2023 NCAA DIII Women’s Cross Country Regional Rankings – Week 6

NEW ORLEANS – Welcome to Crunch Time!

Here is the newest edition of the NCAA DIII Women’s Cross Country Regional Rankings for the 2023 season, as released on Tuesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

Regional Rankings are determined subjectively by a single member coach in each respective region. The regional representative is tasked with weighing returning teams’ strength with current season results (if applicable) in determining a rank-order of squad potential. Only USTFCCCA member programs are eligible to receive a ranking. Teams with provisional status within the region may be ranked.

Regional Championships Saturday is set for November 11.

East Region

Projected AQ: No. 1 MIT

Next in Line: No. 2 WPI

Also in the Hunt: No. 3 Bates, No. 4 Tufts, No. 5 Colby

Note: Colby improved four spots from No. 9 to a season-high No. 5.

Great Lakes Region

Projected AQ: No. 1 Calvin

Next in Line: No. 2 Hope

Also in the Hunt: No. 3 Wittenberg, No. 4 John Carroll, No. 5 DePauw

Note: Wittenberg is back at No. 3 after a strong performance at the Mike Woods Invitational. DePauw knocked off several nationally-ranked programs at the Augustana Interregional Invitational and used a 50-second spread to do so.

Metro Region

Projected AQ: No. 1 TCNJ

Next in Line: No. 2 Rowan

Also in the Hunt: No. 3 Widener, No. 4 Stockton, No. 5 Moravian

Note: TCNJ cemented its No. 1 spot with a sterling effort at the Connecticut College Invitational. Rowan, Widener and Stockton all competed at the Rowan Inter-Regional Border Battle and were accordingly ranked to their placement in Glassboro, New Jersey.

Mid-Atlantic Region

Projected AQ: No. 1 Johns Hopkins

Next in Line: No. 2 Carnegie Mellon

Also in the Hunt: No. 3 Misericordia, No. 4 Dickinson, No. 5 Scranton

Note: Scranton improved one spot to No. 5.

Mideast Region

Projected AQ: No. 1 Williams

Next in Line: No. 2 Amherst

Also in the Hunt: No. 3 Vassar, No. 4 Middlebury, No. 5 Connecticut College

Note: There were no changes to the top-5 teams.

Midwest Region

Projected AQ: No. 1 UChicago

Next in Line: No. 2 Wartburg

Also in the Hunt: No. 3 Washington (Mo.), No. 4 Central (Iowa), No. 5 Simpson

Note: There were no changes to the top-5 team, but plenty of racing. UChicago raced against Wartburg and Washington (Mo.) at the Augustana Interregional Invitational and soundly beat both of them on its way to the team title. Central (Iowa) impressed at the Connecticut College Invitational, while Simpson finished 11th out of 42 teams at the Augustana Interregional.

Niagara Region

Projected AQ: No. 1 NYU

Next in Line: No. 2 SUNY Geneseo

Also in the Hunt: No. 3 Ithaca, No. 4 SUNY Oneonta, No. 5 RIT

Notes: Welcome to the top, NYU. The Violets were rewarded after their impressive victory at the Connecticut College Invitational. Former No. 1 SUNY Geneseo, Ithaca and SUNY Oneonta all competed at the Mike Woods Invitational and finished in that order among teams from the Niagara Region. The Knights took runner-up honors in the team standings behind Carleton.

North Region

Projected AQ: No. 1 Carleton

Next in Line: No. 2 UW-La Crosse

Also in the Hunt: No. 3 UW-Eau Claire, No. 4 St. Olaf, No. 5 UW-Stout

Note: Good luck removing Carleton and UW-La Crosse from the top-2 spots. Both the Knights and the Eagles impressed with victories this past weekend. Both UW-Eau Claire and UW-Stout fared well at the Augustana Interregional Invitational, while St. Olaf trekked to the East Coast and took fourth at the Connecticut College Invitational.

South Region

Projected AQ: No. 1 Lynchburg

Next in Line: No. 2 Emory

Also in the Hunt: No. 3 Washington & Lee, No. 4 Catholic, No. 5 Shenandoah

Note: Emory and Washington & Lee swapped spots in Week 6. The Eagles romped to victory at the Rowan Inter-Regional Border Battle thanks to putting their entire scoring lineup in the top-15. Emory finished with 37 points, 64 points fewer than runner-up Misericordia.

West Region

Projected AQ: No. 1 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps

Next in Line: No. 2 Colorado College

Also in the Hunt: No. 3 George Fox, No. 4 UC Santa Cruz, No. 5 Pomona-Pitzer.

Note: Colorado College jumped two spots to a season-high No. 2. The Tigers finished a clear fourth at the Augustana Interregional Invitational, well ahead of region foe UC Santa Cruz.