2021 NCAA DII Men’s Cross Country Regional Rankings – Week 2

NEW ORLEANS – The 2021 cross country season is moving right along!

Here is the Week 2 installment of the NCAA Division II Men’s Cross Country Regional Rankings, as released by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches’ Association (USTFCCCA) on Tuesday afternoon.

Atlantic Region

There were minor changes among the top-5 teams in the Atlantic Region.

Charleston (W.VA), Edinboro and West Liberty State remain No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3, respectively, but is now followed by new No. 4 Shippensburg. The Raiders leapfrogged Concord, now ranked No. 5, thanks to a strong win at the DII/DIII Challenge over No. 7 Lock Haven and now No. 10 Bloomsburg.

Central Region

There were major changes among the top-5 teams in the Central Region.

Augustana (S.D.) is now the top-ranked team in the region, followed by new No. 2 Pittsburg State, who moved up from the Land of the Not Ranked. The next three teams fell in the rankings since Week 1 but stayed among the top-5: No. 3 Missouri Southern, No. 4 Northwest Missouri and No. 5 Neb.-Kearney. The Gorillas earned the nod to No. 2 after beating the Lions and the Lopers at the Southern Stampede.

East Region

There were minor changes among the top-5 teams in the East Region.

American International, Southern Connecticut and Roberts Wesleyan remain No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3, respectively. Franklin Pierce gained a spot to No. 4 and knocked Stonehill down to No. 5. The Owls finished third at the Iona meet of Champions while the Ravens finished fourth at UMass Dartmouth.

Midwest Region

There were some big changes among the top-5 teams in the Midwest Region.

Grand Valley State proved why they are the top-ranked team in the region after taking down NCAA Division I Michigan State (formerly ranked No. 18 nationally) at the Spartan Invitational. Southern Indiana and Walsh each improved one spot to No. 2 and No. 3, respectively, after favorable results this past weekend: the Screaming Eagles finished second to NCAA DI Illinois at the Redbird Invite; the Cavaliers finished second overall at the All-Ohio Championships and was the top DII team. Lewis fell two spots to No. 4 and is followed by No. 5 Michigan Tech.

South Region

There were some major changes among the top-5 teams in the South Region.

In a game of back-and-forth so far this season, Alabama-Huntsville leapfrogged Lee (Tenn.) to reclaim the No. 1 spot. The Chargers beat the Flames (now No. 2 regionally), at the Florida State Open. Florida Southern improved to No. 3, also following a strong showing at Florida State. Mississippi College fell to No. 4 while No. 5 Tampa stayed put.

South Central Region

There were a few changes among the top-5 teams in the South Central Region.

Colorado School of Mines and Adams State remained at No. 1 and No. 2, respectively. No. 3 Colorado Christian, No. 4 UC-Colorado Springs and No. 5 Western Colorado round out the top teams. The Cougars improved one spot after finishing second to the Orediggers at the Roadrunners Invite, while the Mountain Lions are making their first top-5 appearance after taking home top honors at the Lucian Rosa Invitational.

Southeast Region

There were minor changes among the top-5 teams in the Southeast Region.

Queens (N.C.), Augusta and Wingate stayed at No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3 respectively. No. 4 Anderson (S.C.) climbed two spots from No. 6 after placing third in the team standings at the Converse Kick-Off, 34 points behind Wingate and 56 points ahead of Catawba (now No. 6). Flagler fell one spot to No. 5.

West Region

There were a few changes among the top-5 teams in the West Region.

No. 1 Chico State and No. 2 Cal State Stanislaus held steady from a week ago and is now followed by No. 3 Fresno Pacific (up three from No. 6), No. 4 Simon Fraser (down one from No. 3) and No. 5 Biola (Calif.) (down one from No. 4). The Sunbirds finished second at the UC-Riverside Invitational to NCAA DI CBU, led by National Athlete of the Week Patrick Kiprop, who rolled to the individual title.