Big Jumps The Focus Of Newest Men’s NCAA DIII XC Coaches’ Poll

NEW ORLEANS — A lot changed in the NCAA Division III Men’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Poll from Week 1 to Week 2. How much?

NCAA Division III National Coaches Poll Top 5 – Men 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) North Central (Ill.) SUNY Geneseo Williams UW-Eau Claire Pomona-Pitzer View Complete Men’s National Coaches Poll

Well, for starters, only eight teams remained in place from Week 1.

Another team went from not being ranked to landing in the top-15.

That’s all for starters. Let’s take a look at the most recent poll that was released Wednesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) and find out why this all happened.

Nothing changed in the top-4 as North Central (Ill.) is still No. 1 with seven first-place votes, SUNY Geneseo is ranked No. 2 with one first-place vote and third-ranked Williams and fourth-ranked UW-Eau Claire haven’t moved since the preseason.

Pomona-Pitzer is back in the top-5 after a week absence. The Sagehens bounced MIT from the top-5 in the process and UW-La Crosse moved up one spot to break a tie with Claremont-Mudd-Scripps.

Here’s where things get interesting: Mount Union is now ranked No. 13. The Purple Raiders competed at the Yellow Jacket Invitational in Rochester, New York and won in a rout over Case Western Reserve and St. Lawrence. Mount Union’s Preston Myers won the meet and two of his teammates finished inside the top-10. This is the Purple Raiders’ best ranking in program history, topping the old mark of No. 20 in 2010.

NATIONAL PDFs: Summary | Week-By-Week 2016 | Week-By-Week All-Time
Regional Rankings: Week 2 Summary | Week 2 Recap

WOMEN’S WEEK TWO NATIONAL COACHES’ POLL

Elsewhere, Colby and RPI both jumped six and five spots, respectively. The Mules went from No. 22 to No. 16 after competing once this year (but once might be enough when it’s a head-to-head win over No. 21 Bates). The Engineers recently took second at the Ron Stonistsch Invitational hosted by Vassar College.

Speaking of Bates, that team went from not being ranked to No. 21. The Bobcats recently captured the team title at the Super XC Shootout where they beat Tufts and WPI.

Two spots below Bates sits Gustavus Adolphus, another program that surged into the poll this week. The Lions took fifth at the St. Olaf Invitational this past weekend and were led by senior Thomas Knobbe, who placed third in 25:46.9.

Two other teams worked their way inside the poll this week: SUNY Oneonta and Washington (Mo.). The former captured the team title at its own Airline Invitational, while the latter rolled at the Gil Dodds Invitational, hosted by Wheaton.

We should see a lot more movement in the coming weeks and especially in the two months leading up to the 2016 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships that will take place Saturday, November 19 at E.P. “Tom” Sawyer Park in Louisville, Kentucky.