016 NCAAs: 4th
How They Will Win: The gap between the top three teams and fourth-ranked Chico State appears large, but then again how much do we really know about the Wildcats? They didn't compete in a mid-season contest loaded with NCAA qualifiers like Grand Valley State or face a title contender at conference and regionals like Adams State and Colorado Mines. They've been quietly doing their own thing on the West Coast.
Even without the benefit of seeing Chico face one of the other elite teams this season, a lot is going to have to go right for the Wildcats to pull off such a massive upset. The title winner will likely field five All-Americans. Can Chico get there? Senior All American Kyle Medina is a great low stick with top-10 potential, but otherwise only one other member of their top seven has finished in the top 100 at NCAAs. Senior Connor Fisher should earn his first All-American nod on Saturday, which will go a long way to Chico getting back on the podium. With several NCAA first-timers, however, anything better than fourth is a going to be a tough ask.
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Podium Dark Horses
No. 5 Southern Indiana
Region: 2nd at Midwest
Conference: 1st at GLVC
2016 NCAAs: 13th
How They Will Make The Podium: The Screaming Eagles haven't made the NCAA podium in 35 years, but perhaps this experienced group running on their home course will be the USI squad to finally get it done. Southern Indiana will likely need at least two of the trio of Bastian Grau, Cain Parker, and Austin Nolan to finish as All-Americans to end their drought, and although none of those men have done it before, each seems capable.
Seniors Grau and Parker both finished top 10 at the Midwest regional, while Nolan beat both of them to win the conference title on October 21. USI's ceiling is likely limited to fourth considering the talent above them, but the squad from Evansville would surely be thrilled with that outcome as they host NCAAs.
No. 6 Cal Baptist
Region: 2nd at West
Conference: 1st at Pac West
2016 NCAAs: 15th
How They Will Make The Podium: The Lancers have one of the better freshmen in the country this season in McMarshall Hartzenburg, who has finished top three in every race he's run. He may not finish that high on Saturday, but Cal Baptist will need their freshman to be excellent for them to have any shot at the podium.
CBU beat Southern Indiana earlier in the season, so they should at least have confident that they're knocking on the door. But the Lancers' best ever finish at nationals came last November when they placed 15th, so top four just might be a reach. Still, there's no doubt Cal Baptist is significantly better than they were a year ago: junior Jayden Emerson, who 86th and CBU's No. 2 man at NCAAs in 2016, wasn't even in the team's top five at regionals.
But in order to earn a trophy, this team will need to find a way to beat Chico State -- a squad that soundly beat them at regionals.