2023 D3 Regional Preview

There is one more test before the National meet. Teams will scatter across 10 regional meets to earn a trip to the national meet. Win the regional and you’re automatically in. Finish anywhere else and you have to wait until mid day Sunday to know you’re fate.

The D3 Glory Days team looks at every regional to give their thoughts. Comment below your predictions!

Good luck to everyone competing. You all put in a lot of hard work so go achieve your goals.

Predictions powered by Lacctic.

East

Last year, MIT men and women swept the East regional titles and both went on to finish as top-10 teams at nationals. The men, in fact, won the whole d*mn thing with five All-American finishers plus two more who finished in the top 60. Those two finishers, Vedang Lad and Lowell Hensgen, return to MIT’s roster with something to prove as some of the team’s top runners. Add in 3rd place All-American Sam Acquaviva and 35th place All-American Henry Hardardt, and MIT returns a strong roster that is very likely to repeat as regional champions. 

Men

MIT men started their season with a narrow and somewhat surprising loss to Williams at Purple Valley. After graduating a few heavy hitters from last year’s roster, MIT knew this year would be more of a rebuilding year for them. Ever since this loss, however, they’ve managed to string together some pretty dominant performances. They came back to beat Williams and take the team title at Pre-Nationals and followed this victory with a dominant win at NEWMAC championships conference weekend, where they placed 13 athletes in the top 20.

Though down the road, they will face stiff competition from teams such as La Crosse, North Central, Whitewater, and Wartburg, a regional victory and automatic qualifying mark over ranked Tufts will be just the right amount of preparation for MIT headed into national weekend.

Tufts will bring forth a solid roster led by Ivan Appleton, who took tenth at last year’s regional championships. They are coming off of a third-place finish at NESCAC championships behind Williams and Amherst and should receive a bid to nationals should they post a top-two finish at regionals. The biggest key for this team will be to close the gap from Appleton to their second finisher, as their pack from 2-5 was an impressive 36 seconds. 

Another team to watch is that of Bowdoin, who took fifth at NESCACs behind Middlebury. They have strong frontrunners in Will Goddard and Brooks Peters, and will need to tighten up their 3-5 to get as close to Tufts as possible. Unfortunately for this squad, they did not travel out-of-region much this year, and therefore have no interregional victories to strengthen their case for a bid to nationals. Proximity to Tufts will be key for the Polar Bears to receive votes. 

In the individual race, look for Babson’s Anthony Rodriguez, third at Conn College, to be one of the first to cross the finish line this weekend. Other notable individuals include Bates trio Ned Farrington, Victor Kering, and Sam Kartsonis, WPI’s David Reynolds, U of New England’s Troy Silvestri, Suffolk’s Thomas Novy, and Bowdoin’s Will Goddard and Brooks Peters. 

Top 5 Men’s Teams + D3 Glory Days’ Qualifying Team Prediction: (2)

  1. MIT (Q)

  2. Tufts (q)

  3. Bowdoin 

  4. Bates

  5. WPI

Individual qualifiers:

  1. Anthony Rodriguez (Babson)

  2. Will Goddard (Bowdoin)

  3. Brooks Peters (Bowdoin)

  4. Ned Farrington (Bates)

  5. Michael Olson (Plymouth State)

  6. David Reynolds (WPI)

  7. Troy Silvestri (U of New England)

Women

In the women’s race, MIT should easily capture the auto-qualifying win. They come off of a victory at NEWMAC and also boast a win at Purple Valley and a runner-up finish at Pre-Nats. Needless to say, MIT women are ready to make a splash. Led by Gillian Roeder, they have a strong scoring pack in Kate Sanderson, Cristina Crow, Lexi Fernandez, and Heather Jensen. Roeder did not race at NEWMACs, so pending good health, other members Liv Girand and Erin Hovendon may have to step up as they did at conference to help the engineers score. 

MIT’s best competition comes from that of WPI. Led by Grace Hadley, who is the favorite to win, WPI has strung together a solid season across regions. They placed seventh at Pre-Nats to beat Mideast programs Vassar and St. Lawrence as well as Great Lakes team John Carroll, all of which strengthened their case for a bid to nationals. They will likely have to post a win against Bates, who beat them at home in Mid-September, to guarantee their spot. 

Bates, however, has an equally good chance of qualifying. They took seventh at NESCACs and eighth at Conn College, beating fellow regional school Tufts and Mideast ranked schools Smith and Coast Guard. The key to their mid-season victory over WPI happened from runners 2-5. They beat WPI at each of these positions, and put nine runners in front of WPI’s fourth, indicating that their depth could be a real threat. 

In the individual race, look for Wellesley duo Ella Whinney and Fiona Hanrahan to make a push to qualify as individuals, as well as Gordon’s Rachel Brennan, Tufts’s Meghan Davis, Bates’s Phoebe Pohl and Elizabeth Holcombe, Bowdoin’s Stephanie Chun, and Suffolk’s Ellie Davis and Amy Pattelena, all of whom have been consistent frontrunners for their team this season.

Top 5 Women’s Teams + D3 Glory Days’ Qualifying Team Prediction: (2)

  1. MIT (Q)

  2. WPI (q)

  3. Bates

  4. Tufts

  5. Bowdoin

Individual qualifiers:

  1. Rachel Brennan (Gordon)

  2. Phoebe Pohl (Bates)

  3. Ella Whinney (Wellesley)

  4. Meghan Davis (Tufts)

  5. Elizabeth Holcombe

  6. Stephanie Chun (Bowdoin)

  7. Ellie Davis (Suffolk)

Great Lakes

When the OAC clashes with the MIAA, sparks fly. Pepper in a little spice from the NCAC, UAA, and SAA, and this weekend in Akron could get interesting. The men’s race, most of all, has an unpredictable outcome. 

Men

John Carroll and Calvin both come off of impressive conference victories to fuel their confidence. For Calvin, the preservation of their 36-year MIAA victory streak is a reminder of the rich history of the Michigan program that comes with the expectation of success. For John Carroll, a conference victory over Ohio Northern and Mount Union, both teams that have beaten them so far this season, indicates that they are heating up at the right time. Who will be victorious when these two programs line up next to one another on Saturday? Only time can tell.

John Carroll might be the most anticipated team in this race. They’ve kept mystery alive all year by not racing all their members on the same weekend, prompting some to question where this team fits in the national rankings. Last year, they flew under the radar all season only to finish with a trophy at nationals. While a national trophy might not be in the cards for this younger program this year, defending a regional title against Calvin might be. 

One need only look at their conference results to see how strong the JCU pack is at full strength. Led by Ethan Domitrovich, who took second overall, the Blue Streaks swept second through fifth place and put three more in the top 17. Domitrovich and the trio of Ryan Champa, Tommy Naiman, and Dominic Delmoro finished within four seconds of one another. Their fifth, Isaac Bourne, finished 45 seconds later. This gap from four to five could be a weak spot in the JCU lineup, giving room for Calvin to strike, but four low-stick finishes will definitely be tough to beat. 

Calvin has a very similar spread from 1-5: just 45 seconds. They are led by Thaine Nederveld, who won MIAAs and was top-20 at Augustana during interregional weekend, and have a solid four in Luke Witvliet, Nick Henz, Will Hofmann, and Caleb Gaffner. If Nederveld can finish with Domitrovich, and Calvin’s 2-5 can break up the JCU pack, particularly before JCU’s fifth, just enough, they just might be able to capture the win. Regardless of the outcome, both teams are likely to receive bids to the national meet.

Other teams on the hunt include Mount Union, who has spent all year in the national rankings, but comes off of a disappointing loss at OACs to John Carroll and Ohio Northern. With uncharacteristically high finishes from frontrunners Jeff Joseph and Vincent Giumenti, the Purple Raiders struggled to stay in the front. They also show some variability with their fifth runner, a potential weak point that could go under a microscope at the larger regional championship race. Despite one off data point, Mount Union has had an otherwise solid season. They beat John Carroll at Pre-Nats and took third at the Lock Haven Invitational in PA. Assuming Joseph and Giumenti are back to their usual forms, this team can certainly be a threat to the top 3. 

Other teams in the mix include Ohio Northern, who beat Mount Union at OAC on a tiebreaker and were the outright D3 champs at All-Ohio over regional competitors Otterbein, John Carroll, and Case Western early in the season, as well as Case Western, who came back to beat Ohio Northern at Mike Woods and just this past weekend took sixth at UAAs. 

In the individual race, Wilmington’s Simon Heys is the favorite to win following his impressive win at Pre-Nats and OACs. His only loss this year is to Findlay’s Noah Fisher, who just took runner-up at D2 regional championships this past weekend. Another name to watch from HCAC school Manchester is that of Enrique Salazar. Salazar has a handful of wins from this season and also an 11th place finish at Augustana, which bodes well for his performance in the postseason. 

NCAC stud Conor Kolka of Wittenberg is another name to watch, as is Hope’s Connor Havens, Manchester’s Connor Havens, Trine’s Ryan Hoopingarner, and Otterbein’s John Nice. Basically, if your name is any form of Connor in the men’s Great Lakes Regional meet, you’re probably in the front (that won’t be confusing or anything).

Top 5 Men’s Teams + D3 Glory Days’ Qualifying Team Prediction: (3)

  1. John Carroll (Q)

  2. Calvin (q)

  3. Mount Union (q)

  4. Ohio Northern

  5. Case Western

Individual qualifiers:

  1. Simon Heys (Wilmington)

  2. Enrique Salazar (Manchester)

  3. Conor Kolka (Wittenberg)

  4. Connor Vachon (Hope)

  5. Connor Havens (Manchester)

  6. Ryan Hoopingarner (Trine)

  7. John Nice (Otterbein)

Women

The women’s Great Lakes race consistently boasts impressive depth. Currently, there are six women’s Great Lakes teams that are nationally ranked, meaning as many as six could come out to nationals from this region. The winning team, like the men’s race, is unpredictable, making this a race you won’t want to miss. 

Just last week at the MIAA Championships, Hope and Calvin tied number of points, with Hope winning off of the tiebreaker. In a much larger field, the rematch between these two teams is sure to be exciting. Rebecca Markham of Hope led the way for the entire MIAA race, edging out Calvin freshman sensation Hailey Erickson. After these two frontrunners, the rest of the team lineup looked something like this:

Now that’s close. Where Hope appears to have the upperhand is with their depth. After their fifth finisher, they had three more athletes finish ahead of Calvin’s sixth, meaning their room for error is significantly larger–if one of the scorers falls back, there are three more runners nearby, ready to step up. At a race like regionals where there are over 40 teams, a lot of bodies can fit between scoring packs, which will certainly make this MIAA rematch interesting. 

A team that could swoop in and upset either or both of these schools is that of NCAC team Wittenberg, who, despite a mid-season coaching change, has strung together an impressive season. They won D3 All-Ohio, beat Hope at Louisville, were fifth at Mike Woods, and won NCACs. 

Their biggest strength is in their duo of low-stick finishers Sydney Khosla and Ella Webster, who took the 1-2 punch at conference. Add in Megan Keys, who took third, and Emma Hawk, who took sixth, and this team’s front pack is certainly dangerous. Their biggest challenge will be getting their fifth scorer as close as possible to runner four in order to maximize points. At conference, this gap from 4-5 left the door open for the rival Tigers from DePauw to post an impressive performance. 

While Witt’s front pack of three was ahead of DePauw’s first runner, Sophie Porter, seven additional DePauw athletes finished ahead of Wittenberg’s fifth runner, indicating depth could be DePauw’s secret weapon this weekend. 

Another team that should not be left out of the conversation this weekend is that of John Carroll. JCU comes off of a dominant OAC win, in which seven of their athletes earned all-conference. They were led by Abby Schroff, who took runner-up, and their 2-5 finished all in a row within just 14 seconds of each other. This team has seen some challenges this season–they lost to Wittenberg at All-Ohio and to Hope at Pre-Nats–but appears to be heating up at the right time. 

If the team race felt tight, try the women’s individual race, as several notable women could all be the ones to take home the crown. The favorite is perhaps Meghan Owens of Centre, who won the Converse Kickoff against Emory’s Brigid Hanley, was the first D3 finisher in the Live at Lou blue race, took fifth at Augustana, and just won SAAs by over 30 seconds. Every time Owens has lined up this season, she has dominated, so Regionals will likely be no different. Her best competition will likely be from Case Western’s Lauren Iagnemma, who was eighth at UAAs and 11th at Mike Woods, and Baldwin Wallace’s Hope Murphy, who won OACs and was 8th at regionals and 90th at cross nationals last year. 

Other returners to watch for this weekend include Owens’s Centre teammate Sophie Bouldin, who did not race regionals last year but took runner-up at SAAs, CCSC champion Madison Stonestret of Berea, Trine’s Lydia Randolph, and Kalamazoo’s Paige Anderson. 

Top 5 Women’s Teams + D3 Glory Days’ Qualifying Team Prediction: (5)

  1. Hope (Q)

  2. Calvin (q)

  3. Wittenberg (q)

  4. John Carroll (q)

  5. DePauw (q)

Individual qualifiers:

  1. Meghan Owens (Centre)

  2. Lauren Iagnemma (Case Western)

  3. Sophie Bouldin (Centre)

  4. Madison Stonestreet (Berea)

  5. Hope Murphy (Baldwin Wallace)

  6. Lydia Randolph (Trine)

  7. Paige Anderson (Kalamazoo)

Metro

Men

Haverford men posted an overwhelming victory at last year’s regional championship when they put their entire scoring five in the top seven finishers. This year, only one of these scorers, Nathaniel Leighninger, returns to Haverford’s roster. Leighninger is joined by Peter LaRochelle, Seamus Fraser, Luca Ponticello, Matt Denton, and others who will look to defend their regional title from last year. This scoring five comes off of a runner-up conference finish to Johns Hopkins and 11th place finish at Pre-Nats with the help of Micah Lachman. It is likely that only one team could make it out of this region, so a win is crucial to advancing. 

Haverford’s biggest competition comes from that of Rowan and DeSales. Rowan men have had an impressive season, the pinnacle of which was likely their win at home at the Rowan Border Battle. At conference, they posted a nail-biting victory against TCNJ in which they won by a single point. The rematch to this rivalry could produce interesting results this weekend. If Rowan does not make it out as a team, watch for their frontrunner, Caleb Clevenger to advance as an individual. 

DeSales is coming off of their second program conference title last weekend. They also took runner-up at Rowan and fifth at Dickinson early in the season. They are led by Shane Artis, who will be in contention for the regional title, as well as Matt Santacoloma and Nick Manidis, all of whom are likely to advance as individuals. 

Other individuals to look for up front include Stockton’s Erik Ackerman, Swarthmore’s Cohen Manges, and TCNJ’s Matt Granizo.

Top 5 Men’s Teams + D3 Glory Days’ Qualifying Team Prediction: (1)

  1. Haverford (Q)

  2. Rowan

  3. DeSales

  4. TCNJ

  5. Swarthmore

Individual qualifiers:

  1. Shane Artis (DeSales)

  2. Erik Ackerman (Stockton)

  3. Cohen Manges (Swarthmore)

  4. Caleb Clevenger (Rowan)

  5. Matt Granizo (TCNJ)

  6. Matthew Santacoloma (DeSales)

  7. Nick Manidis (DeSales)

Women

No women’s metro region schools are currently nationally ranked, but the winner from this region will receive one of the ten automatic qualifying bids, meaning ranked schools from other regions are liable to staying at home. Despite no currently ranked teams, both TCNJ and Widener have received votes this season, and Widener spent two weeks ranked 35th. Thus, everything is on the line this weekend–only the winner will likely advance from this region. 

TCNJ comes off of a narrow, one-point conference victory over Stockton, who will also line up for the Metro region this weekend. Not far behind them was the squad from Rowan, who trailed Stockton by a mere 9 points. In addition to their NJAC win, TCNJ placed 15th at Conn College and 28th at Paul Short. In contrast to races such as these where the TCNJ squad was mostly lost in a large mix, the regional race should feel more spacious and allow TCNJ to park their squad up front. They will have to once again fend off Stockton and Rowan, as well as Widener, who just took a hard loss to Misericordia at their conference meet. If this loss is enough to motivate Widener headed into this weekend, they will certainly be a threat to the Metro throne. 

The race for the individual crown should be exciting, as four likely contenders surface. The first, and perhaps the favorite, is Ramapo freshman Dale Leonard, who won NJACs and took third at Rowan just ahead of Arcadia’s Micah Gordley, who will likely also be contending for the win. Gordley comes off of a high tenth place finish at the MAC championships, which was won by Widener’s Gabriella Nye. Nye lost to Leonard at Rowan, but arguably brings the most experience to this lineup. She won this race last year and then went on to place 164th at nationals. 

Don’t count out the fourth contender, Stockton’s Kayla Kass, who has 2:12 800-meter speed, nor Rowan’s Anna Sasse, Suzanne Zaugg, or Swarthmore’s Olivia Montini, either. 

Top 5 Women’s Teams + D3 Glory Days’ Qualifying Team Prediction: (1)

  1. TCNJ Q

  2. Widener

  3. Stockton

  4. Rowan

  5. Moravian

Individual qualifiers:

  1. Dale Leonard (Ramapo)

  2. Micah Gordley (Arcadia)

  3. Gabriella Nye (Widener)

  4. Kayla Kass (Stockton)

  5. Anna Sasse (Rowan)

  6. Suzanne Zaugg (Ramapo)

  7. Olivia Montini (Swarthmore)

Mid-Atlantic

Once again the Mid-Atlantic region is headlined by returning champions #9 ranked Johns Hopkins Women and the #5 ranked Carnegie Mellon men. Johns Hopkins are the returning national champions and will look to remind the rest of the country that they are a force to be reckoned with heading into the national championships. Carnegie Mellon have had an impressive season so far this year, only losing to one Division 3 school all year in #1 ranked Wisconsin La-Crosse and will look to have this be a step to podium aspirations. 

Men

On the men's side, expect this to essentially be a dual meet between Carnegie Mellon and Johns Hopkins. Tartans and Jays should be full and abundant in the top 15 spots. But once again, the Tartans should head into this weekend confident in notching another Mid-Atlantic Title. At the UAA Conference Championships they finished with an impressive 23 points over four ranked teams. They boast a ridiculous 30 second 1-7 spread; and have three almost interchangeable low sticks in Matthew Coyle, Matthew Porter, and Colin McLaughlin. While the Jay’s may not take home the regional title this year, we don’t expect that they’ll have much of an issue making it to the big dance after wins over SUNY Geneseo and Haverford in the last couple of weeks. 

With the battle for the last couple national qualifying spots looking tight, keep an eye on Marywood. If they can keep their team score low enough and things break right in other regions we may see the Pacers in prime position to challenge for one of the final at-large bids. 

Up front the battle for the individual title should be a close one between Johns Hopkins’ Emmanuel Leblond and the trio of Tartans. At Paul Short Leblond finished right between Coyle and Porter, separated by just five seconds. Add in McLaughlin to the mix and it should be a fun one to follow along. 

 Top 5 Men’s Teams + D3 Glory Days’ Qualifying Team Prediction: (2)

  1. Carnegie Mellon (Q)

  2. Johns Hopkins  (q)

  3. Marywood

  4. Dickinson

  5. Salisbury

Individual qualifiers:

  1. Louka Fetter (Messiah)

  2. Tim Patterson (St. Vincent)

  3. Stephen Rowley (Misericordia)

  4. Michael McCann (Marywood)

  5. Alexander Kane (Dickinson)

  6.  Kevin Arseneaux (Geneva)

  7. Jack Baronski (Marywood)

Women

In the women’s race Johns Hopkins will look to capture their 15th straight consecutive regional title this weekend. The Jays had no issue winning their 15th straight Centennial Conference Championship, winning with a perfect score of 15. Led by returning All-American Sara Stephenson, we should see a repeat of last year’s results with the Jays taking both the Individual and Team Titles. 

The Tartans will be keeping their eyes peeled on the rest of the country this weekend. Carnegie Mellon is currently on the outside looking in based on the most recent coaches’ poll. The #34 ranked Tartans will need to have a clear separation from the third place team this weekend if they want to have any shot at punching their ticket. With potentially heavy individual qualifier representation in the top 15 spots this weekend, it’s going to be a nailbiter for those final individual qualifying spots.

Top 5 Women’s Teams + D3 Glory Days’ Qualifying Team Prediction: (2)

  1. Johns Hopkins (Q)

  2. Carnegie Mellon (q)

  3. Misericordia 

  4. Dickinson

  5. Gettysburg 

Individual Qualifiers 

  1. Carmen Medvit (Geneva) 

  2. Hailey Carroll (Geneva) 

  3. Lauren Bunke (Lebanon Valley) 

  4. Claire Anderson (Washington & Jefferson) 

  5. Kelty Oaster (Elizabethtown) 

  6. Amiyah Preibe (Dickinson) 

  7. Brianna Wagner (Misericordia) 

Mideast

Men

In the third year of the regional alignment, former New England regional runners will have to have one eye on the East and one eye here, on the Mideast.

A theme for the top teams in the Mideast was how can Williams and RPI respond to losing their top runners. Matthew Lecky of RPI and Elias Lindgren experienced a ton of success in their careers. With the duo moving on, it was time for other runners to step up. And that they did. Both Williams and RPI have seen success this season and haven't missed a beat without their stars from last year.

The most recent matchup, Williams topped RPI 86-103 at the Pre National team. They finished second and third behind MIT.

Let’s take a look at some of the contenders in this region.

Williams comes in with a near perfect season. They had an early victory over MIT at their home course but MIT returned the favor at Pre Nats. Amherst gave Williams a slight scare at NESCACs but still came away with a victory. Looking at the Ephs lineup, the key to their success will be their fifth. As cliche as that is. Looking at Pre Nats and NESCACs, their top 4 went 2-4-12-15 at Pre Nats and 1-3-6-11 at NESCACs. Shoring up their fifth will provide the support their top duo needs. 

The Ephs are led by John Lucey. Lucey’s only loss of the season happened at Pre Nats in a sprint finish with Simon Heys. What’s helped Williams is the jump Nikhil DeNatale has made. DeNatale was an All-American as a freshman finishing 40th but has taken the leap to be a relied upon second man and giving Williams a bonafide 1-2 punch. He has yet to finish outside of the Top 4 this season and can be seen racing up front with Lucey. If these two can continue to provide the Ephs two low sticks Williams should be in great shape Saturday.

Next up we have RPI. They line up fairly well against Williams. The one thing they lack is the upfront pack Williams has. But as mentioned, Williams’s fifth is what makes them vulnerable. RPI has the talent and ability to “upset” Williams if their pack can work together and create enough separation from the fifth. I wouldn’t necessarily call it an upset when they’re ranked very close to one another and only 17 points apart at Pre Nats.

Cory Kennedy continues to show he is a top 10 contender at the national meet. Just six seconds off the win at Pre Nats, Kennedy will give RPI the low stick they’ll need this postseason. Having run side by side with Matthew Lecky, Kennedy has shown more consistency from last year and can challenge Lucey for the win on Saturday.

Looking at what RPI did at Liberty Leagues, their 2-5 runners had an 11 second split. They had a 36s split at Pre Nats and lost by 17. So hey, Vince Simonetti, Mitchell Dailey, Jonathan Craun, and Jack Loughery y’all pack things up on Saturday and I bet good things will happen for you all.

The next two teams to watch this weekend to qualify for Nationals are Amherst and Middlebury. Amherst is coming off a great showing at the NESCAC meet. They ran tough against Williams and took down Midd by 46 points. The Mammoths boasted a 21s 1-5 split but more importantly, had their top three all within three seconds of each other. Pack running has been apparent for Amherst this season and will be vital for them to keep those tactics rolling at Regionals. Based on who ran at Conn College and NESCACs, they were not at full strength at Conn and with a third or even a fourth place finish this weekend, Amherst should see themselves back at the National meet.

Middlebury has had a fine season thus far. They were the top D3 team in the Brown Race at Paul Short, tied Central College at Conn and just finished fourth at NESCACs. It’s a little hard to know where they stack up as they didn’t go to Pre Nats and some teams didn’t run their full squad at Conn College. They were 6 points off of Tufts at NESCACs and lost handily to Amherst. It’s hard to envision a scenario in which Middlebury doesn’t get an At-Large Bid. A strong front from Alec Gironda should get them the low stick they need.

Top 5 Men’s Teams + D3 Glory Days’ Qualifying Team Prediction: (4)

  1. RPI (Q)

  2. Williams (q)

  3. Amherst (q)

  4. Middlebury (q)

  5. Vassar

Individual Qualifiers 

  1. Miles Takiguchi (Vassar)

  2. Michael Skutt (St. Lawrence)

  3. Nicholas Lyndaker (St. Lawrence)

  4. Nathan Tassey (Roger Williams)

  5. Christopher Vayda (Springfield)

  6. Ethan Bush (Conn College)

  7. Brendan Mellitt (Conn College)

Women

Seven teams are currently ranked on the Women’s side. Something has to give, right!? In one of the deeper regions in the nation, teams will need to be firing on all cylinders to ensure they get another week of the season.

When seven teams come in ranked, there’s going to be some broken hearts. Since the realignment, the most a region has qualified to the national meet has been five. Could we see pre-realignment days and get six teams to the meet?

Genna Girard and Williams come in as the favorites. They’ve bounced back after an early-season loss to Amherst and MIT and look to be peaking at the right time. They put their top five inside the top 14 at NESCACs, but what can hinder them is their widespread 1-5. While Girard remains undefeated, the only concern for this strong team is what happens from 2-5. At NESCAC, it was 55 seconds. This can expose them as they head into the bigger meets.

Amherst has run solid all year long. They may have underperformed just a bit at NESCACs as they lost to Williams by 31 points after beating them earlier this year. While they would have liked to run well at conference, eyes will shift to these next two meets. Amherst runs well in packs and showed that again at the conference meet. Just 14 seconds separated their second and fifth runners. The key for them will be for the pack to move up to contend with Williams. 

Coast Guard comes off of a 12-point runner-up finish to MIT at NEWMACs, indicating that they, too, deserve to be in conversation with the nation’s best. Led by Paige Phillips, Coast Guard took third behind MIT and Williams at Purple Valley and won the women’s White Race at Paul Short. Their 11th place finish at Conn College hurts them a little, but their recent conference performance indicates they are trending in the right direction. A good performance at regionals will be crucial for this team. 

In looking at results from Conn College, other teams in the Mideast conversation include Vassar, Middlebury, Conn College, and St. Lawrence. Vassar took third to trail Central College by 8 points, Middlebury was fifth behind St. Olaf, Conn College was sixth and 11 points behind Middlebury, and St. Lawrence was seventh by 16th points. All four teams have a chance to advance this weekend, but it’s hard to say that all four will. 

Vassar and Middlebury likely have the best shot given their finishes at Conn College. Vassar won the Liberty League by a six-point margin over St. Lawrence, and Middlebury took third at NESCACs, 31 points ahead of Conn College. What makes us favor St. Lawrence over Conn College was their six-point proximity to Vassar versus Conn College’s 31-point vicinity to Middlebury, but either team has a shot depending on how they run this weekend. 

In the individual race, look for several key players to be in qualifying position, including RPI standout Olivia Pisacano, Smith’s Pria Parker, Wesleyan’s Stephanie Ager and Jordan Walter, Conn College’s Abby Fernald and Alsacia Timmerman, and Union (N.Y.)’s Catherine Dacey.

Top 6 Women’s Teams + D3 Glory Days’ Qualifying Team Prediction: (6)

  1. Williams (Q)

  2. Amherst (q)

  3. Coast Guard (q)

  4. Vassar (q)

  5. Middlebury (q)

  6. St. Lawrence (q)

Individual Qualifiers 

  1. Olivia Pisacano (RPI)

  2. Pria Parker (Smith)

  3. Stephanie Ager (Wesleyan)

  4. Abby Fernald (Conn College)

  5. Catherine Dacey (Union)

  6. Jordan Walter (Wesleyan)

  7. Alsacia Timmerman (Conn College)

​​Midwest

If the Augustana Interregional taught us anything, it’s that the Midwest region is loaded with talent. North Central men and U of Chicago women both have the chance to win the national title in a week, and Wartburg boasts programs in contention for a podium finish as well on both sides. In the men’s race, six Midwest schools are currently nationally ranked, likely indicating as many as six teams could make it out of this region depending on what happens Saturday in the Midwest and across the country. 

Men

North Central men are the current favorites. They are coming off of their 49th straight conference title, won Augustana, and were fifth overall at Live at Lou amidst big-school talent. Their trio of Max Svienty, Connor Riss, and Braden Nicholson all capture All-American honors in the outdoor 5k last spring, and with the return of Andrew Guimond from last year’s squad, this team is arguably even better than it was a year ago, and a year ago, they won the regional title. Their biggest wildcard will lie in the fact that their current fifth is a freshman, BJ Sorg. Though the move up to 8k and the length of the college season can be a tough adjustment for some newcomers, the rookie Sorg has had a stellar freshman campaign and could be a part of something truly magical for the Cardinals this postseason. 

North Central’s stiffest competition will once again come from Wartburg, last year’s regional runners up. Despite their regional runner-up finish, the Knights came back to place second in the nation at nationals, indicating they have the chops to put it together when the stakes get higher. Led once again this year by Christopher Collet, the squad of Collet, Lance Sobaski, Shane Erb, Jack Kinzer, Jacob Green, and others, this is the team that could take down North Central at regionals if anyone can. 

The list of national talent does not stop there. WashU comes off of a UAA runner-up finish and fourth place finish at Augustana so far this season. They lost to U of Chicago at Gil Dodds earlier in the season, but came back to beat this squad by 67 points at Augustana and 11 points at conference, furthering their mark as the team with the upperhand as the postseason begins its November campaign. Both teams are likely to advance from this region should they finish in the top 5. If an upset by Iowa program Loras takes place, however, things could get spicy. 

A team who did not make it to the national meet last year but is well on its way to qualifying this year is that of the Central College Dutch, who took runner-up to Wartburg and beat Loras at ARCs and placed third overall at Conn College ahead of Mideast program Middlebury. The Dutch is led by Caleb Silver, who won Conn College outright ahead of St. Olaf’s Will Kelly, a 13th place XC All-American, and took third at ARC behind Collet and Simpson’s Spencer Moon. Look for the race for the regional crown to look largely like the race for the ARC title with some vertical striped NCC jerseys mixed in. Between Collet, Moon, Silver, Nicholson, Svienty, and Riss, the title could go to anyone. Fans are advised to bring popcorn.

Other individuals to look out for in this mega-deep field are Loras’s Ryan Harvey and Julian Watson, Grinnell’s Brian Goodell, Cornell’s Isaac vanWestrienen, and Augustana’s Grant Ackard. With so many teams likely to receive national bids, individuals won’t necessarily have to be in the top 10, or even the top 20, to qualify like they do in other regions. 

Top 5 Men’s Teams + D3 Glory Days’ Qualifying Team Prediction: (5)

  1. North Central (Q)

  2. Wartburg (q)

  3. Wash U  (q)

  4. Central  (q)

  5. U Chicago (q)

Individual qualifiers:

  1. Spencer Moon (Simpson)

  2. Ryan Harvey (Loras)

  3. Brian Goodell (Grinnell)

  4. Isaac vanWestrienen (Cornell College)

  5. Grant Ackard (Augustana)

  6. Julian Watson (Loras)

Women

U of Chicago women continue to impress in 2023 to piggy-back off of their runner-up national finish in 2022. They won Gil Dodds, they were third at Joe Piane behind two D1 programs, they won Augustana, and just two weekends ago, they suffered their first D3 loss to UAA rival NYU, who jumped them in the national rankings to take the No. 1 spot (we had to have some indication that this team is human, and NYU is putting together a formidable powerhouse of their own…rivalry to be continued).

As with the men, it’s easiest to look at the results from Augustana to get an idea of what this regional lineup might look like again this weekend. Chicago won by 20 points over runners-up Wartburg, who will be their biggest challengers of the weekend, and almost 100 points over WashU, who is nationally ranked, but not necessarily in the conversation for the regional title. There’s a reason they run the race, however: anything can happen!

It will take a lot to beat the pack of Chicago’s Evelyn Battleson-Gunkel, Maddie Kelly, Sophie Tedesco, Elisabeth Camic, Caitlin Jorgenson, and Emma Kelly. Their spread from 1-5 at Augustana was just 39 seconds. Wartburg has a solid front pack in Lexi Brown, Aubrie Fisher, Shaelyn Hostager, and Ellie Meyer, but it will take this group running in a tight pack and a strong finish from a fifth runner to take down the likes of Chicago. 

The other team in conversation for advancing out of this region is that of Central College, led by Megan Johnson and Caroline McMartin. Though this team has not won any ultra-competitive invitationals, they’ve always been within striking distance of the big dogs, which is what it will take for a bid to NCAAs. 

The race for regional crown will likely be an epic battle between Wartburg’s Brown and Chicago’s Battleson-Gunkel, a matchup that saw Battleson-Gunkel on top at Augustana. With the drive of a team victory, however, Brown could just pull off the win. Other individuals to watch are Aurora’s Deyanneira Colon-Maldonado, Illinois Wesleyan’s Adriana Crabtree, Augustana’s Emma Odle, Simpson’s Lara Kallem, Grinnell’s Keely Miyamoto, Millikin’s Quincy Collings, and Nebraska Wesleyan’s Gabby Thomas. 

Top 5 Women’s Teams + D3 Glory Days’ Qualifying Team Prediction: (4)

  1. U of Chicago (Q)

  2. Wartburg (q)

  3. WashU (q)

  4. Central (q)

  5. Simpson

Individual qualifiers:

  1. Deyanneira Colon-Maldonado (Aurora)

  2. Adriana Crabtree (Illinois Wesleyan)

  3. Emma Odle (Augustana)

  4. Lara Kallem (Simpson)

  5. Keely Miyamoto (Grinnell)

  6. Quincy Collings (Millikin)

  7. Gabby Thomas (Nebraska Wesleyan)

Niagara

Some things change, and some things stay the same. We’ll start with the same: SUNY Geneseo returns two strong squads with aims to sweep both Niagara titles in 2023. Last year, both men’s and women’s teams combined for a total of 59 points. The men would go on to take 3rd at nationals and the women would finish just off the podium in 5th. With each boasting a strong group of returning upperclassmen, SUNY Geneseo looks to keep the streak alive.

The difference: NYU. 

Women

On the women’s side, the Niagara region looks to be one of the marquee events of the weekend as the #1 ranked NYU faces returning Niagara region champions SUNY Geneseo. These teams have not had the chance to race each other head to head this season. At the Paul Short Run NYU and SUNY Geneseo competed in separate sections. In the collegiate women’s merge the two teams finished back to back.

SUNY G: 678
NYU: 685

So we dug deeper. How would this have played out if we scored it dual meet style.

Even closer.

But since September, NYU has been on a tear all last month. They dominated the Conn College Invite with a team total of 36 points, almost 100 points clear of #16 ranked Central College. At the UAA Championships, the Violets captured arguably the best victory of the season, winning in a team total of 34 points, over #2 ranked U of Chicago (46) and #11 ranked Wash U (71).

SUNY G is not a team to be slept on though. They come into this weekend fresh off sweeping the Top 9 spots at the SUNYAC Championships, winning their 12th straight title. The Knights have traditionally been firing on all cylinders in the championship season so this is sure to be one of the highlights of the weekend. 

In the individual race, expect it to be just like the team battle with NYU’s Richardson facing SUNY Geneseo’s Greene for top honors. Greene may have ran faster at Paul Short but when both of these talented athletes face each other on the same course, who knows who’ll come out on top. 

Top 5 Women’s Teams + D3 Glory Days’ Qualifying Team Prediction: (2)

  1. NYU (Q)

  2. SUNY Geneseo (q)

  3. RIT 

  4. Ithaca

  5. SUNY Oneonta 

Individual Qualifiers 

  1. Lily Murphy (Hamilton)

  2. Megan Francoeur (Oneonta) 

  3. Sennett Turner (Rochester) 

  4. Katie Cobos (RIT) 

  5. Amelia Gilbert (RIT) 

  6. Kyla Eisman (Ithaca) 

  7. Jessica Goode (Ithaca) 

Men

On the men’s side we expect a little more status quo with SUNY Geneseo sweeping both the individual and team titles. After starting the year ranked as 3rd in the nation, the #14 Knights will have a chip on their shoulder heading into the postseason. Led by multitime All-American Nick Andrews, the Knights boast a strong squad that is unlikely to be challenged here. But this won’t be a runaway win for them either as NYU boasts a strong trio in Ryan Tobin, Jeffrey Chen, and Andy Taylor. Add in Cortland St’s Hunter Brignall to the mix and we’re sure to have a fight both at the front and in the team battle. 

NYU will need to rally following a tough day at the UAA Championships that saw them soundly beaten by conference rivals U Chicago and Emory. They still should have a clear line to a national championship bid but any missteps here could leave them in prime position for Brockport to upset. Currently ranked #35 in the country and just on the outside looking in, could the Golden Eagles make their first nationals appearance in over 40 years? They will need to close up that 1-5 spread if they want a shot at heading to the big dance.

Top 5 Men’s Teams + D3 Glory Days’ Qualifying Team Prediction: (2)

  1. SUNY Geneseo (Q)

  2. NYU  (q)

  3. Brockport St. 

  4. Rochester

  5. RIT

Individual Qualifiers 

  1. Hunter Brignall (Cortland St.)

  2. Jonathan Zavala (Brockport St.)

  3. Jared Smith (Brockport St.)

  4. Derrick Koen (RIT)

  5. Gabriel Winters-Bona (Brockport St.)

  6. Jonthomas Bierman (Oneonta)

  7. Bennett Melita (Utica)

North 

Men

Two weeks in a row we get a show between UW-Whitewater and UW-La Crosse. At WIACs, UW-La Crosse showed why they are title contenders with an impressive victory over UWW. After merging Wisconsin with Minnesota, the North region has solidified itself as one of the tougher regions.

Looking at the teams involved, placing in the top four here gives you a good idea of how you’ll stack up against the nation. Having two top four teams go at it heightens the competition for all.

A huge reason for UWL success at WIACs and a big factor moving forward is the rise of Grant Matthai. Matthai finished third at WIACs ahead of his teammate Isaac Wegner and Gunner Schelnder from UWW. If Matthai can continue this trend, UWL has a legitimate shot at having three guys in the top 10-15 at nationals. But for this weekend, they can have three in the top seven.

In the lead pack you should see Mohammed Bati of Augsburg and Will Kelly of St. Olaf. These two finished one-two at MIACs and both had very strong seasons. Bati’s only loss of the season came at the hands of Christian Patzka and Will Kelly at the Blugold Invite. 

Not only will we see UWL and UWW go after it, we get another Christian Patzka vs. Ethan Gregg matchup. Patzka has been perfect when the big invites rolled around and coming off back to back wins at Augustana and WIACs. While I’m sure Patzka would like to get another win over his friend, Ethan Gregg, the finish line they’re both eyeing is next weekend in PA.

From a team perspective, UWL and UWW will look to move on with ease. St. Olaf has been at or around the top 10 all season and seemingly has third place locked up. After a strong season last year, Will Kelly has moved into the number one runner role for the Oles and gives them a crucial low stick. Similar to some other top teams, what powers St. Olaf is their pack behind Kelly. At the Conn College Invite, Kelly finished runner-up but knew his pack would help get the job down. Behind him, their pack had an 11s split and followed that up with another tight pack at MIACs running 14s apart.

Augustana proved to be a crucial meet for many but it helped put Carleton back on the map. After missing the national meet last year, Carleton has rebounded with Gabe Nichols leading the way. The sophomore parlayed his good middle distance track season into a strong cross country season so far. Carleton was able to get some key wins from Augustana and finish 2nd at MIACs. With a fourth or fifth place finish, Carleton should be good to receive an At-Large bid.

On the cusp will be UW-Stout. While the Blue Devils run a strong pack, they really only picked up one big interregional win at Augustana beating Santa Cruz. On top of that, they beat their conference foes there and at WIACs to solidify themselves as the third best team in the WIAC. The key for Stout is to take down Carleton or be within a few points of them to show the committee they are deserving of a spot at the national meet.

Top 5 Men’s Teams + D3 Glory Days’ Qualifying Team Prediction: (5)

  1. UW-La Crosse (Q)

  2. UW-Whitewater (q)

  3. St. Olaf (q)

  4. Carleton (q)

  5. UW-Stout (q)

Individual Qualifiers 

  1. Mohammed Bati (Augsburg)

  2. Lars Dewell (St. Scholastica)

  3. Calvin Boone (St. Scholastica)

  4. Lloyd Young (St. John’s)

  5. Caden Schneider (Platteville)

  6. Mason Shea (Eau Claire)

  7. Sam Forstner (Ripon)

Women

The rematch of Carleton vs. UW-La Crosse is finally here. These two teams have not faced off since Carleton’s Running of the Cows home invite almost two months ago. Since then, Carleton and UWL have gone to different meets ready to face off.

Carleton gave themselves a challenge when they flew across the Country to take on a strong field at the Mike Woods Invite. The trip was worth it after they took down SUNY Geneseo, Lynchburg, and Johns Hopkins. This performance shows why they won a trophy last year and why they should be in the conversation of earning another. The Knights have a strong four up front in Phoebe Ward, Hannah Preisser, Helen Cross and Sophie McManus. Phoebe Ward has taken a massive step forward this season and helped bridge the loss of Clara Mayfield to graduation. Ward was 72nd last year at Nationals and is now running stride for stride with Hannah Preisser who finished 15th in her first year. This jump has been key for Carleton to solidify themselves as a national threat.

UWL is coming off a decisive win at WIACs. Led by Maddie Hannan, the Eagles are poised to make a postseason push. They seemingly run in pairs at their big meets and had a 46s spread at conference. The key for them will be to have their pack match what Carleton is doing up front. Katelyn Chadwick is running with Hannan up front which gives them their own 1-2 punch. However, the depth that Carleton has may be a bit too much. I’d expect UWL to go for it so don’t be surprised to see packs of Carleton, UWL and St. Olaf in the mix.

St. Olaf is the clear third team on the Women’s side as well. They’ve been using pack running for the past few seasons and seems to be their go to strategy. A key for them this weekend is getting a low stick. Katie Gevert was their lead runner at MIACs finishing 8th. At that point Carleton already had four runners in. While St. Olaf is a safe bet to advance, getting closer to UWL will mean they’ll need a low stick.

On the individual side, it’s all about Fiona Smith. Smith has had one of the best D3 regular seasons of All-Time. Missy Buttry is the only woman in D3 history to break the 20 minute barrier and Fiona has done it twice. While time isn’t the end all be all in XC, to be in a club with just Missy Buttry means you’re doing something right.

What’s great about Fiona’s racing tactic is that she is never afraid to show her cards. She’s had all of her races locked up this year and will head into this race as the clear favorite. Nationals is a week away but don’t be surprised if she gaps the field by well over a minute. This isn’t a knock on the field by any means - she just did this to Hannah Preisser at conference and Preisser was 15th last year! This is how good Fiona Smith is.

Carolyn Shult is coming off an individual win at the WIAC meet. She won by over 20s and will be in an interesting situation. She has team goals in mind to help Eau Claire qualify for nationals so will she go with Fiona or hang back and move late?

A few other individuals to keep your eyes on will be Rachel Krouse from UW Stevens Point, Mckayla Felton from UW Stout,  Allison Hendrickson from St. Scholastica, and Ally Verbauwhede from Edgewood. These four will be looking around for each other as their main competition for individual qualifiers.

Top 5 Women’s Teams + D3 Glory Days’ Qualifying Team Prediction: (4)

  1. Carleton (Q)

  2. UW-La Crosse (q)

  3. St. Olaf (q)

  4. UW-Eau Claire (q)

  5. St. Benedict 

Individual Qualifiers 

  1. Fiona Smith (St. Benedict)

  2. Mckayla Felton (Stout)

  3. Rachel Krouse (Stevens Point)

  4. Ally Verbauwhede (Edgewood)

  5. Allison Hendrickson (St. Scholastica)

  6. Anne Kiolbasa (St. Benedict)

  7. Cyna Madigan (Oshkosh)

South 

Men

Can the south get a team back on the podium? The Lynchburg men are giving the region something to hope for this postseason. While they said they are hoping for a top 10 finish, the Hornets can be a darkhorse team to get onto the podium.

However, they need to get to the national meet first. The Hornets head to the South region after their third straight ODAC title. While being led by Frank Csorba, what has taken Lynchburg to the next level has been the rise of Chasen Hunt. Hunt had a great freshman track season and took the leap to run with Csorba. Add in mid distance All Americans, Sam Llaneza and Tor Hotung-Davidsen and this team is clicking. Tor is trying to show all 800m runners can run XC well.

If all goes as planned, Lynchburg should come away with the victory fairly easily. In the meets they’ve been at with other South region teams, they have yet to be challenged. Don’t be surprised if you see Lynchburg with 5 in the top 10.

The other team we see moving on is Emory. While they haven’t done anything overly impressive this season, they’ve done what they needed to do to earn an At-Large bid if they finish 2nd. They finished fourth at UAAs and were 33 points behind UChicago. At Paul Short, they took down South region foe, Washington and Lee by almost 100 points.

However, what can hurt Emory is their lack of a low stick. At UAAs, Scott Masterson was their number one finishing 15th. What makes up for the low stick is a tight spread of 32s, 1-5.

What can give Emory problems is if Washington and Lee can get a big race out of Rowe Sterne, Keaton Rush, and Chris Ruiz. Rush and Ruiz have flipped their spots the past two races but if they can move up with Sterne, that may be their shot at taking down Emory.

Top 5 Men’s Teams + D3 Glory Days’ Qualifying Team Prediction: (3)

  1. Lynchburg (Q)

  2. Emory (q)

  3. Washington and Lee (q)

  4. Berry 

  5. Rhodes

Individual Qualifiers 

  1. Bradshaw Lathbury (Berry)

  2. Dylan May (Southern Virginia)

  3. Bellamy Immanuel (EMU)

  4. Grady Coppock (Bery)

  5. Ashton Deriso (Oglethorpe)

  6. Daniel Ferrante (Christopher Newport)

  7. Daniel Blaich (Rhodes)

Women

The rich get richer. The reigning South Region champs had a sneaky addition to their team this year. Kayla Werner transferred from Liberty after her freshman year but didn’t debut for Lynchburg until the Mike Woods Invite. Let’s be clear, she was a Lynchburg student but hadn’t raced yet. A massive addition for the team that was already riding momentum from last year. Adding Werner gives Lynchburg their 1-2 punch with Allison Dell.

Similar to the Men’s side, Lynchburg should run away with these fairly easily. The Hornets are coming off their own ODAC win where they scored 22 points and went 1-2 with the above mentioned duo.

Another D1 transfer will look to stop Werner and Dell going 1-2. Brigid Hanley is taking her grad year at Emory after a career at Arizona and jumped to their lead runner. She won the Rowan Border Battle and just finished third at UAAs.

From a team perspective, Emory matches their men. They’ve run solid all year but nothing too notable to pad to their resume. They did take home the team title at the Border Battle but the meet wasn’t as strong as years past. They were 24 points back from WashU at UAAs

Washington and Lee could give them trouble. When they ventured to Pre Nats they were able to take down Pomona-Pitzer to strengthen their resume. However, with them being unranked now, they’ll need to take down Emory to have a better chance at earning an At-Large bid.

Elise Molinaro is having a strong senior year as she just finished fourth at ODACs. She’ll look to improve upon her 22nd place finish last year to help W&L get to the national meet. If they can tighten their gap they have a shot at Emory. The Eagles had a 1:39 at UAAs 1-5 spread so there is a chance W&L can do damage there.

Top 5 Women’s Teams + D3 Glory Days’ Qualifying Team Prediction: (2)

  1. Lynchburg (Q)

  2. Emory (q)

  3. Washington and Lee

  4. Christopher Newport 

  5. Catholic

Individual Qualifiers

  1. Madison Lowery (Pfeiffer)

  2. Kate Inglis (Catholic)

  3. Mackenzie Young (Bridgewater)

  4. Elise Molinaro (Washington & Lee)

  5. Olivia Warr (Washington & Lee)

  6. Emily Smeds (Bridgewater)

  7. Lucy Unzicker (EMU)

West 

Men

Tell me if you’ve heard this story before? Pomona is the favorite to win the west region. After a dominant performance at SCIAC Championships Pomona looks to be in the driver's seat to capture another West Region Title. So no need to follow along right? Well we wouldn’t say that, and a vastly improved contender from the north will look to keep it interesting. Enter George Fox. The Bruins finished one spot behind the Sagehens at Pre-Nationals and are also fresh off a dominant victory at their conference meet.

Confidence is high for both these squads and with both teams boasting 1-5 spreads under 35 seconds, this will not be a race to coast through. With Lucas Florsheim rocking on all cylinders and the dependable duo of Derek Fearon and Cameron Halter right in the mix we’d lean towards Pomona locking up another West Regional Title. Add in Steeplechase All-American Colin Kirpatrick and we may be seeing a late season podium contender.

The other regions will be keeping their eyes peeled at the team battle for the next three slots. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps looks to be in a safe position to lock up an at-large qualifying bid but the question will be will the West Region take 4 or 5 bids. The pressure is on Colorado College and UC Santa Cruz. Colorado College has a great 1-2 punch but it will need to tighten up that spread to make sure they book their ticket.

UC Santa Cruz finds themselves on the edge of being one of the first teams out. If they keep it close, they’ll head out east. If things go sideways, we’ll see the West Region taking 4.

After tough outings at Augustana and SCIAC Championships, La Verne will have a chip on their shoulder heading into this weekend. They have an All-American talent in TK Berhe but will need the rest of the squad at their best if they want any hope of breaking into the top 5.

On the individual side Colorado College’s James Settles looks to be the favorite here to win his first West Region Title but look for returning champion Florsheim to make it a battle up front. 

 Top 5 Teams + D3 Glory Days’ Qualifying Team Prediction: (5)

  1. Pomona Pitzer (Q)

  2. George Fox (q)

  3. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (q)

  4. Colorado College (q)

  5. UC Santa Cruz (q)

Individual qualifiers:

  1. TK Berhe (La Verne)

  2. Rohan Agrawal (Cal Tech)

  3. Evan Markelz (Lewis & Clark)

  4. Ryan Stracke (Pacific Lutheran)

  5. Amir Barkan (Occidental)

  6. Ben Kerr (Puget Sound)

  7. Owen Ladinig (Pacific Lutheran)

Women 

Claremont-Mudd-Scripps should have little issue punching their ticket to the national championship for the 15th straight season. The Athenas will look to return to the podium this year after an impressive win at Pre Nationals. Expect a fairly dominant performance here with potentially 5 finishers in the top 15.

Up front returning champion Natalie Bitetti will have some competition with Lewis & Clark’s Riley Buese. Buese has run impressive times this season up north against some tough competition early and won fairly easily at her conference meet. On the other hand, Bitetti has held her own with some of the best D3 has to offer this season and will be looking to retain her title. 

As is the story on the men’s side, the other regions will be taking a close look at UC Santa Cruz this weekend. The Banana Slugs need to keep it fairly close to #15 ranked George Fox. With them currently tied at 27th in the country in the most recent coaches’ poll, there is little room for error here. An upset could see them missing out on an at-large bid when the field is announced Sunday. 

Top 5 Teams + D3 Glory Days’ Qualifying Team Prediction: (4)

  1. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (Q)

  2. Colorado College (q)

  3. George Fox (q)

  4. UC Santa Cruz (q)

  5. Pomona Pitzer

Individual qualifiers:

  1. Riley Buese (Lewis & Clark)

  2. Kylah Holland (Hardin-Simmons)

  3. Malia Heien (Lewis & Clark)

  4. Annika Carlson (Chapman)

  5. Chloe Bullock (Redlands)

  6. Jenna LeNay (Occidental) 

  7. Annie Berry (Pacific)

That does it for another regional preview. If you enjoyed this, consider leaving a tip on Venmo @D3GloryDays.

We’ll keep our social media active so you know what is happening around the country.

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