OK State Men & Providence Women Open Season as DI Preseason Favorites

OK State Men & Providence Women Open Season as DI Preseason Favorites

NEW ORLEANS – Oklahoma State’s defending NCAA champion men and the Providence women have been voted by the coaches as the Division I preseason No. 1 teams in the National Coaches Poll, the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) announced Tuesday.

A position atop the men’s cross country world is nothing new for Oklahoma State, as the men’s team is the defending champion and has won three of the past four titles. But the Providence women — who came close to the NCAA team title a year ago with a runner-up finish — have not been ranked No. 1 since late in the 1996 season: the season following their 1995 title.

National PDFs: Preseason Top 30 Summary | Week-by-Week 2013 | Week-by-Week All Time

Regional Rankings: Preseason Summary (PDF)

Close behind OK State in the men’s polls are No. 2 Northern Arizona, No. 3 Colorado, No. 4 BYU and tied for No. 5 Arkansas and Tulsa.

The women’s top five is completed by No. 2 Florida State, defending champion No. 3 Oregon, No. 4 Duke and No. 5 Washington.

More in-depth analyses of each team can be found below.

For historical reference, the women’s preseason No. 1 has gone on to claim the team title in each of the past three years, while the men’s favorite has failed to do so in each of the last four seasons.

Recent History of Preseason No. 1

Men

Year
Preseason No. 1
NCAA Finish
NCAA Winner
Preseason Rank
2012
Wisconsin
2
Oklahoma State
2
2011
Oklahoma State
2
Wisconsin
3
2010
Stanford
4
Oklahoma State
2
2009
Oregon
2
Oklahoma State
2

Women

Year
Preseason No. 1
NCAA Finish
NCAA Winner
Preseason Rank
2012
Oregon
1
Oregon
1
2011
Georgetown
1
Georgetown
1
2010
Villanova
1
Villanova
1
2009
Washington
3
Villanova
5

 

The NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships will be held November 23 in Terre Haute, Ind.

MEN

The Midwest and Mountain regions are shaping up to be particularly strong for the men, as five of the nation’s top six squads reside between them: No. 1 Oklahoma State and No. 5 Tulsa from the Midwest and No. 2 Northern Arizona, No. 3 Colorado and No. 4 BYU from the Mountain.

As the defending men’s team champion and the winner of three of the past four team titles, Oklahoma State was selected as the preseason favorite to reclaim its title by virtue of 10 of 12 first-place votes and a total 358 points.  The Cowboys return four scorers from their title-winning squad a year ago, three of whom are now seniors who finished in the top 25 as individuals. Tom Farrell finished ninth overall in 2012, while teammates Shadrack Kipchirchir and Joseph Manilafasha finished 18th and 24th, respectively. Junior Shane Moskowitz (53rd) also returns.

The other two first-place nods went to No. 2 Northern Arizona (349 points), which returns all five scorers from its fourth-place national finish a year ago. Senior Brian Shrader is the elder statesman of the Lumberjacks, having finished a team-best 15th overall at NCAAs in 2012, and will lead the way for a group of young returning scorers that features juniors Matt McElroy (66th) and Caleb Hoover (75th) and two sophomores in Futsum Zienasellassie (31st) and Nathan Weitz (80th).

Northern Arizona was last ranked No. 2 in October of 2009.

Colorado (337 points) starts the 2013 campaign in exactly the same spot it finished 2012 — No. 3 — behind the strength of four returning scorers from a year ago. Like Shrader at NAU, the Buffaloes’ top returning finisher Jake Hurysz (32nd) is also the lone returning senior scorer. He is joined by junior Blake Theroux (39th) and sophomores Pierce Murphy (45th) and Connor Winter (65th).

No. 4 BYU (307 points) enters the 2013 season with four of five scorers returning from its 2012 sixth-place showing — three of whom are seniors. Seniors Tylor Tatcher (34th), Conner Peloquin (84th) and Thomas Gruenwald (91st) all return, as does junior Steve Flint (106th).

Arkansas and Tulsa each garnered 284 points to tie for the No. 5 spot in the preseason poll. Both squads return three scorers from a year ago: Arkansas led by 17th-place finisher senior Kemoy Campbell and Tulsa by 20th-place runner senior Chris O’Hare, the indoor mile collegiate record holder. For Tulsa it is the highest-ever ranking in the National Coaches Poll, beating out their ninth-place high-point from last October.

The 2012 national runner-up Wisconsin Badgers enter 2013 at No. 7 after losing three of five scorers.

Portland is No. 8, followed by Syracuse at an all-time program-best No. 9 and Princeton at No. 10 to complete the top 10.

The ACC tops the list of conferences with six teams represented in the top 30, followed by the Pac-12 and the Big Ten with four apiece.

WOMEN

The Oregon women snapped a lengthy championship drought last season with their first team title since 1987 with a title over runner-up Providence. Could this be the year Providence, which won its last and only title in 1995, follows suit and does the same? The voting committee thinks so, as the Friars (359 points) collected 11 of the 12 first-place votes and are ranked No. 1 in the polls for the first time since attempting a title defense during the 1996 season.

The top three scorers from the Friars’ runners-up effort a year ago return in sophomore Sarah Collins, who finished 10th overall as a freshman last year; and seniors Emily Sisson (15th) and Laura Nagel (35th).

No. 2 Florida State (343 points) has been knocking on the door of a national team title for the last six years, having finished fourth the past two seasons, runner-up in 2009 and 1010, and third in 2007 and 2008. The last time FSU started the season at No. 2 — in 2010 — that is exactly where they finished at NCAAs. In order to live up to lofty preseason expectations and to break through and win the program’s first title, the FSU women will have to fill a void left from the departure of four of its scorers from last year’s team — only junior Colleen Quigley (12th) remains.

Like Florida State, defending champion Oregon lost many of its scorers from last year — its top three scorers, to be precise — but the Ducks enter the season at No. 3 in the country.  Junior transfer Lindsay Crevoiserat, who finished 42nd overall last year while at Connecticut, will join returning Ducks Allie Woodward (44th) and Annie Leblanc (68th) in the title defense effort.

Ranked No. 4 — the highest preseason rank in program history — expectations are high for Duke, which will rely on the experience its top three returning scorers to build on a 2012 season that saw the Blue Devils record a seventh-place finish — the program’s best since a third-place showing in 2005. Just a freshman when she finished 20th last year, Kelsey Lakowske is the squad’s top returner along with senior Juliet Bottoff (27th) and Carolyn Baskir (81st).

No. 5 Washington likewise improves from its ninth-place showing at NCAAs in 2012 behind the return of four returning scorers from last year — all of whom are seniors who experienced the Huskies’ narrow runners-up finish to Georgetown at the 2011 NCAA Championships. A strong crew featuring Megan Goethals (48th), Katie Flood (t89th), Justine Johnson (t89th) and Liberty Miller (152nd) will get one final shot at bringing the program its first title since 2008.

No. 6 Georgetown, the 2011 champ, will look to bounce back after a 12th-place showing a year ago, while No. 7 Arizona and No. 8 Stanford each return three from their 2012 sixth- and third-place results, respectively.

The coaches are expecting marked improvement from No. 9 Arkansas after finishing 18th a year ago, while No. 10 Cornell rounds out the top 10.

Unlike the men’s poll, no single region dominates the top five positions of the women’s poll, as the first five teams hail from four different regions. However, with four teams in the top eight, the West Region (No. 3 Oregon, No. 5 Washington, No. 7 Arizona and No. 8 Stanford) will be exceptionally difficult in 2013, as will the Pac-12.

No. 14 Colorado also makes the list to give the Pac-12 a total of five teams on the list, tied with the ACC for the most of any conference. The Big Ten, Big East and Big 12 are each represented by four squads.

USTFCCCA NCAA Division I

Men’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Poll

2013 Preseason — August 27

next poll: September 17
Rank Institution (FPV) Points Region Conference Cross Country Coach (Yr*)
2012 FINAL
1 Oklahoma State (10) 358 Midwest Big 12 Dave Smith (8th)
1
2 Northern Arizona (2) 349 Mountain Big Sky Eric Heins (7th)
4
3 Colorado 337 Mountain Pac-12 Mark Wetmore (19th)
3
4 BYU 307 Mountain West Coast Ed Eyestone (14th)
6
5 Arkansas 284 South Central SEC Chris Bucknam (6th)
10
5 Tulsa 284 Midwest Conference USA Steve Gulley (12th)
7
7 Wisconsin 279 Great Lakes Big Ten Mick Byrne (6th)
2
8 Portland 269 West West Coast Rob Conner (24th)
12
9 Syracuse 266 Northeast ACC Chris Fox (9th)
15
10 Princeton 254 Mid-Atlantic Ivy Jason Vigilante (2nd)
11
11 Eastern Kentucky 219 Southeast Ohio Valley Rick Erdmann (35th)
24
12 Oregon 203 West Pac-12 Robert Johnson (2nd)
20
13 UCLA 197 West Pac-12 Mike Maynard (5th)
13
14 Iona 193 Northeast Metro Atlantic Ricardo Santos (6th)
29
15 Texas 172 South Central Big 12 Mario Sategna (1st)
9
16 Stanford 167 West Pac-12 Chris Miltenberg (2nd)
16
17 Virginia 163 Southeast ACC Peter Watson (2nd)
14
18 Columbia 132 Northeast Ivy Willy Wood (20th)
17
19 New Mexico 127 Mountain Mountain West Joe Franklin (7th)
21
20 Indiana 126 Great Lakes Big Ten Ron Helmer (7th)
18
21 Florida State 125 South ACC Bob Braman (14th)
5
22 Notre Dame 116 Great Lakes ACC Joe Piane (39th)
28
23 Florida 112 South SEC Mike Holloway (7th)
NR
24 Georgetown 110 Mid-Atlantic Big East Patrick Henner (15th)
25
25 NC State 91 Southeast ACC Rollie Geiger (36th)
26
26 Michigan 72 Great Lakes Big Ten Alex Gibby (4th)
23
27 Villanova 65 Mid-Atlantic Big East Marcus O’Sullivan (14th)
27
28 Duke 41 Southeast ACC Norm Ogilvie (23rd)
30
29 Dartmouth 28 Northeast Ivy Barry Harwick (22nd)
NR
30 Michigan State 24 Great Lakes Big Ten Walt Drenth (10th)
31
Others Receiving Votes: Georgia 20, Illinois 18, Providence 17, Virginia Tech 12, Washington 9, North Carolina 8, Oklahoma 8, Alabama 7, Louisville 3, Harvard 3, Missouri 3, Arizona State 1, Air Force 1.
(* year as effective coach of that team in men’s cross country)

 

USTFCCCA NCAA Division I

Women’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Poll

2013 Preseason — August 27

next poll: September 17
Rank Institution (FPV) Points Region Conference Cross Country Coach (Yr*)
2012 FINAL
1 Providence (11) 359 Northeast Big East Ray Treacy (30th)
2
2 Florida State 343 South ACC Karen Harvey (7th)
4
3 Oregon (1) 334 West Pac-12 Robert Johnson (2nd)
1
4 Duke 321 Southeast ACC Kevin Jermyn (10th)
7
5 Washington 317 West Pac-12 Greg Metcalf (12th)
9
6 Georgetown 283 Mid-Atlantic Big East Michael Smith (2nd)
12
7 Arizona 278 West Pac-12 James Li (12th)
6
8 Stanford 276 West Pac-12 Chris Miltenberg (2nd)
3
9 Arkansas 238 South Central SEC Lance Harter (24th)
18
10 Cornell 234 Northeast Ivy Artie Smith (15th)
13
11 Penn State 223 Mid-Atlantic Big Ten Beth Alford-Sullivan (15th)
14
12 Villanova 221 Mid-Atlantic Big East Gina Procaccio (14th)
20
13 Michigan State 219 Great Lakes Big Ten Walt Drenth (10th)
16
14 Colorado 196 Mountain Pac-12 Mark Wetmore (19th)
24
15 New Mexico 195 Mountain Mountain West Joe Franklin (7th)
10
16 William and Mary 188 Southeast Colonial Jill Miller (2nd)
21
17 Michigan 184 Great Lakes Big Ten Mike McGuire (22nd)
5
18 Notre Dame 143 Great Lakes ACC Tim Connelly (26th)
15
19 Minnesota 129 Midwest Big Ten Sarah Hopkins (1st)
22
20 Vanderbilt 123 South SEC Steve Keith (8th)
27
21 Oklahoma State 112 Midwest Big 12 Dave Smith (5th)
26
22 NC State 109 Southeast ACC Laurie Henes (8th)
NR
23 San Francisco 95 West West Coast Helen Lehman-Winters (11th)
NR
24 Weber State 69 Mountain Big Sky Paul Pilkington (7th)
17
25 Boston College 68 Northeast ACC Randy Thomas (22nd)
19
26 Iowa State 56 Midwest Big 12 Andrea Grove-McDonough (1st)
11
27 Texas 54 South Central Big 12 Mario Sategna (1st)
25
28 Princeton 48 Mid-Atlantic Ivy Peter Farrell (36th)
NR
29 West Virginia 47 Mid-Atlantic Big 12 Sean Cleary (7th)
NR
30 Butler 23 Great Lakes Big East Matt Roe (7th)
29
Others Receiving Votes: Georgia 21, Connecticut 19, North Carolina 14, UC Davis 13, Harvard 11, Toledo 7, Florida 4, Syracuse 3, Northern Arizona 2, Texas A&M 1
(* year as effective coach of that team in women’s cross country)

Athletic.net
Presenting sponsor of USTFCCCA Polls and Rankings

USTFCCCA NCAA Division I
's Outdoor Track & Field National Rankings

Preseason - July 30th

RANK TEAM & INFOPTS-1
FINAL

VIEW ALL RANKINGS BEYOND THE TOP 25



Week-by-Week Ranking

Only showing those with a season-best ranking in the top 25.
TeamWeek #1Week #2Week #3Week #4Week #5Week #6Week #7Week #8Week #9Week #10FINAL
Southern California25211111111
Texas A&M11122222421
Arkansas553478994333
Auburn502529121311109864
New Mexico1891067888695
Oklahoma71317161919201718176
Minnesota3235676109107
Ole Miss332428171820211615118
Florida2868111414141516158
Kentucky582727373836382524238
BYU13891312677101611
Oklahoma State4432262828403035413011
Oregon9737434551556069545311
South Florida107781113131314514
Tennessee845333332714
Kansas1715323844514232292816
Texas Tech4116109101111111417
North Carolina3538599092333521323717
Wisconsin11686305334231822202419
Houston623184235475439362519
Texas State1234232633372538352721
Baylor1301621664626313328393621
Alabama916141510121212121223
Mississippi State2126121822262327262023
Virginia Tech5130312931212220212623
South Carolina5719152727282926253223
Louisville11036453539424834343423
LSU1510161415151514131828
Iowa2020192317181924232229
Iowa State21752393940393940333130
Washington5444512023293250434530
Miami (Fla.)4862766169586346464630
Kansas State20111910664687164605230
Texas514201916171718171334
Nebraska1491811954467835
Duke5239543245455336303335
Arizona3917213036161623221937
California2222334752525143423837
Cal Poly6851675454594141384137
Furman1361431555858576266586137
UC Santa Barbara75791111261381506871726737
Princeton6373356241343742372942
Arkansas State3147494857635973707142
Illinois20668817885728190937844
Georgia3634445555445
Florida State4912132121222619192146
Villanova1428243129323433494746
Harvard7340446768674047685746
Missouri32768783837778828010346
Arkansas-Pine Bluff11815418418717518319111811510546
Air Force4349373342434545454051
California Baptist8081854949494949746851
UCLA3443415159615765618151
Wake Forest4259645656505668754254
Washington State10646484037383644404354
Virginia1133252425303137445054
Tarleton State7880862520242430275654
Northern Arizona15265704348444751473558
Arizona State4656692224272831284458
NC State1001501678560626457566358
Portland17060657676797678867558
DePaul1921961921661341401441051099458
Bradley16112614219519920120119514058
Rutgers85109405250697381827664
Wyoming13278627577757576654865
Montana State951011185555606570676566
Cincinnati3042506471716962627266
Cornell5348527166859696798466
ULM4545557272747079819166
UMass Lowell82100101969596100981019866
Davidson176132139155161929410410810866
Penn88145574447464352504972
Georgetown103353634302527293139
North Carolina A&T29212236434850607151
TCU24634760617072555154
Stanford196616677788285877655
Wichita State102156115100105103110777758
Ohio State55989166747884807859
Clemson111152162117122101108585360
Penn State25313841323544535762
Utah State117839550535355545264
Akron41547365655661565566
Western Illinois2077268676567747369
Long Beach State16294257626652616370
Purdue65775859464146484873
Tulane14020721017419319419417216774
Howard749510012915314114312411977
Alabama State1849096125131132131756979
Navy9912114115114515614715915580
Northern Colorado22312315011312512814212011782
Columbia13413314016317217983899083
Youngstown State15616317582828477858385
Notre Dame47848915315214415214113286
Connecticut19418473848792838987
Indiana State16716797101738080939188
Eastern Kentucky23586888908889919489
Michigan561056395939910112211390
Kennesaw State72102114119135133133635992
Indiana7713110774798379888493
Southeast Missouri12815116815211511411811511695
Colorado268546708090991129696
South Dakota State20914614394999595959797
UTSA87130151848886919910299
Eastern Illinois205179184164165100
Memphis7611312998100971038485101
Southern138171147156117115119126128102
Kent State66948393818182102105104
Pittsburgh6075931151101181247266106
Butler67110106136139136134147139107
Coppin State98141161165176165169171161109
Southern Miss13911913814411111388103104110
South Dakota214125112109112117121113114111
Albany187114135123137147155179166112
Louisiana Tech180178153130126135139145145113
Oakland96100104137138114
Louisiana38727886918990111112115
Florida A&M177112125127151149158136135116
Rice122129158140142111112128120117
Weber State2197053114116112113116118118
Northeastern147149103108123129138153153119
Jackson State189214197183187195199135133120
High Point835060819498102107107121
Central Connecticut State94115126122127123123127127122
Syracuse107157156179190191192194170123
Binghamton155147164168168152162148146124
Samford191961211487573868687125
Sacramento State145174182156165167174173172126
Boise State182181192198186130124127
Liberty895779878991939288128
Cal State Fullerton37717780869497114110129
UC Irvine90103113110114125125129122130
UMBC105104117121124130130134131131
Manhattan126135132159158160163163158132
Michigan State79137152134147143150140134133
Iona109177174197200200204192134
Utah Valley13112012212412912112010092135
Kansas City207124137159164140176168136
Army West Point211164172164174176176165157137
North Dakota State64667579879398117159138
Grand Canyon696780929876749495139
Sam Houston State101160165158163119117133129141
San Jose State104127157154160173181186175142
Northwestern State158190154161136139137158156143
CSUN615361636364666764
Gonzaga999811210910510610698
Stephen F. Austin921171271041131241299799
Alcorn State213159169169181190109100
South Alabama8610710910710810687101103
Middle Tennessee81977499107116122110106
Georgia Tech121124145132143151157108111
Buffalo154168186180184186188121121
Gardner-Webb14213694102104107107123123
UTEP159188102105117109115125125
Yale708790103106127154146126
Houston Christian1631851049797102105132130
Colorado State186179134143157138136139136
Western Kentucky190153160173186202205144137
North Dakota8292111121122128138140
Bethune-Cookman91937191103110111142141
North Texas113122123131133145148156142
North Florida9691110150148146153157143
Appalachian State172196147140148149143144
Campbell144748289102108109150147
Troy204209146155148
Coastal Carolina165217201126149149
Charlotte125111128135119126127152150
Norfolk State276988120128131132151151
UMass119169171201155160154152
Lamar108134149138149158161161154
UT Arlington4089137141144142151162160
Southern Illinois168162
Montana146180189184184163167169163
Maryland17588105160156157165175164
Milwaukee178181195140176168
George Mason114118130128132137135178171
Delaware State185165167174173172
Northern Iowa158163145150153156169174
Southern Utah220159168181176
Mount St. Mary's135165177170170175173182177
La Salle137192193191197198198198178
New Orleans222198162162166185179
Xavier93138136177183182185184180
McNeese State151184195193182181
New Hampshire217199207170169178187182
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi181199171173177180189182
Monmouth159179146164170179191182
UNC-Wilmington150186199187185
Idaho State174196196178182189186
VCU127142144139146161164196187
Tulsa203201188
Grambling State197189
Illinois State160193189
Providence173208204192193195200191
Dartmouth133191211201188172195193
Lipscomb62116146188196197201194
Boston University59106116181180174183202196
Holy Cross198190197
Eastern Michigan141183120142155171177202198
Drake202198
CSU Bakersfield196204186186194199202198
Brown198
East Texas A&M7164566970545859
Loyola-Chicago171108108118120120116119
St. Thomas (Minn.)124144194190101104114131
Florida International188140148133141154159160
Incarnate Word99116130134145166
Abilene Christian129170211167
Toledo84139131162167172171180
Little Rock11592133149154166170192
UC San Diego169189202193
Lehigh223185176177185187199
Southeastern Louisiana120161169167177183188
UTRGV143172180178182190193
Rhode Island112128182184189192196
UNC Asheville179215173175179189197
American123166178189195196200
East Carolina148170172181187202
Eastern Washington204207182191203
Central Arkansas166211205201188
New Mexico State194
UC Riverside162187200198
VMI198
Boston College157175176
West Georgia148173188
Marshall153176191
Fresno State155198
Miami (Ohio)168202202
Chicago State182204207
N.C. Central193194
South Carolina State216195
Hampton221199
UC Davis214209
Oral Roberts193212
Fairleigh Dickinson212
Charleston Southern164216
William & Mary217
ETSU183
George Washington195
Hofstra199
Wofford200
Colgate202
USC Upstate202
Saint Francis (Pa.)205
UMES209
Alabama A&M212
Belmont223

USTFCCCA NCAA Division I Cross Country

2013 Rankings & Polls Calendar
Weeks Regional RankingsNational Coaches' Poll KEY DATES
PreseasonMon 8/26
MEN | WOMEN
Tue 8/27
MEN | WOMEN
Week 1Mon 9/16
MEN | WOMEN
Tue 9/17
MEN | WOMEN
Week 2Mon 9/23
MEN | WOMEN
Tue 9/24
MEN | WOMEN
Week 3Mon 9/30
MEN | WOMEN
Tue 10/1
MEN | WOMEN
Week 4Mon 10/7
MEN | WOMEN
Tue 10/8
MEN | WOMEN
Week 5Mon 10/21
MEN | WOMEN
Tue 10/22
MEN | WOMEN
Week 6Mon 11/4
MEN | WOMEN
Tue 11/5
MEN | WOMEN
Week 7Mon 11/18
MEN | WOMEN
FINAL Results
(official final ranking)
Fri 11/15
MEN | WOMEN
Sat 11/23
MEN | WOMEN