2021 NJCAA DI Women’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Poll – Week 2
NEW ORLEANS – Change was just about everywhere in the NJCAA Division I Women’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Poll, that was released on Wednesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA), as all but two programs moved into different spots from the Week 1 rankings.
One the few to remain unmoved was No. 1 College of Southern Idaho, but that was by the slimmest of margins as only one point separated CSI from Iowa Western CC – one of four new entrants to the rankings among the top-5.
The 2021 NJCAA Division I Cross Country Championships are set for Saturday, November 13 at Pole Green Park in Richmond, Virginia.
NJCAA Division I — Women's Cross Country
This Week's National Top Five
1
Southern Idaho
Southern Idaho
2
Iowa Western CC
Iowa Western CC
3
Iowa Central CC
Iowa Central CC
4
Central Arizona
Central Arizona
5
Trinidad State (Colo.)
Trinidad State (Colo.)
Cross Country Polls & Rankings
The College of Southern Idaho held on to its No. 1 ranking, with four freshmen leading a close group of Golden Eagles in scoring for the second time – most recently at the BYU Autumn Classic on September 11. Audrey Camp was the top runner for third-place CSI, which tightened its 1-5 differential from 49.5 seconds in its season opener to 35.8. The Golden Eagles were third in last year’s NJCAA Division I Championships.
Just a point behind in the poll is Iowa Western CC, which matched the College of Southern Idaho with four first-place votes. The Reivers opened up their season as the top JUCO team in the Woody Greeno/Jay Dirksen Invitational at on September 18. Freshman Mercy Biwott led all individuals with the overall win in 16:57.0 for the 5k course to earn National Athlete of the Week honors.
Iowa Central CC is No. 3 in the rankings, its first ranking since being No. 1 all last year until missing the national championships due to the pandemic. The Tritons kicked off this year’s campaign as the top JUCO squad in the Luther All-American Invitational on September 11 and followed 14 points behind Iowa Western at the Greeno/Dirksen Invitational. The Tritons’ top runner each time was freshman Chloe Garcia-Grafing, who earned AOW honors the previous week before Biwott.
Central Arizona makes their ranking debut at No. 4. The Vaqueras were last ranked in 2019 at No. 2 in that year’s final poll. The Vaqeras were the leading JUCO team in the UC Riverside Invitational on September 18, finishing 12th in the open division. Ariz Duarte is the team’s top runner and only non-freshman.
Trinidad State (Colo.) JC is No. 5, the highest-ever recorded ranking for its women’s team. The Trojans return three scorers from last year’s eighth-place team at the NJCAA Division I Championships, led by top-10 finisher Sharon Jesang. She has shared top-runner honors this year with another returner, Ashley Lagat.
Completing the top-10 are No. 6 New Mexico JC, No. 7 Dodge City (Kan.) CC, No. 8 El Paso (Texas) CC, No. 9 Cloud County (Kan.) CC and No. 10 Ranger (Texas). Ranger JC and Cloud County CC finished 1-2 in last year’s NJCAA Division I Championships.
