2023 NCAA DIII Men’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Poll – Week 2
NEW ORLEANS – There is a new No. 1 team!
Here is the newest edition of the NCAA DIII Men’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Poll for the 2023 season, as released on Wednesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). Remember that this poll is conducted by tabulating votes by ten member coaches, those who also do the division’s Regional Rankings each week.
NCAA Division III — Men's Cross Country
This Week's National Top Five
1
Pomona-Pitzer
Pomona-Pitzer
2
North Central (Ill.)
North Central (Ill.)
3
UW-La Crosse
UW-La Crosse
3
MIT
MIT
5
SUNY Geneseo
SUNY Geneseo
Cross Country Polls & Rankings
Pomona-Pitzer surged into the lead following a dynamic effort at the 42nd annual UCR Cross Country Invitational this past weekend. The Sagehens, who hauled in eight first-place votes from the electorate and leapfrogged former No. 1 North Central (Ill.), finished sixth behind three NCAA DI programs and two top-25 NCAA DII programs in Azusa Pacific and Cal Poly Pomona.
There is a tie for third between defending champion MIT and UW-La Crosse. While the Engineers didn’t compete this past weekend, the Eagles soared to victory at the Running of the Cows as it put seven runners in the top-15 and totaled just 36 points. UW-La Crosse’s scoring lineup went 5-6-7-8-10 with a meager 19-second spread between its first and fifth runners.
Elsewhere in the top-10, RPI and Williams swapped spots: the Engineers are now ranked No. 9; the Ephs fell to No. 11. RPI steamrolled the competition at its own Harvest Festival Invitational and swept the proceedings in the process. Cory Kennedy picked up the individual title with six other teammates less than 27 seconds behind him.
Eight other programs jumped multiple spots between Week 1 and Week 2: No. 16 Haverford, No. 17 Loras, No. 19 Middlebury, No. 20 Tufts, No. 21 Emory, No. 23 Central (Iowa), No. 27 Ohio Northern and No. 30 La Verne. Six of those programs climbed five or more spots, led by the Duhawks from No. 25 to No. 17 and the Dutch from No. 30 to No. 23.
Mark your calendars for Saturday, November 18, because that’s when the 2023 NCAA DIII Cross Country Championships will be hosted by Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.
