Cross Country: Jump to No. 13 in Poll

By Daniel Whitehead for WVUsports.com
November 01, 2011 07:25 PM

Sean Cleary

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – After a solid fourth-place finish at the BIG EAST Championship last Saturday, the West Virginia cross country team jumped five spots to No. 13 in the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches of America (USTFCCCA) national poll released Tuesday.

The rank is the highest the Mountaineers have achieved during the 2011 season, besting the previous high of No. 18 two weeks ago.

At the BIG EAST Championship, the WVU runners tied with No. 9 Syracuse with 92 points for fourth place, beating No. 23 Notre Dame (136), No. 28 UConn (165) and nine other BIG EAST programs. No. 4 Villanova won the race with 54 points, followed by No. 7 Providence (63) and No. 6 Georgetown (77).

“We have steadily climbed the rankings all season,” says WVU coach Sean Cleary. “While we were no more than satisfied with our result at the BIG EAST Championship, we are excited to take control of the next few weeks and see how far we can go. The Mid-Atlantic Regional will be a great test for our group.”

Redshirt senior Kate Harrison led the Mountaineers with a third-place finish at the 6k league race in 19:52, followed by Kaitlyn Gillespie in seventh place and Sarah-Anne Brault in 11th place. Redshirt senior Ahna Lewis and redshirt junior Stephanie Aldea also scored for the team with their respective 28th- and 43rd-place marks.

West Virginia remained at No. 3 in the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional standings released Monday. In the national poll, Florida State remained No. 1, while Villanova jumped to No. 2 and Colorado secured the No. 3 spot.

The BIG EAST Conference tied with the Pac-12 for the most squads (6) in the national top 30, followed by the ACC and Big Ten with five apiece.

The Mountaineers next compete on Saturday, Nov. 12, at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional in Princess Anne, Md. Hoping to earn at-large points to qualify for the NCAA Championship on Nov. 21, the team seeks its fourth Top 10 national finish in five years.

USTFCCCA National Poll – Nov. 1, 2011
1 ... Florida State (10) ... ACC
2 ... Villanova (1) ... BIG EAST
3 ... Colorado (1) ... Pac-12
4 ... Vanderbilt ... SEC
5 ... Providence ... BIG EAST
6 ... Washington ... Pac-12
7 ... Georgetown ... BIG EAST
8 ... Stanford ... Pac-12
9 ... Syracuse ... BIG EAST
10 ... Iowa State ... Big 12
11 ... Oregon ... Pac-12
12 ... Michigan State ... Big Ten
13 ... West Virginia ... BIG EAST
14 ... Texas ... Big 12
15 ... Michigan ... Big Ten
16 ... Arizona ... Pac-12
17 ... Arkansas ... SEC
18 ... Boston College ... ACC
19 ... New Mexico ... Mountain West
20 ... NC State ... ACC
21 ... Virginia ... ACC
22 ... Penn State ... Big Ten
23 ... Oklahoma State ... Big 12
24 ... Notre Dame ... BIG EAST
25 ... North Carolina ... ACC
26 ... California ... Pac-12
27 ... San Francisco ... West Coast
28 ... Wisconsin ... Big Ten
29 ... Cornell ... Ivy
30 ... Minnesota ... Big Ten

Tags
Sean Cleary, WVU Cross Country