2025 NJCAA DIII Men’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Ranking – Week 1
NEW ORLEANS – Shake ‘em up!
That’s what the top-5 looks like in the Week 1 edition of the 2025 NJCAA Division III Men’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Ranking, released Wednesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
The 2025 NJCAA Division III Cross Country Championships are set to take place at Lakeside Golf Course in Fort Dodge, Iowa, on Saturday, November 8.
National Coaches’ Rankings are presented by AthleticNET.
NJCAA Division III — Men's Cross Country
This Week's National Top Five
1
Harper (Ill.)
Harper (Ill.)
2
Joliet (Ill.) JC
Joliet (Ill.) JC
3
DuPage (Ill.)
DuPage (Ill.)
4
Thaddeus Stevens (Pa.)
Thaddeus Stevens (Pa.)
5
Kellogg (Mich.) CC
Kellogg (Mich.) CC
Cross Country Polls & Rankings
Region 4 still dominates the top-3 – except in inverse order from the Preseason ranking. Note that one of those three programs has won the last four titles with the other two among the contenders.
Harper (Ill.) is No. 1 after being No. 3 in the preseason set of rankings. The Hawks were impressive at the Ken Weidt Classic, with freshman Sebastian Welc edging fellow freshman teammate Ryan Golden for team honors – along with being named M-F National Athlete of the Week. Golden had team honors a week earlier at the North Central Invitational, when Welc was the Hawks’ No. 4 runner.
Joliet (Ill.) JC continues as No. 2 but clearly has chops for higher – the Wolves finished three points ahead of Harper at the North Central Invitational. Joliet is led by defending national individual champ Nathan Ciarlette, who was last week’s M-F National Athlete of the Week with performances that included an outright win at the St. Francis (Ill.) Saints Twilight Invitational.
Preseason No. 1 DuPage (Ill.) is now No. 3 after being either No. 1 or No. 2 in every previous ranking since 2023. The Chaps were 26 points behind Joliet at the St. Francis (Ill.) Saints Twilight Invitational over 5k but looked stronger over 8k at the Aurora Spartan Classic, with freshman Adriano Quintero earning team honors in both meets.
Preseason No. 10 Thaddeus Stevens (Pa.) enters the top-5 for the first time program history. The Bulldogs were the top JUCO team at the Lebanon Valley Dutchmen Invitational with freshman Tristan Weaver finishing as the leading JUCO athlete.
Kellogg (Mich.) CC remains No. 5. The Bruins were top the leading JUCO program at Calvin’s Brian Diemer Classic, with Julian Borst – sixth individually in last year’s nationals – leading the way.
Rounding out the top-10 are No. 6 Brookdale (N.J.) CC, No. 7 Mineral Area (Mo.), No. 8 Onondaga (N.Y.) CC, No. 9 Clinton (N.Y.) CC and No. 10 Hostos (N.Y.) CC.
