Championship Window Still Wide Open for Lobos

By Adam Schneider of DyeStat 

New Mexico is in position to win its third women’s cross country national championship in four years this fall with the bulk of its 2017 lineup returning. Individual champion Ednah Kurgat is back to defend her title and she will be rejoined by All-Americans Weini Kelati and Charlotte Prouse. The addition of junior college national champion Adva Cohen from Iowa Central helps soften the blow of losing four-time All-American Alice Wright to graduation. 

Colorado returns five runners that have placed in the top 43 at the NCAA meet. Senior Dani Jones led the Buffaloes with a 10th-place finish last year. The team also returns All-American Sage Hurta. 

Stanford earned a trophy last year and has a lot of positive momentum going forward with a dynamic lineup, led by Fiona O’Keeffe, who was 13th last year. 

Oregon has a new outlook with coach Helen Lehman-Winters, who will have three new transfers to bolster the lineup. Weronika Pyzik and Isabelle Brauer, who ran to top-15 finishes for Lehman-Winters at San Francico, and British transfer Philippa Bowden, make the Ducks an instant national contender if everyone can get acclimated to the new situation. 

North Carolina State is fifth. The Wolfpack took eighth last year and fifth in 2016. 

Boise State is sixth-ranked with junior Allie Ostrander (fourth in 2017) and junior Brenna Peloquin (sixth in 2016) potentially leading the Broncos. Peloquin missed all of last year. Boise State returns four of its top five from a team that finished fifth. 

Preseason Top 20 (2017 NCAA finish)

1. New Mexico (1)

2. Colorado (3)

3. Stanford (4)

4. Oregon (5)

5. North Carolina State (8)

6. Boise State (6)

7. Michigan (9)

8. Arkansas (13)

9. Villanova (12)

10. Penn State (18)

11. Wisconsin (10)

12. Notre Dame (N/A)

13. Michigan State (15)

14. Providence (16)

15. Washington (21)

16. BYU (11)

17. Georgia (17)

18. Utah State (14)

19. Furman (7)

20. Iowa State (20)

Watch List:

Cal

Georgetown

Minnesota

Indiana

San Francisco

Vanderbilt

North Carolina

Texas

Penn

Portland