CSR (Men's Cross Country Rises to #1 In Polls Heading Into NCAAs)

From: Jeff Febus (jfebus@calvin.edu)
Date: Tue Nov 18 2003 - 00:09:56 EST

  • Next message: Jeff Febus: "CSR (2003 Men's/Women's Cross Country Preview for 2003 NCAA III Championships)"

    CALVIN SPORTS REPORT FOR TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2003

    MEN'S AND WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY

    The Calvin men's cross country team will head to the NCAA III Championships
    this Saturday as the number-one ranked team in the country. In the final NCAA
    III (Top 25) Men's Cross Country poll of the year released earlier this
    afternoon, the Knights have moved into the top spot, receiving five of a
    possible eight first place votes with defending national champion
    Wisconsin-Oshkosh receiving the remaining three first place votes. It marks
    the first time since 2001 that Calvin has been ranked number-one in the
    national poll. It also marks a flip-flop in the poll as Calvin was ranked
    second last week with three first place votes while Wisconsin-Oshkosh was
    ranked first with five first place votes.

    Under the directions of coaches Al Hoekstra and Brian Diemer, Calvin qualified
    for the NCAA III Championships with a perfect score of 15 at the NCAA III Great
    Lakes Regional this past Saturday at Hanover College (IN). The perfect score
    marked just the second time the feat had been accomplished at the Great Lakes
    Regional meet as Wabash also swept the top five spots at the 1995 Great Lakes
    Regional meet hosted by Alma College.

    Calvin will be making its 15th straight team appearance at the NCAA III
    Championships including its 19th overall which ranks seventh on the all-time
    NCAA III men's cross country list. Over the last five years, Calvin has
    produced the best combined set of national team finishes of any NCAA III men's
    cross country team as the Knights were second in 1998, fourth in 1999, first in
    2000 and second in 2001 and 2002.

    The last time Calvin entered a national meet ranked number-one, the Knights
    captured the national title as they held the top spot heading into the 2000
    NCAA III Championships in Spokane, Washington.

    In the women's poll, Calvin is ranked 11th, down four spots from a week ago.
    The Knights took second at Saturday's Great Lakes Regional Meet to advance to
    the NCAA III Championships for the 15th straight year which ranks sixth on the
    all-time NCAA III women's cross country list. Calvin's second place team score
    of 120 points snapped a 14-year run of Great Lakes Regional titles however as
    Mount Union of Ohio nipped the Knights for first place with a team score of 112
    points.

    A year ago, Calvin took fifth as a team at the national meet.

    Like Saturday's Great Lakes Regional competition, the NCAA III Championships
    will also be hosted by Hanover College in Hanover, Indiana. The women's race
    is set to begin at 11:00 a.m. (ET) with the men's race to follow at noon.

    NCAA III Men's Cross Country Top-25 Poll (Released 11-17-03)

    Rank Team (first place votes) Region Points

    1 Calvin College(MI) (5) GL 197
    2 Wisconsin-Oshkosh (3) MW 195
    3 North Central (IL) MW 184
    4 Wisconsin-Stevens Point MW 175
    5 Willamette University(OR) W 166
    6 Wisconsin-La Crosse MW 159
    7 Tufts University(MA) NE 151
    8 Wartburg College(IA) C 137
    9 Haverford College(PA) ME 136
    10 Nebraska Wesleyan(NB) C 127
    11 Keene State College(NH) NE 124
    12 SUNY Geneseo A 120
    13 Williams College(MA) NE 101
    14 College of New Jersey A 97
    15 Univ of Puget Sound(WA) W 90
    16 Loras College(IA) C 68
    17 Wisconsin Whitewater MW 63 --
    18 Colorado College(CO) W 59
    19 Carnegie Mellon (PA) ME 58
    20 Albion College(MI) GL 48
    21 Amherst College(MA) NE 43
    22 New York University A 42.5
    23 Case Western Reserve (OH) GL 26
    24 Emory University(GA) S 25.5
    25 University of St Thomas(MN) C 4
    -- Elizabethtown College(PA) ME 15
    -- Carleton College(MN) C 17 16 6
    -- Washington University)MO) MW 19 7
    -- Grinnell College(IA) C 20 17 7
    -- St Lawrence University(NY) A 23 22 4
    -- Univ of Chicago(IL) MW 24 -- 6

    Others Receiving Votes: St Lawrence University(NY) (2), MIT (NE) 1, Univ
    of Chicago(IL) (1).
    Women's NCAA III Cross Country Rankings
    Final Poll released Nov. 17.
                                                                P
                                                    Rank Rank
    Rank Team (first place votes) Region Points
    1 Middlebury (8) NE 200
    2 Williams NE 192
    3 UW-Stevens Point MW 183
    4 Trinity (CT) NE 175
    5 UW-Oshkosh MW 167
    7 UW-LaCrosse MW 149
    8 College of New Jersey A 141
    9 Wartburg C 135
    10 Nebraska Wesleyan C 120
    11 Calvin GL 107
    12 Ithaca (NY) A 106
    13 Willamette (OR) W 104
    14 Dickinson (PA) ME 101
    15 Mt. Union (OH) GL 81 --
    16 SUNY-Geneseo A 79
    17 Gustavus Adolphus C 70
    18 Allegeheny (PA) ME 68
    19 University of Chicago MW 56
    20 St. Lawrence (NY) A 49
    21 Emory (GA) S 39 2
    22 Bowdoin (ME) NE 36 --
    23 Otterbein GL 28 --
    24 Haverford (PA) ME 21 --
    25 Washington University (MO) MW 20
    -- Claremont Mudd Scripps W 15
    -- Luther (IA) C 16 19 4
    -- Denison (OH) GL 19 23 4
    -- Wesleyan (CT) NE 22 20 7
    -- St. Benedict C -- 25 5

    Others Receiving Votes: Claremont Mudd Scripps (CA) (10), Luther (IA)
    (1).

    Jeff Febus
    Sports Information Director
    Calvin College
    (616) 526-6169 Office
    (616) 526-8551 Fax



    This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.4 : Tue Nov 18 2003 - 00:10:48 EST