2019 NCAA DIII Cross Country Regional Rankings – Week 3
NEW ORLEANS – We saw some intraregional battles in NCAA Division III Cross Country this past weekend, which shifted most recent Regional Rankings that were released on Tuesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
This is just an appetizer of what will go down on Saturday, November 16, when each of the eight regions host their championships to decide which teams earn automatic bids to NCAAs.
Men’s Story
Atlantic Region
There was a slight change to the order of top-5 teams in the Atlantic Region between Week 2 and Week 3.
While SUNY Geneseo and RPI are still No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, Ithaca jumped four spots from No. 7 to No. 3 after a big performance this past weekend. The Bombers finished runner-up to the Knights at the Mike Woods Invitational and put their entire scoring lineup in the top-20.
Brockport dropped to fourth and St. Lawrence is now ranked fifth.
Central Region
There weren’t any changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Central Region between Week 2 and Week 3.
Wartburg and Carleton are still No. 1 and No. 2, while St. Olaf, St. Thomas (Minn.) and Luther come in at No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5, respectively.
Great Lakes Region
There was a slight change to the order of top-5 teams in the Great Lakes Region between Week 2 and Week 3.
While Calvin and Otterbein are still No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, Case Western Reserve and John Carroll swapped spots. The Spartans went from No. 4 to No. 3 after finishing fifth at the All-Ohio Cross Country Championships, while the Blue Streaks flipped from No. 3 to No. 4 after a 14th-place showing at the same meet.
DePauw remained at No. 5 for the second week in a row.
Mideast Region
There weren’t any changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Mideast Region between Week 2 and Week 3.
Carnegie Mellon and Johns Hopkins are still No. 1 and No. 2, while Haverford, Dickinson and Moravian sit No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5, respectively.
Midwest Region
There weren’t any changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Midwest Region between Week 2 and Week 3.
North Central (Ill.) and Washington (Mo.) are still No. 1 and No. 2, while UW-La Crosse, UChicago and UW-Stevens Point come in at No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5, respectively.
New England Region
What you see in the results from the Purple Valley Classic is what you get in the New England Region in Week 3 – at least when it comes to a number of the top-5 teams.
Williams remains the top-ranked squad after dominating the proceedings. The Ephs put six runners in the top-15 (1-3-7-9-11 scored) and were led by individual champion Aidan Ryan.
MIT finished runner-up to Williams and held onto its No. 2 ranking. The Engineers had a strong front-running ground as their top-3 runners finishing fourth, fifth and sixth within eight seconds of each other.
Bates is still No. 3 following an idle week, while Middlebury and Amherst flipped spots based on results at the Purple Valley Classic. The Panthers finished fourth overall with 145 points, beating the fifth-place Mammoths by 17 points.
South/Southeast Region
There was no change to the order of the top-5 teams in the South/Southeast Region between Week 2 and Week 3.
Emory and Berea (Ky.) still sit No. 1 and No. 2, while Washington and Lee, Lynchburg and Olgethorpe round out the top-5 at No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5, respectively.
West Region
There was no change to the order of top-5 teams in the West Region between Week 2 and Week 3.
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps and Pomona-Pitzer still sit No. 1 and No. 2, while UC Santa Cruz, Occidental and Redlands round out the top-5 at No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5, respectively.
Women’s Story
Atlantic Region
There were some slight changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Atlantic Region between Week 2 and Week 3.
SUNY Geneseo and RPI still sit No. 1 and No. 2, but RIT jumped one spot from No. 4 to No. 3 after a strong effort at the Mike Woods Invitational, which was won by the Knights. Rochester (N.Y.) finished a close third behind SUNY Geneseo and RIT, which is why that program sits at No. 4 this week and Vassar, which was idle after winning the team title at the Fred Pavlich Invitational last week, moved up from No. 6 to No. 5.
Central Region
There was a slight change to the order of the top-5 teams in the Central Region between Week 2 and Week 3.
Carleton is still No. 1, but St. Thomas (Minn.) jumped Wartburg into the No. 2 spot. The Tommies were the top-finishing NCAA DIII team in the Maroon Race at the Roy Griak Invitational this past weekend.
The aforementioned Knights come in at No. 3, while St. Olaf and Gustavus Adolphus sit No. 4 and No. 5, respectively.
Great Lakes Region
There was a slight change to the order of the top-5 teams in the Great Lakes Region between Week 2 and Week 3.
Oberlin and Hope sit No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, but Case Western Reserve leapfrogged Baldwin Wallace into the No. 3 spot. The Spartans finished ninth at the All-Ohio Cross Country Championships, while the Yellowjackets ended up one spot behind them in 10th.
John Carroll comes in at No. 5 for the fourth week in a row.
Mideast Region
There weren’t any changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Mideast Region between Week 2 and Week 3.
Johns Hopkins and Dickinson still sit No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, while Carnegie Mellon, Messiah and Swarthmore come in at No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5, respectively.
Midwest Region
There weren’t any changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Midwest Region between Week 2 and Week 3.
UChicago and Washington (Mo.) still sit No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, while UW-La Crosse, UW-Eau Claire and Elmhurst come in at No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5, respectively.
New England Region
What you see in the results from the Purple Valley Classic is what you get in the New England Region in Week 3 – at least when it comes to the top-3 teams.
Tufts came through with a big win this past weekend, putting three runners in the top-7 of the 6K race. The Jumbos were led by National Athlete of the Week Sabrina Gornisiewicz and Danielle Page, who finished first and second individually, respectively.
Williams finished a close runner-up behind Tufts and is ranked second. The Ephs were led this past weekend by freshman Eva Borton, who finished third overall.
MIT took third behind Tufts and Williams and sits No. 3, while Middlebury and Wesleyan (Conn.) are No. 4 and No. 5, respectively.
South/Southeast Region
There weren’t any changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the South/Southeast Region between Week 2 and Week 3.
Washington and Lee and Centre still sit No. 1 and No. 2, while Emory, Rhodes and Trinity (Texas) come in at No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5, respectively.
West Region
There were some slight changes the order of the top-5 teams in the West Region between Week 1 and Week 2.
Pomona-Pitzer and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps swapped spots at the top of the index for the third time this season. There was a head-to-head matchup between the two teams this past weekend at the Masters University Invitational and the Sagehens earned the 73-76 victory. The Athenas had the better 1-5 spread between the two teams – 30 seconds to 58 seconds.
UC Santa Cruz continues to hold down the No. 3 spot, while Occidental and new No. 5 Whitman round out the top-5.
