2024 NCAA DI Women’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Poll – Week 1
NEW ORLEANS – If you thought last year’s battle was close, just wait and see how tight the battle is this time around.
After some early races got a few seasons off and running, there was a good amount of movement throughout the Week 1 edition of the 2024 NCAA Division I Women’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Poll. The top five programs stayed the same, but only three other teams remain in the same spot they did in the preseason edition.
National Coaches’ Polls are presented by AthleticNET.
NCAA Division I — Women's Cross Country
This Week's National Top Five
1
NC State
NC State
2
Northern Arizona
Northern Arizona
3
Notre Dame
Notre Dame
4
Oregon
Oregon
5
Washington
Washington
Cross Country Polls & Rankings
As Laurie Henes and the NC State Wolfpack chase the coveted four-peat, they’ll have to first replace the entirety of their top four, including Katelyn Tuohy, Kelsey Chmiel, Amaris Tyynismaa and Samantha Bush, who combined for four national titles and 25 All-American finishes between cross country and track & field. Leah Stephens, Grace Hartman, and Hannah Gapes all gained valuable championship experience last November, and they’ll lead the charge as a strong freshman class and St. Benedict transfer Fiona Smith join the squad. The Wolfpack are set to open up their title defense this Friday at the adidas XC Challenge.
After beginning the 2024 season tied with NC State for the No. 1 spot, NAU is a very close second in the most recent set of rankings. The Lumberjacks received four first-place votes, compared to NC State’s six. Mike Smith’s squad opened up their season at the George Kyte Classic, where junior Nikita Moore finished runner-up to lead NAU to a blanket finish across places No. 2 to No. 12, taking down Nevada and Arizona State 20-60-73.
Staying put at No. 3, the Notre Dame women got off to a winning start at the end of August, winning the Winrow-Valparaiso Open over Purdue, 43-48. Unattached freshman Addison Knoblauch was the top runner for the Fighting Irish, winning the 5k race in 17:34.6.
The final two spots in the top-5 look the same as they did a few weeks ago, as Oregon and Washington come in at No. 4 and No. 5, respectively. The Ducks opened up their year with a win over Oregon State at the OTC Pre’s Trail Run, while the Huskies took down Seattle University in a dual meet earlier this month.
Two of the biggest movers in this week’s poll were North Carolina and Northwestern, as both programs made massive jumps into the top-25.
The Tar Heels leapt 10 spots from No. 28 to No. 18 after a strong win at the Virginia Invitational. Seniors Brynn Brown and Fatima Alanis finished 1-2 to lead their team to a 23-33 victory over No. 16 Virginia.
And after taking down No. 19 Wisconsin and a seven other conference foes at the Fighting Illini Big 10 Preview, the Wildcats went from not being ranked to sitting just inside the top-25 at No. 24 – their best rank in program history. Senior Ava Earl led the way for her team, finishing third in 20:17.3.
Mark your calendars for Saturday, November 23, because that’s when the 2024 NCAA DI Cross Country Championships will be held at the Thomas Zimmer Championship Cross Country Course in Madison, Wisconsin.
