Preseason DI Women’s Individual Preview: If Iona’s Avery Repeats, She’d Have Earned It

By Tyler Mayforth, USTFCCCA

September 4, 2015

Note: This preview is not predictive, but simply an overview of the top returners.

NEW ORLEANS – Based off last year’s results and her margin of victory, one would think Iona’s Kate Avery is a shoo-in to repeat as NCAA Division I women’s champion.

Avery won by eight seconds at the LaVern Gibson Cross Country Course in Terre Haute, Indiana and was never tested after breaking away 1,000 meters into the race. She became the first British woman to ever win a Division I women’s XC title in the process.

She parlayed that breakthrough performance into a successful 2015 track season where she set personal bests in the 3,000 (8:53.12) as well as the 5,000 (15:25.63) and 10,000 (31:44.44). Avery then competed at the2015 IAAF World Championships, where she represented Great Britain in the 10K and continued to learn how to race against elite competition.

If cross country races and national championships were contested on paper, Avery would be crowned champion – but they’re not. There are several other women hot on Avery’s heels and will be looking to dethrone her come November.

Author

Larry Eder
Larry Eder has had a 52-year involvement in the sport of athletics. Larry has experienced the sport as an athlete, coach, magazine publisher, and now, journalist and blogger. His first article, on Don Bowden, America's first sub-4 minute miler, was published in RW in 1983. Larry has published several magazines on athletics, from American Athletics to the U.S. version of Spikes magazine. He currently manages the content and marketing development of the RunningNetwork, The Shoe Addicts, and RunBlogRun. Of RunBlogRun, his daily pilgrimage with the sport, Larry says: "I have to admit, I love traveling to far away meets, writing about the sport I love, and the athletes I respect, for my readers at runblogrun.com, the most of anything I have ever done, except, maybe running itself." Also does some updates for BBC Sports at key events, which he truly enjoys. Theme song: Greg Allman, " I'm no Angel."
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