Conference Championships Shake Up Final NCAA DII Regional Rankings

By Kyle Terwillegar, USTFCCCA

October 27, 2015

NEW ORLEANS – The dust has settled from an exceptional NCAA Division II cross country conference championships weekend, revealing a new-look final edition of the Regional Rankings announced Tuesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
It was a weekend of redemption as five of the six new regional No. 1 squads reclaimed their top-ranked positions after having fallen earlier this season.
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They and every other team around the country will put their regional ranks on the line November 7 in the eight regional meets across the nation as qualifiers to the NCAA Championships on November 21 in Joplin, Missouri, are determined on the course.
Chief among those reinstated No. 1s were both genders’ three-time defending national champions, the Grand Valley State women and the Adams State men.
GVSU, boosted by the 2015 debut of reigning individual national champion Kendra Foley, edged national No. 1 Hillsdale at the GLIAC Championships, 30-38. The Lakers’ nation-best 15th consecutive league title boosted them back to No. 1 in the Midwest, while Hillsdale dropped to No. 2.
Also moving into qualifying position in the six-bid Midwest was No. 6 UW-Parkside. The Rangers were one of 12 teams this weekend that improved enough to line themselves up for one of their region’s allotted bids into the NCAA Championships.
National No. 4 Adams State’s men regained control of the South Central Region after defeating national No. 3 Colorado Mines, 36-52, to win the RMAC title. The Grizzlies put four in the top-10, led by runner-up Jackson Sayler.
Two more RMAC teams jumped into the NCAA Championships qualifying conversation from the six-bid South Central as Colorado Mesa moved up four spots to No. 5 and UC-Colorado Springs joined the rankings at No. 6.
The South Region was particularly upheaved this past weekend with new No. 1 teams for each gender. The eight-time defending region champion Tampa women moved back atop the South after toppling former No. 1 Saint Leo, 28-39, at the Sunshine State Conference Championships. The Lions fell to No. 3, as Gulf South champ West Alabama improved three spots to No. 2 in the three-bid South.
Saint Leo’s men, however, picked up the slack as they jumped atop the South rankings after a 28-38 victory over No. 3 Nova Southeastern. The Lions’ performance was enough to move them past former regional leader Lee (Tenn.), which fell to No. 2 despite winning the Gulf South.
After some early season questions, the defending East Region champion American International men have since availed themselves nicely. The Yellow Jackets claimed the Northeast-10 title, 48-72, over previous regional leader Stonehill. The Skyhawks fell to No. 2. Franklin Pierce was a close third at the NE-10 meet to climb a spot to No. 3 in the three-bid East.
The Edinboro women moved atop the Atlantic Region – up two spots from a week ago – with a victory at the PSAC Championships, but that is a race still very much up in the air (as most around the country still are). Each of the region’s ten ranked teams are from the PSAC, and the Fighting Scots emerged with a closely fought 90-102-11-125 victory over East Stroudsburg, Shippensburg, California (Pa.) and Bloomsburg.
Notably, East Stroudsburg rose four spots from last time to move to No. 2 in the three-bid Atlantic.
Also making advances into qualifying position were the No. 3 Southwest Baptist men and No. 5 Southwest Baptist women in the five-bid Central, the No. 3 Daemen women in the three-bid East, the No. 3 Queens (N.C.) women in the three-bid Southeast, the No. 5 UC San Diego women in the five-bid West, and the No. 4 Cal Baptist men in the four-bid West.
Joining the men’s rankings this week were: Bloomsburg and Mansfield (Atlantic), MSU Moorhead (Central), Molloy (East), Bellarmine (Midwest), Shorter (South), UC-Colorado Springs and Oklahoma Christian (South Central), King (Southeast) and Academy of Art (West).
New to the women’s rankings were: Northern State (Central), Bentley and Nyack (East), North Alabama and West Georgia (South), Tarleton State and Colorado Christian (South Central), Young Harris (Southeast), and Central Washington (West).
NCAA Division II Regional Championships will be held around the country on Saturday, November 7 with the NCAA Championships happening two weeks later in Joplin, Missouri, on November 21..
USTFCCCA Regional Cross Country 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 in determining predicted team finishes at the NCAA Regional Championships.

USTFCCCA NCAA Division II
Men’s Cross Country Regional Team Rankings
2015 Week #6 — October 27 (pre-regional)
national rankings release: October 28
next regional release: none, NCAA regionals, November 7-8

ATLANTIC Region (3 auto quals)
Rank	School	Location	Conference	Last Week
1	Lock Haven	Lock Haven, Pa.	PSAC	1
2	Shippensburg	Shippensburg, Pa.	PSAC	2
3	Indiana (Pa.)	Indiana, Pa.	PSAC	3
4	Slippery Rock	Slippery Rock, Pa.	PSAC	5
5	Edinboro	Edinboro, Pa.	PSAC	4
6	Kutztown	Kutztown, Pa.	PSAC	7
7	East Stroudsburg	East Stroudsburg, Pa.	PSAC	6
8	California (Pa.)	California, Pa.	PSAC	10
9	Bloomsburg	Bloomsburg, Pa.	PSAC	NR
10	Mansfield	Mansfield, Pa.	PSAC	NR
Regional Championship History — Last Five Champions: 2014: Lock Haven, 2013: Lock Haven, 2012: Edinboro, 2011: Edinboro, 2010: Lock Haven


CENTRAL Region (5 auto quals)
Rank	School	Location	Conference	Last Week
1	Augustana (S.D.)	Sioux Falls, S.D.	NSIC	1
2	Neb.-Kearney	Kearney, Neb.	MIAA	3
3	Southwest Baptist	Bolivar, Mo.	MIAA	8
4	Pittsburg State	Pittsburg, Kan.	MIAA	2
5	East Central (Okla.)	Ada, Okla.	Great American	5
6	Sioux Falls	Sioux Falls, S.D.	NSIC	6
7	Fort Hays State	Hays, Kan.	MIAA	7
8	Northwest Missouri	Maryville, Mo.	MIAA	4
9	MSU Moorhead	Moorhead, Minn.	NSIC	NR
10	Harding	Searcy, Ark.	Great American	9
Regional Championship History — Last Five Champions: 2014: Augustana (S.D.), 2013: Augustana (S.D.), 2012: Augustana (S.D.), 2011: Adams State, 2010: Adams State


EAST Region (3 auto quals)
Rank	School	Location	Conference	Last Week
1	American International	Springfield, Mass.	Northeast-10	2
2	Stonehill	Easton, Mass.	Northeast-10	1
3	Franklin Pierce	Rindge, N.H.	Northeast-10	4
4	Southern New Hampshire	Manchester, N.H.	Northeast-10	5
5	Roberts Wesleyan	Chili, N.Y.	East Coast	3
6	Bentley	Waltham, Mass.	Northeast-10	7
7	Merrimack	North Andover, Mass.	Northeast-10	10
8	Adelphi	Garden City, N.Y.	Northeast-10	6
9	Southern Connecticut	New Haven, Conn.	Northeast-10	9
10	Molloy	Rockville Centre, N.Y.	East Coast	NR
Regional Championship History — Last Five Champions: 2014: American International, 2013: Stonehill, 2012: American International, 2011: UMass Lowell, 2010: UMass Lowell


MIDWEST Region (5 auto quals)
Rank	School	Location	Conference	Last Week
1	Grand Valley State	Allendale, Mich.	GLIAC	1
2	Southern Indiana	Evansville, Ind.	GLVC	2
3	UW-Parkside	Kenosha, Wis.	GLVC	3
4	Malone	Canton, Ohio	GLIAC	5
5	Saginaw Valley State	Bay City, Mich.	GLIAC	4
6	Indianapolis	Indianapolis, Ind.	GLVC	7
7	Ashland	Ashland, Ohio	GLIAC	9
8	Michigan Tech	Houghton, Mich.	GLIAC	8
9	Bellarmine	Louisville, Ky.	GLVC	NR
10	Walsh	North Canton, Ohio	GLIAC	6
Regional Championship History — Last Five Champions: 2014: Grand Valley State, 2013: Grand Valley State, 2012: Grand Valley State, 2011: Grand Valley State, 2010: Grand Valley State


SOUTH Region (3 auto quals)
Rank	School	Location	Conference	Last Week
1	Saint Leo	Saint Leo, Fla.	Sunshine	2
2	Lee (Tenn.)	Cleveland, Tenn.	Gulf South	1
3	Nova Southeastern	Davie, Fla.	Sunshine	3
4	Alabama-Huntsville	Huntsville, Ala.	Gulf South	4
5	West Alabama	Livingston, Ala.	Gulf South	5
6	Florida Southern	Lakeland, Fla.	Sunshine	6
7	Tampa	Tampa, Fla.	Sunshine	8
8	West Florida	Pensacola, Fla.	Gulf South	9
9	Florida Tech	Melbourne, Fla.	Sunshine	7
10	Shorter	Rome, Ga.	Gulf South	NR
Regional Championship History — Last Five Champions: 2014: Florida Southern, 2013: Florida Southern, 2012: Nova Southeastern, 2011: Alabama-Huntsville, 2010: Harding


SOUTH CENTRAL Region (6 auto quals)
Rank	School	Location	Conference	Last Week
1	Adams State	Alamosa, Colo.	RMAC	2
2	Colorado Mines	Golden, Colo.	RMAC	1
3	Western State	Gunnison, Colo.	RMAC	3
4	West Texas A&M	Canyon, Texas	Lone Star	4
5	Colorado Mesa	Grand Junction, Colo.	RMAC	9
6	UC-Colorado Springs	Colorado Springs, Colo.	RMAC	NR
7	Oklahoma Christian	Oklahoma City, Okla.	Heartland Conference	NR
7	Black Hills State	Spearfish, S.D.	RMAC	5
9	Tarleton State	Stephenville, Texas	Lone Star	7
10	CSU-Pueblo	Pueblo, Colo.	RMAC	10
Regional Championship History — Last Five Champions: 2014: Adams State, 2013: Adams State, 2012: Adams State, 2011: Eastern New Mexico, 2010: Central Missouri


SOUTHEAST Region (3 auto quals)
Rank	School	Location	Conference	Last Week
1	Mount Olive	Mount Olive, N.C.	Conf. Carolinas	1
2	Queens (N.C.)	Charlotte, N.C.	SAC	2
3	UNC Pembroke	Pembroke, N.C.	Peach Belt	3
4	Mars Hill	Mars Hill, N.C.	SAC	5
5	Augusta	Augusta, Ga.	Peach Belt	7
6	Columbus State	Columbus, Ga.	Peach Belt	4
7	Georgia College	Milledgeville, Ga.	Peach Belt	6
8	Flagler	St. Augustine, Fla.	Peach Belt	10
9	Young Harris	Young Harris, Ga.	Peach Belt	9
10	King	Bristol, Tenn.	Conf. Carolinas	NR
Regional Championship History — Last Five Champions: 2014: Mars Hill, 2013: Mount Olive, 2012: Columbus State, 2011: Queens (N.C.), 2010: Queens (N.C.)


WEST Region (4 auto quals)
Rank	School	Location	Conference	Last Week
1	Chico State	Chico, Calif.	CCAA	1
2	Alaska Anchorage	Anchorage, Alaska	GNAC	2
3	Cal Poly Pomona	Pomona, Calif.	CCAA	3
4	Cal Baptist	Riverside, Calif.	PacWest	5
5	SF State	San Francisco, Calif.	CCAA	7
6	Simon Fraser	Burnaby, B.C.	GNAC	4
7	Western Washington	Bellingham, Wash.	GNAC	6
8	Academy of Art	San Francisco, Calif.	PacWest	NR
9	Azusa Pacific	Azusa, Calif.	PacWest	10
10	Humboldt State	Arcata, Calif.	CCAA	9
Regional Championship History — Last Five Champions: 2014: Chico State, 2013: Chico State, 2012: Chico State, 2011: Alaska Anchorage, 2010: Alaska Anchorage

USTFCCCA NCAA Division II
Women’s Cross Country Regional Team Rankings
2015 Week #6 — October 27 (pre-regional)
national rankings release: October 28
next regional release: none, NCAA regionals, November 7-8

ATLANTIC Region (3 auto quals)
Rank	School	Location	Conference	Last Week
1	Edinboro	Edinboro, Pa.	PSAC	3
2	East Stroudsburg	East Stroudsburg, Pa.	PSAC	6
3	Shippensburg	Shippensburg, Pa.	PSAC	2
4	California (Pa.)	California, Pa.	PSAC	5
5	Bloomsburg	Bloomsburg, Pa.	PSAC	1
6	Slippery Rock	Slippery Rock, Pa.	PSAC	4
7	Seton Hill	Greensburg, Pa.	PSAC	7
8	Kutztown	Kutztown, Pa.	PSAC	8
9	Lock Haven	Lock Haven, Pa.	PSAC	9
10	Mercyhurst	Erie, Pa.	PSAC	10
Regional Championship History — Last Five Champions: 2014: Edinboro, 2013: Edinboro, 2012: Shippensburg, 2011: Shippensburg, 2010: Shippensburg


CENTRAL Region (5 auto quals)
Rank	School	Location	Conference	Last Week
1	Minnesota Duluth	Duluth, Minn.	NSIC	1
2	U-Mary	Bismarck, N.D.	NSIC	3
3	Augustana (S.D.)	Sioux Falls, S.D.	NSIC	2
4	Harding	Searcy, Ark.	Great American	4
5	Southwest Baptist	Bolivar, Mo.	MIAA	6
6	Missouri Southern	Joplin, Mo.	MIAA	5
7	Winona State	Winona, Minn.	NSIC	7
8	Fort Hays State	Hays, Kan.	MIAA	8
9	Northern State	Aberdeen, S.D.	NSIC	NR
10	Pittsburg State	Pittsburg, Kan.	MIAA	10
Regional Championship History — Last Five Champions: 2014: Minnesota Duluth, 2013: Minnesota Duluth, 2012: Augustana (S.D.), 2011: Western State, 2010: Adams State


EAST Region (3 auto quals)
Rank	School	Location	Conference	Last Week
1	Stonehill	Easton, Mass.	Northeast-10	1
2	Roberts Wesleyan	Chili, N.Y.	East Coast	2
3	Daemen	Amherst, N.Y.	East Coast	5
4	St. Thomas Aquinas	Sparkill, N.Y.	East Coast	7
5	Philadelphia	Philadelphia, Pa.	CACC	6
6	Bentley	Waltham, Mass.	Northeast-10	NR
7	Assumption	Worcester, Mass.	Northeast-10	4
8	American International	Springfield, Mass.	Northeast-10	3
9	Merrimack	North Andover, Mass.	Northeast-10	8
10	Nyack	Nyack, N.Y.	CACC	NR
Regional Championship History — Last Five Champions: 2014: Roberts Wesleyan, 2013: Stonehill, 2012: Stonehill, 2011: Stonehill, 2010: Stonehill


MIDWEST Region (6 auto quals)
Rank	School	Location	Conference	Last Week
1	Grand Valley State	Allendale, Mich.	GLIAC	2
2	Hillsdale	Hillsdale, Mich.	GLIAC	1
3	Northern Michigan	Marquette, Mich.	GLIAC	3
4	Southern Indiana	Evansville, Ind.	GLVC	4
5	Lewis	Romeoville, Ill.	GLVC	6
6	UW-Parkside	Kenosha, Wis.	GLVC	9
7	Bellarmine	Louisville, Ky.	GLVC	5
8	Malone	Canton, Ohio	GLIAC	8
9	Indianapolis	Indianapolis, Ind.	GLVC	10
10	Ashland	Ashland, Ohio	GLIAC	7
Regional Championship History — Last Five Champions: 2014: Grand Valley State, 2013: Grand Valley State, 2012: Grand Valley State, 2011: Grand Valley State, 2010: Grand Valley State


SOUTH Region (3 auto quals)
Rank	School	Location	Conference	Last Week
1	Tampa	Tampa, Fla.	Sunshine	2
2	West Alabama	Livingston, Ala.	Gulf South	5
3	Saint Leo	Saint Leo, Fla.	Sunshine	1
4	Lee (Tenn.)	Cleveland, Tenn.	Gulf South	3
5	Union (Tenn.)	Jackson, Tenn.	Gulf South	4
6	Alabama-Huntsville	Huntsville, Ala.	Gulf South	6
7	North Alabama	Florence, Ala.	Gulf South	NR
8	West Georgia	Carrollton, Ga.	Gulf South	NR
9	Florida Tech	Melbourne, Fla.	Sunshine	7
10	Nova Southeastern	Davie, Fla.	Sunshine	10
Regional Championship History — Last Five Champions: 2014: Tampa, 2013: Tampa, 2012: Tampa, 2011: Tampa, 2010: Tampa


SOUTH CENTRAL Region (4 auto quals)
Rank	School	Location	Conference	Last Week
1	Adams State	Alamosa, Colo.	RMAC	1
2	Western State	Gunnison, Colo.	RMAC	2
3	Colorado Mines	Golden, Colo.	RMAC	3
4	Dallas Baptist	Dallas, Texas	Heartland Conference	4
5	Fort Lewis	Durango, Colo.	RMAC	9
6	UC-Colorado Springs	Colorado Springs, Colo.	RMAC	6
7	CSU-Pueblo	Pueblo, Colo.	RMAC	5
8	Chadron State	Chadron, Neb.	RMAC	8
9	Tarleton State	Stephenville, Texas	Lone Star	NR
10	Colorado Christian	Lakewood, Colo.	RMAC	NR
Regional Championship History — Last Five Champions: 2014: Adams State, 2013: Adams State, 2012: Adams State, 2011: Midwestern State, 2010: Pittsburg State


SOUTHEAST Region (3 auto quals)
Rank	School	Location	Conference	Last Week
1	Montevallo	Montevallo, Ala.	Peach Belt	1
2	Wingate	Wingate, N.C.	SAC	2
3	Queens (N.C.)	Charlotte, N.C.	SAC	4
4	Anderson (S.C.)	Anderson, S.C.	SAC	3
5	North Georgia	Dahlonega, Ga.	Peach Belt	5
6	UNC Pembroke	Pembroke, N.C.	Peach Belt	7
7	Mount Olive	Mount Olive, N.C.	Conf. Carolinas	8
8	Columbus State	Columbus, Ga.	Peach Belt	9
9	Young Harris	Young Harris, Ga.	Peach Belt	NR
10	Augusta	Augusta, Ga.	Peach Belt	6
Regional Championship History — Last Five Champions: 2014: Montevallo, 2013: Wingate, 2012: Columbus State, 2011: Queens (N.C.), 2010: Queens (N.C.)


WEST Region (5 auto quals)
Rank	School	Location	Conference	Last Week
1	Chico State	Chico, Calif.	CCAA	1
2	Alaska Anchorage	Anchorage, Alaska	GNAC	2
3	Cal Baptist	Riverside, Calif.	PacWest	3
4	Western Washington	Bellingham, Wash.	GNAC	4
5	UC San Diego	La Jolla, Calif.	CCAA	8
6	Cal State San Bernardino	San Bernardino, Calif.	CCAA	7
7	Azusa Pacific	Azusa, Calif.	PacWest	9
8	Central Washington	Ellensburg, Wash.	GNAC	NR
9	Seattle Pacific	Seattle, Wash.	GNAC	5
10	Cal State Stanislaus	Turlock, Calif.	CCAA	10
Regional Championship History — Last Five Champions: 2014: Simon Fraser, 2013: Alaska Anchorage, 2012: Chico State, 2011: Alaska Anchorage, 2010: Alaska Anchorage