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

NEW ORLEANS – What a weekend it was for NCAA Division III programs!

Here are the newest NCAA Division III Men’s Cross Country Regional Rankings, as released on Tuesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). There are three new No. 1 programs and a plethora of changes to the order of top-5 squads.

Remember that Regional Championships Saturday is set for November 13.

East Region

There were no changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the East Region.

MIT and Bates remain No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, followed by No. 3 Colby, No. 4 Tufts and No. 5 WPI. The Bobcats and the Jumbos went head-to-head at the Bates Invitational this past weekend with the former emerging victorious (Bates scored 35 points, while Connecticut College had 43 and Tufts finished third with 53).

Great Lakes Region

There were some major changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Great Lakes Region.

John Carroll is the new No. 1 program, followed by new No. 2 Otterbein. Former No. 1 Calvin dropped to No. 3, while DePauw held steady at No. 4 and Case Western Reserve leapfrogged Ohio Northern into the No. 5 spot. Four of those top-5 programs competed at the All-Ohio Cross Country Collegiate Championships this past weekend with the Blue Streaks topping all NCAA Division III programs with 31 points, followed by the Cardinals (53), the Spartans (56) and the Polar Bears (117).

Metro Region

There were a few changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Metro Region.

Haverford and Rowan remain No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, but TCNJ jumped two spots into No. 3, dropping DeSales to No. 4 with new No. 5 Swarthmore right behind. There was one intraregional matchup this past weekend, as the Fords and The Garnet went head-to-head at the Main Line Invitational with the former topping the latter, 110-141. The Lions won the Moravian Invitational with a tight, eight-second gap between their first and third runners.

Mid-Atlantic Region

There were no changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Mid-Atlantic Region.

Johns Hopkins and Carnegie Mellon remain No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, followed by No. 3 Dickinson, No. 4 Gettysburg and No. 5 Franklin and Marshall. While there was no intraregional competition this past weekend between the top-5 programs, the Blue Jays and Tartans faced the toughest foes at the Br. Doyle Meet of Champions and the Robert Morris Invitational, respectively.

Mideast Region

There was a small change to the order of the top-5 teams in the Mideast Region.

Williams and Connecticut College remain No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, followed by No. 3 Vassar, but Middlebury leapfrogged now-No. 5 RPI into the No. 4 spot. Four of those top-5 teams competed this past weekend with the Ephs and Panthers picking up easy wins at the Little 3 Championship and the Aldrich Invitational, respectively, and the Camels finishing a strong runner-up at the Bates Invitational to East Region No. 2 Bates.

Midwest Region

There was one change to the order of the top-5 teams in the Midwest Region.

Wartburg remained No. 1, but North Central (Ill.) jumped three spots to No. 2, pushing Washington (Mo.), UChicago and Loras down to No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5, respectively. The Cardinals won the team title at the Gil Dodds Invitational going away, using a 25-second gap between their first and fifth runners (NCC had 14 athletes under 26:30 at the meet).

Niagara Region

There were some notable changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Niagara Region.

SUNY Geneseo held steady at No. 1, as did Rochester at No. 3 and Hamilton at No. 4, but NYU vaulted into the top-5 this season for the first time at No. 2 and Ithaca fell to No. 5. Three of those top-5 programs competed at the Rochester Yellowjacket Invitational this past weekend, as the Knights earned top NCAA DIII honors with the Violets edging the host Yellowjackets.

North Region

There were some major changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the North Region.

UW-Whitewater is the new No. 1 program, followed by new No. 2 St. Olaf. Former No. 1 UW-La Crosse fell to No. 3, followed by No. 4 UW-Eau Claire and No. 5 UW-Oshkosh. The Warhawks dazzled at the Tom Hoffman Invitational this past weekend, winning the team title over national top-5 program Washington (Mo.) and soundly beating all regional foes. The Oles won a tough battle at their own St. Olaf Invitational, topping the Eagles and Blugold in the process.

South Region

There was a total shakeup of the order of the top-5 teams in the South Region.

Emory is now No. 1, followed by No. 2 Lynchburg, No. 3 Christopher Newport, No. 4 Rhodes and No. 5 Berry. The Eagles impressed at the Converse Kick-Off, which previewed the course that will host the South Region Championships. Emory captured the team title with 67 points, four fewer than NCAA DII No. 13 Wingate. The Vikings also competed at the meet, beating former No. 2 Washington and Lee and several other regional foes.

West Region

There were some small changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the West Region.

Pomona-Pitzer and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps remain No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, followed by No. 3 UC Santa Cruz, but George Fox is back at No. 4, followed by No. 5 Occidental. Three of those top-5 teams raced at the UC Riverside Invitational this past weekend, as the Sagehens romped to victory with 15 points, followed by the runner-up Stags and third-place Tigers.