2021 NAIA Women’s Cross Country National Coaches’ Poll – Week 1
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Only one team remained in the same spot it began the preseason in the most recent 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
1
St. Francis (Ill.)
St. Francis (Ill.)
2
Milligan (Tenn.)
Milligan (Tenn.)
3
Cornerstone (Mich.)
Cornerstone (Mich.)
4
Taylor (Ind.)
Taylor (Ind.)
5
Aquinas (Mich.)
Aquinas (Mich.)
Cross Country Polls & Rankings
Top-ranked St. Francis (Ill.) held steady at No. 1 for the second week in a row. The Saints rolled to the team title at the Ray Bullock Invitational this past weekend and took down several top-10 team in the process. USF put four runners in the top-7 and capped it scoring lineup with another runner in the top-15.
Milligan (Tenn.) is now ranked No. 2. The Buffs last competed at the Covered Bridge Open on September 3, taking fifth place in the team standings. Lemi Wutz paced Milligan (Tenn.) at the meet three weeks ago, finishing third overall in front of a host of NCAA Division I athletes.
Cornerstone (Mich.) vaulted 11 spots from No. 14 to No. 3. The Golden Eagles earned runner-up honors behind St. Francis (Ill.) at the Ray Bullock Invitational this past weekend. CU saw Anna Martin and Haley Nieuwkoop finish fourth and fifth individually, respectively.
Taylor (Ind.) and Aquinas (Mich.) round out the top-5 teams in Week 1 at No. 4 and No. 5, respectively. The Trojans finished third at the Ray Bullock Invitational this past weekend, while the Saints posted two strong results to begin the season, including a recent victory at the Raider Knight Invitational and a runner-up finish at the IWU Wildcat Twilight back on September 10.
Here are the rest of the top-10 teams in Week 1: No. 6 Saint Mary (Kan.), No. 7 College of Idaho, No. 8 Montreat (N.C.), No. 9 Indiana Wesleyan and No. 10 Lewis-Clark State (Idaho).
