NCAA XC Championships: Teams On The Rise

NEW ORLEANS — There was some incredible racing this past weekend across all three NCAA divisions at their respective Cross Country Championships.

The LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course in Terre Haute, Indiana hosted the NCAA Division I meet, while The Abbey Course in Saint Leo, Florida welcomed runners in NCAA Division II and E.P. "Tom" Sawyer Park in Louisville, Kentucky added the NCAA Division III fete to its ledger.

QUICK LINKS: NCAA DI Results | NCAA DII Results | NCAA DIII Results

By now we know what individuals and teams earned national glory. That’s old news.

But what about those teams that outkicked their coverage? In other words: What teams outperformed their pre-meet ranking the most? We break it down across each NCAA division, three teams per gender.

NCAA DIVISION I

MEN

National Champ: Northern Arizona

Ole Miss (No. 11 to No. 4): How about those Rebels? Ole Miss entered the 2016 season ranked 22nd and then surged into the top-10 after a big win at the Joe Piane Notre Dame Invitational. If that didn’t open anybody’s eyes, what the Rebels did in Terre Haute, Indiana sure did. Ole Miss had two All-Americans in MJ Erb (6th) and Wes Gallagher (39th) and if Sean Tobin (62nd) or Craig Engels (90th) ran more to their potential, a better podium spot awaited. Still, the Rebels can’t be upset with their first podium finish in program history.

Iowa State (No. 23 to No. 16): While the LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course turned away the Cyclone women (came in ranked 16th, finished 29th), the men stepped up their game. Iowa State put two in the top-60 with Thomas Pollard (45th) and Kevyn Hoyos (58th) and finished six points out of the top-15. The Cyclones had been ranked as high as 13th this season and showed why in Terredise.

Boise State (No. 29 to No. 19): The Broncos forced us to take notice of them at the Roy Griak Invitational when they took 3rd place in a stacked field. A little more than one month later, Boise State grabbed our attention once again with a stunning victory at the Mountain West Conference Championships. Then in Terre Haute, Yusuke Uchikoshi wrapped up a stellar season with an 18th-place effort to lead the Broncos to a 19th-place finish. A modest improvement from Michael Vennard (93rd in 2015, 111th this year) would have pushed Boise State higher up in the standings.

WOMEN

National Champ: Oregon

Oregon (No. 12 to No. 1): What more can you say about the Ducks? Oregon became the lowest ranked team to ever win an NCAA DI XC title, besting the previous mark set by Georgetown’s women in 2011 (4th). The Ducks had three All-Americans in Katie Rainsberger (4th), Alli Cash (14th) and Samantha Nadel (21st) and have Maggie Schmaedick (64th) to thank for the crown. Schmaedick held off Michigan’s Jaimie Phelan to secure the 1-point win over the Wolverines.

Michigan State (No. 22 to No. 8): Doubt the Spartans all you want, but once November hits they’ll make you pay for it. Michigan State saw Rachele Schulist return to form and Alexis Wiersma find her way inside the top-50. Schulist, who battled injuries last year and struggled a bit this year, finished 12th to earn the 2nd XC All-America award of her career. This is the 3rd time in the past 4 years that the Spartans finished among the top-10 in the team standings.

Eastern Michigan (No. 24 to No. 9): The Eagles hadn’t made an NCAA XC meet since 1996. EMU sure wasn’t going to let its first opportunity in 20 years pass it by. Behind an All-America performance by Jordann McDermitt (24th), the Eagles finished 9th in the team standings between powerhouses Michigan State (8th) and BYU (10th). Want to know the crazy thing? A marginal improvement by Natalie Cizmas (70th) would have put EMU closer to the podium. The Eagles finished 9 points shy of 6th place.

NCAA DIVISION II

MEN

National Champ: Adams State

Missouri Southern (No. 10 to No. 7): The Lions got an otherworldly performance from Vincent Kiprop this past weekend. Kiprop won the NCAA DII individual title by 29 seconds over defending champ Alfred Chelanga of Shorter. That low stick propelled Missouri Southern forward as it took 7th place in the team standings. The Lions hadn’t finished 7th or better in the team standings since 2002 when they also finished 7th.

Academy of Art (No. 15 to No. 11): Call it "The Josh Thorson Effect." One year after leading DIII UW-Eau Claire to a pair of national titles (XC, Indoor), Thorson carried the Urban Knights to NCAAs for the first time in program history. Thorson finished 40th this past weekend and Academy of Art was 11th as a team. That’s not a bad place to be for the Urban Knights as they’ll return three of its top-7 next year.

MSU-Moorhead (RV to No. 21): The Dragons were just one vote shy of making the Pre-Championship Edition of the National Coaches’ Poll. MSU-Moorhead made sure to let the voting coaches know it should have been ranked. The Dragons topped four teams that were in the top-25 — No. 14 American International, No. 23 Lock Haven, No. 25 Stonehill and No. 13 Mount Olive — and put two runners in the top-100.

WOMEN

National Champ: Grand Valley State

Cal Baptist (No. 23 to No. 9): What can pack running do for you at NCAAs? Just ask the Lancers. Cal Baptist was one of two teams in the top-10 that didn’t have a runner in the top-30 (Chico State was the other). The Lancers did put three in the top-70 — led by All-America selection Katie Deimling (39th) — and finished 9th overall. Not bad for a team that came into the meet ranked 23rd.

Queens (N.C.) (No. 24 to No. 15): The Royals came into NCAAs as one of the last teams in the National Coaches’ Poll. Queens (N.C.) used an All-America finish by Corinne Kule (36th) to anchor them in the top-15. This was the Royals’ best finish at NCAAs since they were 9th in 2010.

Fort Hays State (RV to No. 18): Before this year, the Tigers had only been ranked in the National Coaches’ Poll once. That was back in 2007 when they were 24th in Week 9. Fort Hays State made sure to leave its mark on its first trip to NCAAs when it placed 18th as a team. Shea Bonine, the Tigers’ top runner, finished just outside of All-America contention in 41st place.

NCAA DIVISION III

MEN

National Champ: North Central (Ill.)

Washington (Mo.) (No. 10 to No. 4): Last year was an exception to the rule for the Bears when they finished 16th at NCAAs. WashU ended up on the podium in 2013 and 2014 before that. The Bears returned to the podium this year as they had two All-America selections in Ryan Becker (16th) and David O’Gara (29th).

Christopher Newport (No. 23 to No. 11): Before last year the last time the Captains made it to NCAAs was 1994. Fast forward one year and CNU’s expectations are sky high for the future. The Captains finished 11th this year, one year after placing 32nd. CNU was just 4 points shy of the top-10. Grayson Reid was the Captains’ top finisher in 40th place.

Ohio Northern (No. 25 to No. 14): The Polar Bears had three runners in the top-75 and their top finisher Ian McVey was just one spot out of All-America contention (36th). ONU entered the meet ranked No. 25 in the Pre-Championship Edition of the National Coaches’ Poll, so that’s an 11-spot improvement for Jason Maus’ team.

WOMEN

National Champ: Johns Hopkins

Hope (No. 21 to No. 10): The Flying Dutch made it back into the top-10 for the first time since 2013. Hope, led by 4th place finisher Erin Herrmann, finished 10th in the team standings behind Calvin. Herrmann put a bow on an incredible senior XC season as she won three big meets: the Kollege Town Sports Invitational, the MIAA Championships and the Great Lakes Region Championships.

Colorado College (No. 27 to No. 12): The Prowlers tumbled a bit in the National Coaches’ Poll leading up to NCAAs. Colorado College entered NCAAs ranked 27th after being billed as high as 16th in the preseason. Behind two All-America selections (Leah Wessler and Katie Sandofrt), the Prowlers vaulted up the team standings in Louisville, Kentucky.

Allegheny (Pa.) (No. 17 to No. 13): Before this season, the Gators hadn’t been ranked better than 20th in the National Coaches’ Poll or finished better than 25th at NCAAs. Allegheny (Pa.) can check both boxes after this past weekend. The Gators entered NCAAs ranked a program-high 17th and improved four spots in Louisville, Kentucky.