Let's look at how some teams fared this week.
The Nuttycombe Invitational was lightning fast on the men's side.
Before this meet, Habtom Samuel held the course record (22:33.8) and the meet record (22:58). Both ended up getting smashed. The top 4 men were under the course record and 16 men were under the meet record, with freshman Meshack Kipruto of Colorado setting the new records to 22:30.1. Sheesh!! Pretty nutty (sorry)!
You can view the results here.
West Virginia women's pack delivers a big shock at the Nuttycombe Invitational
#9 West Virginia won the Nuttycombe Invitational, 66-111 over the University of Florida. In doing so, they also took down #3 Northern Arizona, #4 New Mexico, #7 Oregon, and #5 Iowa State. They produced the fastest 1-5 average 6k of 19:31.9 with a 24.4 second spread between their 1-5. We'll have to keep an eye on this group!
You can view the results here.
New Mexico men assert their case that they are the team to beat
In a loaded field with over 20 nationally ranked D1 teams, New Mexico walks away from the Nuttycombe Invitational with some great stats. They fastest 1-5 average 8k in D1 (22:49.2), a second place individual finish for their top runner freshman Pasanjo Kitonga (0.7 seconds off the winner), 4 in the top 20, and a score of 59-93 over #6 Colorado. They've got quite an argument.
You can view the results here.
Kathryn Arbegast is currently undefeated this season
Kathryn Arbegast of RIT wins the Highlander Invitational by over 40 seconds, marking her 4th win of the season. Last year, she was 60th at the NCAA DIII cross country championships. We'll have to see how long she continues this streak!
You can view the results here.
Pittsburg State men pull off big upset in DII pre-nats
Pittsburg State men came into this meet with a #19 ranking and ended up winning with a score of 51-93 over #7 Western Colorado. In the process, they also beat #16 Washburn, #18 Neb.-Kearney, and #14 Cal Poly Pomona. They were led by senior Dylan Sprecker, who got the individual win with a time of 23:53.9.
You can view the results here.
The women's team title at DII Pre-Nats comes down to a single point
This one came down to the wire. #3 Colorado School of Mines women held off #5 Western Colorado 84-85. If you ever had a coach tell you that every point matters, they were correct. It mattered in this case!
You can view the results here.
Unranked Colorado Christian women delivers big upset at Lewis Crossover
Colorado Christian women came into the Lewis Crossover with no ranking and soundly defeated ranked 5 ranked DII teams, with a winning score of 74-119 over #23 Biola.
You can view the results here.
Unranked Findlay's pack running gives Western Washington men a scare
Colorado Christian women weren't the only unranked team that showed up in a big way at the Lewis Crossover. Findlay men came in second, losing only to DII #9 Western Washington 114-120. Western Washington's 1-4 put them at 62 points and Findlay's 1-4 were at 80 points. Findlay's #5 Billy Dennison's 40th place finish makes for a 12 point swing. In the process, they beat 8 ranked teams.
You can view the results here.
Providence men wins the NEICAA meet by 2 points and it came down to the #5.
This was close! 2 points separated 3 team with Providence men winning 85-87-87 over Stonehill and Vermont. But when you look under a microscope, Stonehill was ahead of Providence, with their 1-4 at 51 points and Providence's 1-4 at 54 points. Their #5, Jack Dowd, saved the day with a 31st place.
You can view the results here.
NEICAA meet shows how the tiebreaker rule is different in the NCAA
In high school, tiebreakers are determined by which team has the better 6th place finisher. In the NCAA, it comes down to a head-to-head comparison of the 1-5. In this situation, Stonehill and Vermont men both had 87 points. But when line up apples to apples, Stonehill is 3-2 in a matchup with their #1 and #5 losing.
When it comes to scoring, the 6th and 7th runners are effectively just decoration.
You can view the results here.
I hope you all are finding this helpful! If you want to follow along with more XC/TF observations or bad puns, you can follow me at @predamame on Twitter. See you next week!