2025 NJCAA DII Men’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Poll – Preseason
NEW ORLEANS – A three-peat for Lansing (Mich.) CC appears likely as the Stars are a unanimous No. 1 in the preseason edition of the 2025 NJCAA Division II Men’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Poll, which was released Wednesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
The 2025 NJCAA Division II Cross Country Championships are set to take place at Lakeside Golf Course in Fort Dodge, Iowa, on Saturday, November 8.
National Coaches’ Polls are presented by AthleticNET.
NJCAA Division II — Men's Cross Country
This Week's National Top Five
1
Lansing (Mich.) CC
Lansing (Mich.) CC
2
Mesa (Ariz.) CC
Mesa (Ariz.) CC
3
Cowley (Kan.)
Cowley (Kan.)
4
Des Moines Area (Iowa) CC
Des Moines Area (Iowa) CC
5
Heartland (Ill.) CC
Heartland (Ill.) CC
Cross Country Polls & Rankings
There’s no surprise with Lansing being No. 1 to start the year as the Stars return four of its top-5 in Logan Zahn (eighth), Lucas Hopkins (13th), Aiden Janes (15th) and Ben March (21st). Their returners include the No. 4 and No. 6 runners from the 2023 title team and their freshmen include Nate Carmody, who started last year as No. 1 before not finishing the season.
No. 2 Mesa (Ariz.) CC returns two scorers from the squad that started as preseason No. 1 – Corbin Pyle (45th) and Cal Schnepf (77th). The Thunderbirds have finished fifth, sixth, fourth and fourth in the last four years.
No. 3 Cowley (Kan.) was eighth last year and returns just one scorer in Esteban Boisseau (11th), but Tigers are excited about new additions, including Alexis Realland, who is new to cross country – he was sixth in the steeplechase in last spring’s NJCAA DI Outdoor Championships.
No. 4 Des Moines Area (Iowa) CC was preseason No. 7 last year and finished as runner-up – its first time ever in the top-10. The Bears return two scorers in Eli Page (16th) and Zack Stoermer (31st).
Heartland (Ill.) CC is No. 5 and returns three scorers, led by Aiden Lee (25th). One of the Hawks’ returning scorers is Kaleb Kilgore in his first cross country season; in the spring he lowered his 800 PR to 1:53.27 and was the fastest DII runner at the NJCAA DI Outdoor Championships.
Here are the rest of the top-10 teams: No. 6 Paradise Valley (Ariz.) CC, No. 7 Wallace State (Ala.) CC, No. 8 tie among Pasco-Hernando (Fla.) and Southeastern (Iowa) CC and No. 10 tie among Calhoun (Ala.) CC and Southwestern Michigan.
