With only conference, regionals, and nationals remaining on the 2019 DI NCAA cross country calendar, we’ve reached the midpoint of the season. All the big races are still to come, but the action thus far has given us a good indication of how the rest of the year will play out. 

Here’s a look at the standout performers halfway through the fall:

Top Freshman

Men - Abdihamid Nur (Northern Arizona)

Nur, who hails from Somalia, has jumped right into the fold of the nation’s best team by placing in NAU’s top three in each of his first three races. He leads a quartet of Lumberjack freshmen, including Theo Quax, Drew Bosley, and Brodey Hasty, who have ensured that the three-time defending champions remain dominant up front.

Women - Ericka VanderLende (Michigan)

Top freshman honors should be a tight competition between VanderLende of Michigan and Washington’s Melany Smart at NCAAs, but VanderLende gets the nod for now with two victories and four consecutive top-five finishes to start her career. The Rockford, Michigan, native beat Smart by a place when they matched up at John McNichols in September.

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Most Improved

Men - Morgan Beadlescomb (Michigan State)

The Spartan junior didn’t run cross country in 2018, so he entered this fall with only modest XC numbers from 2016 and 2017. That fact obscured a strong 2019 track season which indicated Beadlescomb was due for a big breakout. Even still, two wins and a seventh-place finish at Nuttycombe have exceeded expectations.

Women - Katie Izzo (Arkansas)

The Cal Poly transfer has immediately become one of the best runners in the country since arriving in Fayetteville. Her fifth-place finish at Nuttycombe on Friday was the clearest sign yet that she has top-10 potential at NCAAs. For a woman whose best prior finish at nationals is 82nd, her ascent has been nothing short of astonishing.

Comeback Athlete

Men - Thomas Ratcliffe (Stanford)

Ratcliffe has thus far lived up to the promise of his breakout third-place finish in the NCAA outdoor 5K in June by placing second at John McNichols and fourth at Nuttycombe. After missing two full years of competition and enduring two knee surgeries, the redshirt sophomore is finally nearing his potential.

Women - Whittni Orton (BYU)

Orton’s sophomore season ended prematurely last fall after just two races, but consecutive wins in 2019 have her in position to notch her first All-American nod in cross country this season. The junior didn’t race at Pre-Nationals, but she did beat teammate and Pre-Nats champion Erica Birk at Bill Dellinger on Sep. 28.

MVP

Men - Edwin Kurgat (Iowa State)

The senior from Iowa State has won the two most competitive races of the year in dominant fashion. Kurgat’s 10-second win at Nuttycombe looked effortless and sent notice to the rest of the NCAA that the individual title goes through him in 2019.

Women - Alicia Monson (Wisconsin)

Monson overtook New Mexico’s Weini Kelati as the women’s individual NCAA favorite with her nine-second win at Nuttycombe. With it, the Wisconsin senior showed that she is back to full health after an injury-riddled spring on the track.