Photo of Danielle Katz by John Todd/ISIphotos.com
The Stanford cross country teams will race at full strength for the first time this season when they take on some of the nation's best, at Wisconsin and Pre-Nationals this weekend.
At the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational in Madison on Friday, the No. 11 Cardinal men will feature Sean McGorty and Grant Fisher, who race for the first time since the Olympic Track and Field Trials in July, while providing a glimpse of the team that is expected to contend for a national championship next month.
At Saturday's Pre-Nationals on the NCAA championship course in Terre Haute, Indiana, freshmen Christina Aragon and Ella Donaghu will make their collegiate debut for No. 7 Stanford. They join All-Americas Elise Cranny and Vanessa Fraser on what should be an intriguing team to watch.
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Race Information
Men
Friday
Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational
Site: Madison, Wis.
Course: Thomas Zimmer Championship Course
Distance: 8K (4.97 miles)
Men's race: 11:20 a.m. PT
Meet central: Click here.
Live stream (subscription): Flotrack Pro
Live results: Click here.
Twitter: @stanfordxctf
Women
Saturday
Pre-National Invitational
Site: Terre Haute, Ind.
Course: LaVern Gibson Championship Course
Distance: 6K (3.73 miles)
Women's blue race: 8 a.m. PT
Meet central: Click here.
Live stream (subscription): Flotrack Pro
Live results: Click here.
Twitter: @stanfordxctf
USTFCCCA Rankings:
Stanford men: No. 11
Stanford women: No. 7
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Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational
Men's race preview: This meet has grown in stature because it offers the best chance to beat top teams head-to-head and improve chances to qualify for the NCAA Championships as an at-large team, if necessary. Nineteen of the top 30 teams in the USTFCCCA rankings are scheduled to compete. Among them: No. 1 Northern Arizona, No. 2 Syracuse, No. 3 BYU, No. 7 Portland, and No. 8 Iona among top-10 teams. The individual race features Northern Arizona's Futsum Zienasellassie (NCAA men's 10,000-meter runner-up), Syracuse's Justyn Knight (fourth, 2015 NCAA cross country), and Georgetown's Jonathan Green (fifth, NCAA XC) among a strong field.
Stanford breakdown: The Cardinal was the preseason No. 4, but has dropped after two races. However, this is the first with Sean McGorty and Grant Fisher, who raced in the 5,000 at the U.S. Olympic Trials and were given extra time to readjust after a long track campaign. McGorty, a senior, was the NCAA outdoor 5,000 and indoor 3,000 runner-up last year and was seventh in NCAA cross country. Fisher was the top American freshman at NCAA cross country last year, in 17th. Both ran 13:30 or faster in the 5,000 last spring. The rest of Stanford's top seven competed at the Virginia/Panorama Farms Invitational Sept. 23 and struggled to fifth. BYU and Syracuse – both of whom are running at Wisco – finished 1-2. This will be Stanford's last race before the Pac-12 Championships Oct. 28 in Tucson, Arizona.
History: Last year, McGorty was third, but Stanford was 21st. Stanford's Maksim Korolev won the individual race in 2014 and the Cardinal was the team winner in 2012. This is Stanford's fourth trip to the event, which began in 2009.
Stanford's possible competitors: Steven Fahy, Grant Fisher, Blair Hurlock, Jack Keelan, Will Lauer, Sean McGorty, Garrett Sweatt, Sam Wharton.
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Pre-National Invitational
Women's race preview: The blue race includes eight teams ranked among the USTFCCCA top 22, including four in the top 10. The most prominent teams are No. 2 Colorado, No. 5 Portland, No. 9 Oregon, No. 12 Arkansas, and No. 13 Michigan. Pac-12 steeplechase champion Erin Clark leads a strong Colorado team. Oregon features freshman Katie Rainsberger, and Portland has made an impression by winning the Roy Griak Invitational. Michigan's Erin Finn is the reigning Big Ten champ and likely would have threatened at NCAA's if not for losing a shoe on the course and finishing 19th.
Stanford breakdown: The Cardinal chose this race because it has a young team that has never run on the NCAA championship course. Three members of Stanford's top-ranked freshman class will race this season, and all will be in Terre Haute. Christina Aragon and Ella Donaghu will make their collegiate debut. In an eventful summer, Aragon reached the U.S. Olympic Trials semifinals in the 1,500 and became the first American woman to medal (bronze) at the World Under-20 Championships in that event. Donaghu became the seventh-fastest high school 1,500 runner ever (4:14.11) -- teammates Aragon and Elise Cranny join her in the top seven -- and was second at the 2015 Nike Cross Nationals. They are joined by classmate Hannah DeBalsi, a 9:55 two-miler in high school. Cranny, the Stanford Invitational winner, will cut loose for the first time against top cross-country competition since the 2015 NCAA race, in which she placed 11th.
Stanford's meet history: Stanford has twice won, in 2006 and 2007, correctly predicting the NCAA championship results both years. Last year, Stanford was fourth. Aisling Cuffe's second place in 2013 matched Stanford's best in the meet, with Teresa McWalters in 2007 and Arianna Lambie in 2006.
Stanford's possible competitors: Christina Aragon, Maddy Berkson, Elise Cranny, Hannah DeBalsi, Ella Donaghu, Vanessa Fraser, Danielle Katz, Julia Maxwell, Abbie McNulty, Catherine Pagano.