2021 NCAA DIII Women’s Cross Country Regional Rankings – Week 1

NEW ORLEANS – Are you used to seeing 10 regions in NCAA Division III yet?

Here is the newest edition of the NCAA Division III Women’s Cross Country Regional Rankings, which was released on Tuesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

Regional Championships Saturday is set for Saturday, November 13.

East Region

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

Tufts and MIT remained No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, but Bates jumped to No. 3 and Brandeis climbed four spots to No. 4. WPI dropped two spots to No. 5. The Bobcats beat both Colby and Bowdoin head-to-head at the CBB Tri-Meet, while the Judges won the team title at the Wellesley College XC Invitational two weeks ago over WPI and Wellesley, among others.

Great Lakes Region

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

Hope and John Carroll remained No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, followed by No. 3 Trine. Calvin jumped four spots from No. 8 to No. 4, though, which pushed Otterbein down one spot to No. 5. The Knights ran exceptionally well at the Calvin Knight Invitational two weeks ago, finishing a close runner-up to 2020 NCAA Division II champion Grand Valley State.

Metro Region

There was a slew of changes to the order of the top-5 teams in the Metro Region.

Swarthmore remained No. 1, but the entire top-5 shifted behind that top-ranked squad. Now, Haverford is ranked No. 2, Moravian is No. 3, Ursinus is No. 4 and Stockton is No. 5. Three of those programs who improved their rankings since the preseason posted favorable results over the past few weeks, notably the Bears and the Greyhounds. Moravian finished as the top NCAA DIII program at the Lehigh Invitational. Ursinus took third at the LVU Dutchmen Invitational.

Mid-Atlantic Region

There was a minor change to the order of the top-5 teams in the Mid-Atlantic Region.

Johns Hopkins and Dickinson remained No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, followed by No. 3 Carnegie Mellon. Elizabethtown and Misericordia swapped spots, with the former going from No. 5 to No. 4 and the latter from No. 4 to No. 5. The Blue Jays showcased their depth two weeks ago at the F&M Season Opener, using a 49-second gap between its top-8 runners.

Mideast Region

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

Amherst is now ranked No. 1, followed by No. 2 Middlebury and former No. 1 Williams. RPI and Wesleyan (Conn.) held steady at No. 4 and No. 5, respectively. The Mammoths ran well at the Ken O’Brien Minuteman Invitational, beating NCAA Division I Sacred Heart. While the Panthers have yet to race this season, it was noted that two of the Ephs’ top runners will travel abroad soon, giving Middlebury a leg up in the rankings.

Midwest Region

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

Washington (Mo.) and Wartburg remained No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, followed by No. 3 UChicago, No. 4 Loras and No. 5 Illinois Wesleyan. The Maroons were the stars of the first few weeks of the season as they posted a big victory at the Saints Twilight Invitational, taking down 2020 NAIA champion St. Francis (Ill.) in the process. UChicago put seven runners in the top-10.

Niagara Region

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

SUNY Geneseo and Rochester (N.Y.) remained No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, followed by No. 3 Ithaca. Then, you have No. 4 RIT and No. 5 St. John Fisher. The Knights fought well against several NCAA Division I programs at the Maribel-Sanchez-Souther Invitational, taking runner-up honors to host Dartmouth. The Bombers notched a victory at the Hamilton Short Course Invitational, while the Engineers beat the Cardinals head-to-head earlier this season.

North Region

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

UW-La Crosse and Carleton remained No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, followed by No. 3 UW-Eau Claire, No. 4 St. Olaf and No. 5 UW-Stevens Point. Strong efforts were turned in by the Eagles, Knights and Blugold over the first few weeks of the season and we should see some solid intraregional competition at both the St. Olaf Invitational and the Tim Hoffman Invitational.

South Region

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

Emory and Washington and Lee remained No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, followed by No. 3 Lynchburg, No. 4 Christopher Newport and No. 5 Rhodes. The Hornets and the Generals went head-to-head at the Virginia Tech Alumni Invitational this past weekend, with the former posting a three-point victory (Lynchburg took fourth overall; Washington and Lee was fifth).

West Region

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

Claremont-Mudd-Scripps is still No. 1, but George Fox jumped five spots from No. 7 to No. 2. That put the Bruins ahead of No. 3 Pomona-Pitzer, No. 4 UC Santa Cruz and No. 5 Colorado College. George Fox ran well in back-to-back weeks, posting a victory at the Ash Creek Collegiate this past weekend and placing third behind two NCAA Division I programs at the Lewis & Clark Opener Chase Race two weeks ago.