2025 NAIA Women’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Poll – Week 2

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Taylor (Ind.) continues as a new program joined the top-5 teams in the Week 2 edition of the NAIA Women’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Poll, which was released on Thursday by the NAIA National Office.

NAIA — Women's Cross Country
This Week's National Top Five
Taylor (Ind.)
Milligan (Tenn.)
Cumberlands (Ky.)
Embry-Riddle (Ariz.)
Indiana Wesleyan
1
Taylor (Ind.)
2
Milligan (Tenn.)
3
Cumberlands (Ky.)
4
Embry-Riddle (Ariz.)
5
Indiana Wesleyan
Cross Country Polls & Rankings

No. 1 Taylor (Ind.)

Led by two-time NAIA Runner of the Week and defending NAIA national champion Jaynie Halterman, the Trojans have remained No. 1 since the preseason rating, winning the IWU Twilight and finishing seventh at Florida State. Up next, Taylor hosts the Ray Bullock Invitational, in Upland, on Oct. 10.

No. 2 Milligan (Tenn.)

The Buffs stayed at No. 2 after hosting and winning the Eli Cramer Invitationalon Friday (Sept. 26), and this Friday, Oct. 3, Milligan travels to the Firetower Project, hosted by Appalachian State.

No. 3 Cumberlands (Ky.)

The Patriots haven’t competed since last week’s rating, resuming the season Saturday by taking part in the Greater Louisville Classic, hosted by the University of Louisville.

No. 4 Embry-Riddle (Ariz.)

Embry-Riddle made the largest jump within the top 10, from No. 7 to No. 4, due primarily to a win on Sept. 20 over The Master’s (Calif.). Saturday, ERAU takes part in the ACU Firestorm Invitational in Glendale, Ariz.

No. 5 Indiana Wesleyan

IWU held ground at No. 5 after a strong showing in Columbia, Mo., taking fourth in the Open section of the Gans Creek Classic, hosted by the University of Missouri. Off this week, the Wildcats are back to primarily NAIA competition on Oct. 10, traveling to Taylor’s Ray Bullock Invitational.

Completing the top-10 are No. 6 The Master’s (Calif.), No. 7 Cornerstone (Mich.), No. 8 College of Idaho, No. 9 Dordt (Iowa) and No. 10 Marian (Ind.).

The 2025 NAIA Cross Country Championships are scheduled to be held Friday, November 21, at Apalachee Regional Park in Tallahassee, Florida. This will be the second time in the past four years that the meet will be held in the Sunshine State.

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USTFCCCA NAIA
Women's Cross Country National Coaches' Poll

2025 Week 2 - October 2nd

RANK TEAM & INFOPTSCHANGE
1 taylor-ind TAYLOR (IND.)
Crossroads
Quinn White (16th)
435
(15 fpv)
◀▶
(LW: 1)
2 milligan-tenn MILLIGAN (TENN.)
AAC
Chris Layne (27th)
411 ◀▶
(LW: 2)
3 cumberlands-ky CUMBERLANDS (KY.)
Mid-South
Bradley Sowder (4th)
387 ◀▶
(LW: 3)
4 embry-riddle-ariz EMBRY-RIDDLE (ARIZ.)
GSAC
Chris Bray (13th)
379 ▲ 3
(LW: 7)
5 indiana-wesleyan INDIANA WESLEYAN
Crossroads
Brody Beiler (2nd)
376 ◀▶
(LW: 5)
6 the-masters-calif THE MASTER'S (CALIF.)
GSAC
Daniel Rush (2nd)
368 ▼ 2
(LW: 4)
7 cornerstone-mich CORNERSTONE (MICH.)
WHAC
Jason Schalk (3rd)
336 ▲ 6
(LW: 13)
8 college-of-idaho COLLEGE OF IDAHO
Cascade
Dominic Bolin (4th)
326 ▲ 1
(LW: 9)
9 dordt-iowa DORDT (IOWA)
GPAC
Nate Wolf (11th)
314 ▼ 1
(LW: 8)
10 marian-ind MARIAN (IND.)
Crossroads
Presley Martin (2nd)
311 ▼ 4
(LW: 6)
11 scad-savannah-ga SCAD SAVANNAH (GA.)
Sun Conference
306 ▼ 1
(LW: 10)
12 grace-ind GRACE (IND.)
Crossroads
Brian Dewey (2nd)
275 ▼ 1
(LW: 11)
13 montreat-n-c MONTREAT (N.C.)
AAC
Ryan Hincher (2nd)
267 ▼ 1
(LW: 12)
14 saint-mary-kan SAINT MARY (KAN.)
KCAC
Alstin Benton (13th)
248 ◀▶
(LW: 14)
15 aquinas-mich AQUINAS (MICH.)
WHAC
Mike Wojciakowski (28th)
234 ◀▶
(LW: 15)
16 eastern-oregon EASTERN OREGON
Cascade
Ben Welch (34th)
215 ◀▶
(LW: 16)
17 scad-atlanta-ga SCAD ATLANTA (GA.)
AAC
Chris Benassi (5th)
196 ◀▶
(LW: 17)
18 kansas-wesleyan KANSAS WESLEYAN
KCAC
Garrett Young (4th)
175 ◀▶
(LW: 18)
19 olivet-nazarene-ill OLIVET NAZARENE (ILL.)
Chicagoland
Kyle Rago (6th)
160 ▲ 1
(LW: 20)
20 southern-oregon SOUTHERN OREGON
Cascade
Grier Gatlin (22nd)
158 ▼ 1
(LW: 19)
21 benedictine-kan BENEDICTINE (KAN.)
The Heart
Jacob Connealy (2nd)
154 ▲ 2
(LW: 23)
22 montana-tech MONTANA TECH
Frontier
Jacob Sundberg (2nd)
133 ◀▶
(LW: 22)
23 lewis-clark-state-idaho LEWIS-CLARK STATE (IDAHO)
Cascade
Mike Collins (29th)
116 ▼ 2
(LW: 21)
24 oklahoma-city OKLAHOMA CITY
SAC
Andrew Leahey (1st)
109
(LW: RV)
25 rio-grande-ohio RIO GRANDE (OHIO)
River States
Matt Paxton (3rd)
88 ▼ 1
(LW: 24)

Also Receiving Votes: Dakota State (S.D.) 76, Morningside (Iowa) 72, Shawnee State (Ohio) 68, Mount Mercy (Iowa) 32, Carroll (Mont.) 24, Ave Maria (Fla.) 13, William Carey (Miss.) 10, College of Saint Mary (Neb.) 10, Concordia (Neb.) 3

Dropped Out: No. 25 Shawnee State (Ohio)



Week-by-Week Ranking

TeamPreseasonWeek #1Week #2
Taylor (Ind.)111
Milligan (Tenn.)222
Cumberlands (Ky.)433
Embry-Riddle (Ariz.)1474
Indiana Wesleyan1155
The Master's (Calif.)346
Cornerstone (Mich.)15137
College of Idaho1298
Dordt (Iowa)989
Marian (Ind.)6610
SCAD Savannah (Ga.)81011
Grace (Ind.)71112
Montreat (N.C.)101213
Saint Mary (Kan.)51414
Aquinas (Mich.)171515
Eastern Oregon201616
SCAD Atlanta (Ga.)181717
Kansas Wesleyan131818
Olivet Nazarene (Ill.)212019
Southern Oregon191920
Benedictine (Kan.)RV2321
Montana Tech232222
Lewis-Clark State (Idaho)162123
Oklahoma City25RV24
Rio Grande (Ohio)RV2425
Shawnee State (Ohio)RV25RV
Carroll (Mont.)24RVRV
Dakota State (S.D.)RVRVRV
William Carey (Miss.)RVRVRV
College of Saint Mary (Neb.)RVRVRV
Concordia (Neb.)RVRV
Morningside (Iowa)RVRV
Mount Mercy (Iowa)RVRV
Ave Maria (Fla.)RV
John Brown (Ark.)RVRV
Saint Francis (Ind.)RVRV
Mount Vernon Nazarene (Ohio)RVRV
Southeastern (Fla.)RV
IU East (Ind.)RV
Nelson (Texas)RV
St. Francis (Ill.)22
Huntington (Ind.)RV
Indiana TechRV
Our Lady of the Lake (Texas)RV
Doane (Neb.)RV
Mount Marty (S.D.)RV

USTFCCCA NAIA Cross Country

2025 Rankings & Polls Calendar
Weeks Conference PollsNational Coaches' Poll KEY DATES
PreseasonThu 8/21
MEN | WOMEN
Week 1Thu 9/25
MEN | WOMEN
Week 2Thu 10/2
MEN | WOMEN
Week 3Thu 10/16
Week 4Thu 10/30
Week 5Thu 11/13
FINAL Results
(official final ranking)
Mon 11/24