Published by Adam Schneider/RunnerSpace.com/College on November 16th, 2015

This weekend teams have run like and performed like they were using the regional meets to qualify for the national championships. The most interesting decision was to have junior Ben Saarel run at the Mountain region. The University of Washington exhibited at the NCAA D1 West region championships the ability that was expected before the start of the season and that was with a fall by their #1 runner all season, Izaic Yorks. Louisville and Eastern Kentucky ran, not unexpectedly, very well at the Southeast region championships. Also running very well was UTEP at the Mountain region. They enhanced their resumes while most teams did not get hurt (no major drops) by their performances in Friday's meets.

 (Previous ranking is from last week) 

 1.  Colorado head coach Mark Wetmore decided he needed two-time NCAA top-10 finisher Ben Saarel and he ran his first race at the  NCAA Mountain Regional as Colorado (67) did not easily win. Pierce Murphy (7th) once again was the top Buffalo, just ahead of Morgan Pearson (8th). The Buffaloes won the Pac-12 meet (46 to 57 over Stanford) and showed improvement from freshman John Dressel (6th) and may mollify concerns about redshirting junior Ben Saarel. The Buffaloes won NCAA Pre-Nationals (89) but looked fragile without junior Ben Saarel in the line-up.  At this time they don’t have a #6 runner and against a team like Syracuse, it will be quite a battle for the title. Colorado scored 89 with their first four in the top 15. The Buffs easily won the Rocky Mountain Shootout without some of the good Division 2 teams from last year and no regulars in the top five running. Sophomore Zach Perrin (14:43) won the CSU duals and led a group of Buffs looking to end up in the top seven at the end of year including unattached John Dressel (2nd in 14:51).  (1)

2.  Syracuse once again went 1-2-3, this time at the NCAA Northeast Regional. There has not been significant improvement with the #4-#5 runners and without that, Syracuse will struggle to catch Colorado. Syracuse easily won the ACC championships but did not show continued improvement to close the gap on Colorado. The Orangemen won Wisconsin Adidas with 101 and 3 in the top 6. Dan Lennon showed he is trying to come back with a 61st place finish. The Orangemen dominated the Coast-to Coast Battle in Beantown taking three of the first four spots, as Justin Knight got the win over Matt McClintock of Purdue. 1-5 spread was 25 seconds. Syracuse and Michigan ran without #1s (Syracuse ran without three of their top four) and Michigan won at Harry Groves Spiked Shoe (8400m) 35-42. (2)

3.  Stanford repeated their second place finish (83) at the West Region championships, but this time behind Washington. An expected contributor, Jack Keelan has not run since the Washington Invitational, and Cameron Miller has not run well since the Washington Invitational. Cameron Miller (19th at Washington Invitational) and Grant Fisher (11th at Pac-12) skipped the West Region and may be set up to run well at the NCAA Championships. As Sean McGorty, Jim Rosa, and Joe Rosa ran together as a group at the West Region meet and finished 6-7-8. The Cardinal finished second at the Pac-12 championships after running what was expected to be their top team. Sean McGorty was second in the toughest conference in the country this year. The Cardinal used some of the runners that did not run at Washington Invitational and did not have the depth at Wisconsin Adidas (21st overall). Sean McGorty was third overall and Garret Sweatt is likely the #4 or #5 runner for the Cardinal and was #2 at Wisconsin Adidas in 25th. The Cardinal was second at the Washington Invitational ahead of BYU without three of their top four racing. Joe Rosa (2nd overall) made season debut and tried to push the pace at 6000m. The Cardinals easily won their Invitational (33 to 53 over Cal Poly) with Sean McGorty (23:07.0) way out ahead and Grant Fisher (23:33.9), who ran unattached, in second in an impressive performance for both. No one else from Stanford’s top seven ran.  The Cardinal used the short course (6000m) Fresno State Invitational as an ice-breaker and sophomore Thomas Coyle ran well (6th along with Joe Rosa). (3)

4.  Iona had another good race at the  NCAA Northeast Regional  (40) in second behind #2 Syracuse (29) as the two teams took 10 of the first 13 spots. Kieran Clements and Gilbert Kirui were close to the 1-2-3 finish of Syracuse with the only objective being to qualify for the NCAA meet. Iona took the first seven spots at the MAAC championships to score a perfect 15. Iona was fifth (268) at Wisconsin Adidas after the separation of the five went from (:26 at Greater Louisville to :47 at Wisconsin) without Johannes Motschmann in the line-up. Iona put their first five in the top 16 won the Greater Louisville Classic against #6 Michigan (51-67) with Mississippi (82) and Louisville (82) close behind.  One of their top seven, Liam Dee, won the open race at Paul Short. They did not run their top seven at home and were out of the running for the team title at the Br. Doyle Meet of Champions. Xavier King (18:53.1 for 6000m) led Iona (27-29 over Marist) at the Marist Opener. (4)

5. Oklahoma State won the NCAA Midwest Regional as many of the runners are reponding well to tapering. The Cowboys easily won the Big 12 title as Vegard Olestad had his best race of the year to win the title and Craig Nowak had his best race of the season. The Cowboys dominated (27) the Crimson Classic and took five of the first nine and led by winner Cerake Geberkidane . Cowboy sophomore Gebrekidane won his second consecutive race for the Cowboys to win the Cowboy Jamboree.  Expected #1 Craig Nowak ran unattached in 18th. (9)

6.  Michigan was led again by Mason Ferlic to win the Great Lakes Region won the Big 10 championship (63) ahead of Illinois. Mason Ferlic was second overall and there was a 50 second gap from 1 to 5. The Wolverines were third (218) at Wisconsin Adidas and led by Mason Ferlic in 13th but were missing Nick Renberg. At the Greater Louisville Classic the Wolverines were led by winner Mason Ferlic who used the previous week off to come back and win. The team was second behind Iona, 51-67. The Wolverines won Harry Groves Spiked Shoe (missing two of top three) after dominating the EMU Celebration 5k led by Mason Ferlic. Next for the Wolverines is the NCAA Great Lakes Regional on November 13th. (5)

7.  BYU was third at the NCAA Mountain Regional. There was a :58 gap from 1-5 with Dallin Farnsworth again the leader. The Cougars did not have to finish in the top two after a strong resume of season successes. The Cougars took 7 of the first 8 spots at the WCC Championships (17) and were led by champion Aaron Fletcher (24:40.3). The Cougars were second at the Wisconsin Adidas meet with the same line-up that ran well at Washington Invitational. The Cougars put three in the top ten a the Washington Invitational but weren’t able to catch Stanford for second (69 to 70 behind Oregon with 52).  Unfortunately #1 Jonathan Nelson will not run this year and it will make the task much tougher to trophy at the NCAA meet.  The Cougars dominated the WCC preview meet (18 to 43 for Gonzaga) after dominating the BYU Autumn Classic (15).  (6)

8.  Oregon finished third at the NCAA West Regional  with the knowledge that they only needed to be in the top three to qualify. Edward Cheserek won the region title and Travis Neuman was an impressive fourth for the Ducks. The Ducks were third (83) at the Pac-12 championships in easily the toughest conference race in the country. Edward Cheserek won his third title and freshman Matthew Maton was in the top group until the end. Tanner Anderson and Blake Haney fell within 600m of the start but they probably would not have had an affect on the Ducks' overall standing. The Ducks were second (151) at Pre-Nationals with Jake Leingang (24) and Travis Neumann (29) moving into their expected #2/#3 spots and without Matthew Maton (#2 at Washginton Invitational). The Ducks won the Washington Invitational against #2 Stanford, BYU and UCLA. Edward Cheserek (23:15)waited until the last kilometer to unleash his kick. Freshmen Matthew Maton (8th) and Tanner Anderson (12th) ran conservatively and performed very well against tough competition as the #2 and #3 Oregon runners. The Ducks dominated the Bill Dillinger Invitational with a solid group of five in front led by Edward Cheserek (24:26.0) as they finished in a pack.  (7)  

9. Washington won the NCAA West Regional (63)with a team that focused on the end of the season by tapering. Tyler King (5th) has gradually gotten in shap this year. Washington is clearly one of the deepest teams this year with five very strong runners. The Huskies finished fourth (96) at the Pac-12 championships as redshirt sophomore Colby Gilbert (18th) made his season debut for the Huskies at a key time. Izaic Yorks was third and the combination made for the Husky's best performance of the season. The Huskies finished 13th at Wisconsin Adidas with Yorks leading the Huskies in seventh.  The Huskies were 6th at their home meet,  Washington Invitational. UW will miss #2 runner Colby Gilbert until Pac-12 meet and they did not race Izaic Yorks. The Huskies had their streak of individual winners continue as senior Izaic Yorks won at Sundodger but three of the Huskies’ top four runners rested and Washington State won 24-33. The Huskies took eight of the first eleven spots on the 4.5 mile course UW-Seattle Open.   (13)

10. Arkansas won the NCAA South Central Regional (51) as Gabe Gonzeles ran his best race of the year with the Razorbacks having established a good resume for the season. They barely beat unranked Texas (69) but showed great depth. Arkansas dominated the SEC championships with 25 and putting 6 in the top 10 led by Christian Heymsfield's runner-up finish. Arkansas finished third at Pre-Nationals (164) after some solid pack running (:19) was led at the Chile Pepper Festival by Alex George who has added a #1 or #2 presence to go with Franklin Tonui. Arkansas (24) easily won at home against Tulsa (60). Christian Heymsfield ran just behind Tonui at Chile Pepper. The Razorbacks we're third at the Br. Doyle Meet of Champions and Frankline Tonui was the individual winner but Wisconsin ran as a pack.. They ran at the Cowboy Preview and gave some of their younger runners some experience (8)

11. Virginia was second (96) at the NCAA Southeast Regional  as Henry Wynne led the Cavaliers with a :26 gap from 1-5. Virginia finished third at the ACC championships (115) without Henry Wynne, their top runner most of the year. Virginia was fourth (238) at Wisconsin Adidas and was led again by Henry Wynne. The Cavaliers won the Panorama Farms Invitational with 41 to 58 for Oklahoma as they told five of the first 12 spots (:14 spread), led by Henry Wynn (fifth) and Brent Demarest (sixth) . The Cavaliers swept the UVA duals as Henry Wynne got off to a great season start and led the Cavaliers. Next for the Cavaliers is the on November 13th.    (11) 

12. UTEP was second at theNCAA Mountain Regional (77) with a 1-2 finish by Jonah Koech and Anthony Rotich. The Miners easily won the Conference USA (19) meet as Anthony Rotich won another title. The Miners finished fifth at Pre-Nationals with two in the top four, Anthony Rotich was third and Peter Koech was fourth, but #5 was way back in 96th. The Miners had their top five in the top 10 early in the Notre Dame Invitational and then fell off the pace but still won against teams challenging for the top 20. Anthony Rotich and Jonah Koech almost went 1-2 but they eased off at the end and Matt McClintock of Purdue edged Koech for second. They scored 89 to 97 for North Carolina State, 126 for Colorado State, and 134 for Southern Utah. The Miners took five of the first seven spots and dominated the Kachina Classic over 7000m (led by Jonah Koech over Anthony Rotich).  Previously six runners dominated the 6000m race and ran as a pack at the Texas Tech/NM State dual and the same six repeated the feat at The Lori Fitzgerald Classic. (12)

13. Georgetown (44) barely beat Penn (60) and Villanova (66) for the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional  title as they put their first five in the top 17 (:42 gap). The Hoyas edged Villanova for the Big East title. The Hoyas finished fifth at Pre-Nationals (214). Jonathan Green was up with the leaders the whole race and finished fifth but #4/#5 were 70-71(:40) and held them back in fifth as some runners had a rough race (short 2 week turn-around). The Hoyas ran very well (:25) at the Paul Short Run and won against #9 Villanova 37-56. Jonathan Green (23:58) led them with a third place finish and their spread was just :25 even without top five regular Ahmed Bile in their top 5. Their biggest loss was losing junior Ryan Gil to transfer. They were second at the Navy Invitational after they used none of their top six.  (15)

14. Louisville won the NCAA Southeast Regional (77) with a huge 1-5 gap (1:23). They were fifth (130) at the ACC championships. finished 11th at Pre-Nationals as their #5 runner (245th) fell way back  The Cardinals ran very well at their home Greater Louisville Classic but continued with their issue of finding a #5 runner. They were fourth, tied with #10 Mississippi (82) but lost tie-breaker, and put three in the top ten and four in the top 17 led by Edwin Kibichiy in second. The Cardinal won the Commodore Classic (53 to 68 over Ohio State) and showed their #5 runner issue. Previously they won the Evansville Early Bird Opener with many of the Cardinals running easily.  (16)

15. Eastern Kentucky was third at the NCAA Southeast Regional (113) as they had to perform well at the NCAA Southeast Regional. They have had a history of running better over 10k also. They need to tighten their gap from 1-5 (1:33) to get into the top 10 at the NCAA meet. won the Ohio Valley Conference (21). Erick Rotich (24:31) led a 1-4 finish. Eastern Kentucky was 14th at Wisconsin Adidas. Eastern Kentucky struggled in their first competition against top teams and finished 6th at the Greater Louisville Classic.  They did not run their top five at Panorama Farms and finished sixth. Eastern Kentucky won their first two meets in Kentucky (Kentucky Bluegrass this week) and freshman Alex Rotich won the Ohio Valley runner of the week two weeks in a row. With new runners and fewer injuries so far compared to last year this team could move back into the top 20 at the NCAA meet (23rd in 2014 and 15th in 2013). 

16. Furman was fourth at the Southeast region. dominated the Southern Conference (20) by taking 2nd (Troy Reeder) through 8th. Furman finished sixth at Wisconsin Adidas. They ran another solid race. Furman was third at Virginia Panorama (88 behind 41 for Virginia and 58 for Oklahoma) in their first challenge of the year. They took the top ten spots at the Queens Twilight using runners competing for a lower top seven spot and then dominated the Furman Cross Country Classic (16 to 46 over Auburn). Next is the NCAA Southeast Region Championships on November 13th. (19)

17. North Carolina State finished fifth (148) at NCAA Southeast Regional  without a consistent #4 runner. Meron Simon (4th) and George Parsons (5th) once again leading the team. The Wolfpack finished second at the ACC championships. They only seemed to have a hiccup at their previous meet and have a good shot at the top ten at the NCAA meet. The Wofpack was seventh at Wisconsin Adidas as many of their runners seemed to be knocked down from running two weeks before. They finished second at Notre Dame Invitational led by Washington transfer Meron Simon (4th). They struggle with depth (1-5 :54 spread) but they seemed to fix that at ACC Championships but not the Southeast Regionals.  (10) 

18. Minnesota was second (95) at the Midwest Regional with pack running (#1-#4 finished between 12 and 19 and #1-#5 gap was :41) The Golden Gophers entered the meet with the expectation they had to perform well to qualify for the NCAA championships. They finished third at the Big 10 championships. (unr)

19. Virginia Tech's finished sixth (160) at the NCAA Southeast Regional despite a 2:03 gap from 1-5 as Thomas Curtin continued his winning streak. Thomas Curtin won the ACC title to follow up his win at the NCAA D1 Pre-Nationals. The finished fourth at the ACC championships  (120) and sixth at the D1 Pre-Nationals (223). Next for the Hokies is the Southeast Regional on November 13th. At ACC the #3 to #6 runners for the Hokies finished within 8 seconds, a big improvement from Pre-Nationals.  (14)

20. Oklahoma finished third at NCAA Midwest Regional  with Brendan Doughty and Jacob Burcham again leading the way. The Sooners were second at Big 12 championships. The Sooners were 22nd at Wisconsin Adidas without a few of their top runners although Jacob Burcham (11th) and Brandon Doughty (12th) were 1-2 for Oklahoma. They ran very well in second at Virginia Panorama Farms Invitational led by Brandon Doughty (3rd) and Jacob Burcham (4th). They were second to Virginia 41 to 58. They were second at the Ken Garland Invitational without using anyone in their top 7.  (18)

also of interest (teams that may make a move at the next meet)

Tulsa was fourth at the NCAA Midwest Regional. The Hurricane dominated the American Athletic championships led once again by sophomore Marc Scott. They went 1-2-3 against this year's South Central region champion Brian Barraza of Houston. Tulsa finished eighth at the Wisconsin Adidas Invitational after Scott took the win.  Tulsa was second at the Chille Pepper Festival with Scott taking the individual win. (20)

Villanova was third at NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional and did not get an at-large invitation. Their problems at #4-#5 continued but they did get three individuals invited to the NCAA meet. The Wildcats finished second to Georgetown at the Big East Championships (33-34). Patrick Tiernan (22:23) dominated the race (@:21 gap). The Wildcats went 1-3 and had their top five at the Princeton Invitational but finished 2nd to Penn as Kevin Corbusier had another rough race.. The Wildcats took the top two spots at Paul Short Run, Patrick Tiernan and Jordan Williamsz, and three of the top four. #5 runner Kevin Corbusier (37th) had a suspiciously terrible race and a decent race would have won the Wildcats (56) the title over Georgetown (37). They were second at Main Line with some runners (including winner Patrick Tiernan) running unattached and others that helped the team finish second (lost 20-72 to Penn). None of their top seven ran at Big 5 and the Wildcats finished fifth. (17)

UCLA was 7th at the NCAA West Regional and were probably the last team let into the NCAA meet. Horrible conditions probably affected the Bruins the most. The Bruins finished fifth (127) at the Pac-12 Championships and were led againg by Lane Werley (fifth). The Bruins were ninth at Wisconsin Adidas and were led by Lane Werley (14th). At the Washington Invitational the Bruins were led by the third place finish of Lane Werley. They were fourth overall (117, and Oregon won with 52). They lack much of the depth they had last year. The Bruins easily won the Mustang Challenge using runners expected to #6-#7 on the team as sophomore Myles Smith won. They previously competed at the Nevada Twilight Classic with runners competing for a top seven spot. 

Michigan State finished second at NCAA Great Lakes Region Championship (88) to get the only other spot out of the region. After limited success during the year the Spartans had to perform well to qualify for the NCAA meet.  The Spartans finished fifth (113) at the Big 10 Championships, The Spartans ran as a pack (1-5, :25 separatioin). The Spartans were 12th at Wisconsin Adidas even without Caleb Rhynard (121st)  running like he did last year.  The Spartans could challenge for an NCAA spot with Rhynard running well. Michigan State did not run their top three at Roy Griak and still win a tight competition with 74 to 88 for Southern Utah and 94 for California. Next is the NCAA Great Lakes Region Championship on November 13th.

Columbia was unfortunate to run in the tough Northeast Regional (no at-large teams in the region) and finished fifth (156). Columbia won (65-69) the Ivy League title running without the tight pack that has helped them in the past. They were led by Aubrey Myjer in third (24:30). Columbia finished 10th at Wisconsin Adidas as Myjer finished 19th. Next for Columbia is the Northeast Regional on November 13th.

Penn finished second (60) at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional  which was the only way to make the NCAA meet. Penn was second at the Ivy League Championships in a tight competition (65-69) and Thomas Awad won the individual competition . Penn finally had a solid race 1-5 and won Princeton Invitational ahead of Villanova. The Quakers were 11th at Notre Dame Joe Piane Invitational. 

Indiana finished just out of the NCAA meet by finishing fifth (141) at the usually tough NCAA Great Lakes Regional  (no at-large qualifiers). The Hoosiers finished fourth at the Big 10 championships led by Rorey Hunter (4th). The Hoosiers sent most of their top team to Madison and was 16th at Wisconsin Adidas with their #4/#5 runner unusually well back (125/175). They were 12th at NCAA D1 Pre-Nationals. The Hoosiers won the Princeton Inter-Regional with 47 to 70 for Princeton as they put their top five in the first 14 (:10 spread). They ran as a pack and easily won the Indiana Intercollegiates but not all of the top runners ran well in a relaxed pace. Owen Skeet won the Indiana Open 8000m in 25:48.41.

Mississippi finished second at  the NCAA South Regional  behind Florida State (58-62). The Rebels were third at the SEC Championships. Sean Tobin (15th) and Craig Engels (16th) led the Rebels.  They ran their regular runners at Wisconsin Adidas and were way back, seemingly affected by racing hard their first race of the year at Greater Louisville Classic. They were third (82 better #6 runner) at the Greater Louisville Classic. Newcomer MJ Erb led Ole Miss with a fourth place finish and Sean Tobin made a great return to cross country (9th) but the depth was not as expected. They did not use any of their top runners at the Commodore Classic or Brooks Memphis Twilight Classic. 

Mens D1 Cross Country