Three No. 1 Teams Take Over in DIII Regional Polls

NEW ORLEANS – If the newest Regional Team Rankings for Division III Cross Country are any indication, there might be a changing of the guard in the National Coaches’ Poll.

In the rankings that were released Tuesday afternoon by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA), the UW-Eau Claire men uprooted reigning national champ North Central (Ill.) as the top team in the Midwest Region. This is the first time in the past five years (Week 1 in 2010) that the Cardinals aren’t the top-ranked team in their region.

Quick Jump: Men’s Rankings | Women’s Rankings
Regional Rankings Summary PDF | Division III XC Rankings Central

Both the Blugolds and North Central (Ill.) raced this past weekend. UW-Eau Claire hosted its annual Blugold Invitational and welcomed DIII No. 2 St. Olaf, DIII No. 8 UW-La Crosse and DIII No. 28 UW-Platteville to its 8K course. The Cardinals took part in the Gold race at the Joe Piane Notre Dame Invitational along with a number of DI teams as well as DIII No. 14 UW-Oshkosh and DIII No. 16 Calvin.

UW-Eau Claire won its own invitational by putting four runners inside the top-15 (three in the top-8). North Central (Ill.) finished second behind DI Clemson in its race.

The Blugolds have never been ranked higher than No. 2 in the Midwest Region and was No. 3 coming into the weekend. UW-Eau Claire also jumped Washington (Mo.), a team that was No. 2 at the time and is now No. 3.

Not to be outdone, there are two other new No. 1 teams in their respective regions – Geneseo State in the Atlantic Region and Haverford, moving into a tie with Carnegie Mellon in the Mideast Region. Geneseo State won the Mike Woods Invitational going away this past weekend (42-103-203) and Haverford was runner-up in the Division II/Division III portion of the Paul Short Run.

Other big movers in the men’s rankings included Wesleyan (Conn.) and Alleghany (Pa.). Wesleyan (Conn.) jumped five spots in the New England Region to No. 5, which is its loftiest ranking in program history. Alleghany (Pa.) continued its surge and is now No. 2 in the Great Lakes for the first time since 2012.

Every No. 1 team in the women’s poll maintained its spot and that includes defending national champion Johns Hopkins. Where there was movement was in the second spots behind those No. 1s, namely in the Great Lakes Region, Mideast Region, New England Region and South/Southeast Region.

Otterbein jumped from No. 4 to No. 2 in the Great Lakes Region. Swarthmore zoomed four places from No. 6 to No. 2 in the Mideast Region. Tufts went from No. 4 to No. 2 in the New England Region. Christopher Newport and Trinity (Texas) are now tied at No. 2 in the South/Southeast Region.

There are 16 new additions in total to the men’s and women’s polls this week.

Joining the men’s poll are Rowan (Atlantic), Ramapo (Atlantic), Otterbein (Great Lakes), Ohio Wesleyan (Great Lakes), Birmingham-Southern (South/Southeast), Saint Vincent (Mideast) and Linfield (West).

Making their debut in the women’s poll are TCNJ (Atlantic), SUNY Plattsburgh (Atlantic), UW-Platteville (Midwest), Nebraska Wesleyan (Central), Manchester (Great Lakes), Centre (South/Southeast), Muhlenberg (Mideast), Linfield (West) and Occidental (West).

The NCAA Division III Regional Championships will be held across the nation on Saturday, November 14. Then one week later, the national meet will be held at the Lake Breeze Golf Course in Winnerconne, Wisconsin.

USTFCCCA Regional Cross Country Rankings are determined subjectively by a single member coach in each respective region. The regional representative is tasked with weighing returning teams strength with current season results (if applicable) in determining predicted team finishes at the NCAA Regional Championships.