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2018 DII NCAA XC Championships

DII XC Regional Recap: Mines Tops Adams State, U-Mary Rises

DII XC Regional Recap: Mines Tops Adams State, U-Mary Rises

RMAC foes battled ahead of nationals and U-Mary impressed at NCAA DII regionals.

Nov 20, 2018 by Lincoln Shryack
2018 DII & DIII FloXC Show: November 20th

The NCAA fields of 34 teams for the DII men and women have been set, and all that remains is the 2018 DII NCAA XC Championships in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on December 1.

Watch the 2018 DII NCAA XC Championships Live on FloTrack

Here were the highlights from DII regional weekend on Saturday:

D2 Men: Colorado Mines Defeats Short-Handed Adams State At South Central

The frigid D2 South Central regional in Denver, Colorado, on Saturday was No. 1 Adams State and No. 3 Colorado School of Mines’ first real meeting of the 2018 season, as Mines rested their top runners at the RMAC Championships two weeks earlier. Round one went to the Orediggers this past weekend in a 49-57 score, although recent history suggests that regional results mean little with respect to nationals. Last year, Adams State only beat Mines 35-38 at the South Central before pounding them by 41 points at NCAAs.

However, Adams State may actually be vulnerable this time. 

Mines looked stronger than the two-time defending NCAA champs did in their championship warm-up-- and not just because ASU was holding something back for nationals. 2017 NCAA XC top 10 finishers Kale Adams and Joshua Joseph haven’t been as strong compared to last year, and that continued on Saturday, leaving the door open for a Mines team that is quickly on the rise. 

Oredigger senior Grant Colligan won the race by 16 seconds, and has officially thrown his hat into the NCAA individual champion conversation with two impressive races this season. Mines went 6-12-13-17 behind Colligan, and that was without sophomore Luc Hagen-- third at Pre-Nats-- who did not race.

For Adams State, there’s little doubt that conference winner and six-time NCAA champion Sydney Gidabuday was holding back as he took fourth-- 27 seconds behind Colligan and second on the ASU team for the first time this season. The Grizzlies also put two other runners in the top 10 so they are still stocked up front, but Kale Adams and Joshua Joseph-- third and ninth at nationals in 2017-- both had off days at regionals as Adams DNF’d and Joseph was just 21st.

Top frosh Isaiah Rodarte, who was fifth at the competitive RMAC Championships, didn’t race at regionals, so Adams State will still have the benefit of another stud to call on if either Adams or Joseph continue to falter, but he’s no sure thing as an NCAA first-timer. 

It will be fascinating to see if Damon Martin’s crew can once again elevate their game at NCAAs to win title No. 14. If not, Mines will be ready to snatch the throne.

D2 Women: Adams State Bests Western Colorado By One Point, Setting Up Thrilling NCAA Battle

It was another highly entertaining matchup between No. 1 Adams State and No. 2 Western Colorado at the South Central, and the Grizzlies’ one-point margin of victory on Saturday sets up what should be a tight team battle in Pittsburgh.

The Mountaineers once again had great representation up front, as seniors Alicja Konieczek and Sophie Seward went 1-2 in 21:25 and 21:28, respectively, for the 6k course. Konieczek, the eight-time NCAA champion on the track, has now emerged from a loaded pack of individual contenders to become the favorite for NCAAs. She’ll go for her first NCAA XC title in her final college cross country race on December 1.

Western had two other runners in the top 10-- Aneta Konieczek (sixth) and Kennedy Rufener (eighth)-- but the difference for Adams State continues to be their minuscule spread relative to the Mountaineers. The Grizzlies went 3-4-5-7-11 to complete a :23 second spread, while Western’s was :53 seconds.

With both teams having numerous low sticks, it would appear to be advantage ASU heading into nationals. They’ll be looking for their 18th NCAA XC title in Pittsburgh, with Western Colorado-- a team stocked with seniors-- hoping for their first since 2002.

D2 Women: U-Mary Suddenly Looks Like A Title Contender

Speaking of the NCAA women’s team battle, the U-Mary Marauders-- second at nationals in 2017-- are right in the thick of it after a brilliant Central regional performance in which they went 1-2-4-8-14, led by All-American Jaiden Schuette’s individual win in 20:52.

U-Mary actually has four returning All-Americans this season, and all are trending in the right direction ahead of nationals. Schuette (17th at NCAAs in 2017), Ida Narbuvoll (12th at NCAAs in 2016), and Kate Fox (29th at NCAA in 2017) were all expected to contribute significantly this season, but the unexpected addition has been Southern Indiana transfer Emily Roberts, who took second behind Schuette on Saturday in 20:55.

Roberts is a stud, when healthy. She was fifth at nationals two years in a row in 2015 and 2016, but injuries derailed her final year and a half in Evansville, and as recently as February she was only running 18:30 for 5k despite having a 16:05 PR. At the Roy Griak Invite in late September, Roberts was only U-Mary's seventh, nearly two minutes behind Schuette. In short, she looked done.

But after three consecutive top three finishes, it appears that the Emily Roberts of old has returned. If she delivers at NCAAs, the Marauders could score an epic upset of Adams State and Western Colorado.