2024 NJCAA DII Women’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Poll – Week 4
NEW ORLEANS – Two rivals from Arizona rotated the top-2 positions in the final edition of the 2024 NJCAA Division II Women’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Poll, which was released Wednesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
Mesa (Ariz.) CC overtook Paradise Valley (Ariz.) CC as one or the other has been No. 1 all season long. The final say will come at the 2024 NJCAA Division II Cross Country Championships, to be held in 10 days on Saturday, November 9, at Pole Green Park near Richmond, Virginia.
National Coaches’ Polls are presented by AthleticNET.
NJCAA Division II — Women's Cross Country
This Week's National Top Five
1
Mesa (Ariz.) CC
Mesa (Ariz.) CC
2
Paradise Valley (Ariz.) CC
Paradise Valley (Ariz.) CC
3
Grand Rapids (Mich.) CC
Grand Rapids (Mich.) CC
4
Des Moines Area (Iowa) CC
Des Moines Area (Iowa) CC
5
Cowley (Kan.)
Cowley (Kan.)
Cross Country Polls & Rankings
Close and competitive is a good way to describe the top-2. That was evident at the Region 1 Championships, with the Thunderbirds edging the Pumas, 27-29, in what almost could have been scored as a dual meet. The first-place votes in this poll went 9-3 to Mesa after going 10-2 in PVCC’s favor in the previous rankings. Paradise Valley’s third in last year’s NJCAA DII Cross Country Championships is its best-ever finish, while Mesa’s is a runner-up finish by one point in 2022.
Paradise Valley was led by individual champ Keira Damron, who won by 4.6 seconds over Regina Raimo in her first race as Mesa’s top runner after Kinley Jackson had team honors in the previous four races. Mesa’s depth was evident as Carmella Baldwin – third in last year’s nationals – was the Thunderbirds’ No. 5 runner at regionals. Damron was fifth in last year’s nationals.
Rising three spots to No. 3 is Grand Rapids (Mich.) in matching its program high from Week 1 of 2020, the year they earned their best nationals finish of fourth. The Raiders won the Region 12 Championships with four runners in the top-7. Third place individual Elicia Land has led the squad in five of six races this fall.
Remaining No. 4 is Des Moines Area (Iowa) CC, which won the Region 11 Championships with 19 points as Kayden Spencer led a 1-2-3 for the Bears. DMACC’s best nationals finish is the fifth they earned last year.
Defending champion Cowley (Kan.) continues at No. 5. The Tigers were the top DII team at the Region 6 Championships as Kayli Myers – the lone returner from last year’s title-winning squad – earned top DII individual honors.
Rounding out the top-10 teams are No. 6 Heartland (Ill.) CC, No. 7 Wallace State (Ala.) CC, No. 8 Lansing (Mich.) CC, No. 9 UA Rich Mountain (Ark.) and No. 10 Pasco-Hernando (Fla.). Individuals to look for include No. 8 Lansing’s Daisy Speet, who is 3-0 this fall over reigning national champion Olivia Ippel of No. 12 Lake Michigan.
