2021 NJCAA DIII Men’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Ranking – Week 4
NEW ORLEANS – With one exception, jumbling of positions was in order at the top of the Pre-Championships edition of the NJCAA Division III Men’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Poll, released Wednesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
Mineral Area (Mo.) CC is that lone exception, remaining No. 1 – albeit by its closest margin of the year – as the rest of the top-5 found new homes.
The next race is the 2021 NJCAA Division III Cross Country Championships, set for Saturday, November 13 at Council Farms in Milledgeville, Georgia.
NJCAA Division III — Men's Cross Country
This Week's National Top Five
1
Mineral Area (Mo.)
Mineral Area (Mo.)
2
DuPage (Ill.)
DuPage (Ill.)
3
Joliet (Ill.) JC
Joliet (Ill.) JC
4
SUNY Broome CC
SUNY Broome CC
5
Harper (Ill.)
Harper (Ill.)
Cross Country Polls & Rankings
Mineral Area (Mo.) CC, the two-time defending NJCAA Division III champions, is No. 1 for the third week in a row. The Cardinals won the Region XVI Championships, with Kyle Vinyard leading the way as usual, winning the individual title in beating all of the region’s NJCAA Division II runners in the process.
No. 2 and No. 3 belong to College of DuPage (Ill.) and Joliet (Ill.) JC, respectively. They have flip-flopped places in every poll this year – including Joliet leading a 1-2 in the year’s first rankings. Just four points separated them at the Region IV Championships, won by DuPage (33-37). Hunter Phillips of Joliet won the individual title, earning National Athlete of the Week honors, as DuPage’s Caleb DeBoer was runner-up.
SUNY Broome CC rises to No. 4 after winning the Region III Championships over previous No. 4 Hudson Valley (N.Y.) CC. The Vikings dropped nine spots down to No. 13.
No. 5 is Harper (Ill.), which finished third in the loaded Region IV Championships behind DuPage and Joliet.
Completing the top-10 are No. 6 St. Charles (Mo.) CC, No. 7 Oxford (Ga.), co-No. 8 Brookdale (N.J.) CC and Lorain County (Ohio) CC and co-No. 10 Anne Arundel (Md.) CC and Georgia Military.
