USTFCCCA Cross Country National Coaches' Polls
 
NEW ORLEANS – The Colorado School of Mines Men's and Women's Cross Country teams both moved up in the latest national rankings released by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches' Association (USTFCCCA) released Wednesday afternoon.
 
Mines' men returned to #2 in the nation after spending one week at #3. The Oredigger women rose to #4 after back-to-back weeks at #5. The rise also puts Mines' women into a projected podium position at the national meet. Wingate's men and Adams State's women extended their respective runs at #1 in the nation.
 
Both Oredigger improvements on USTFCCCA's list were fueled by team titles at the Lewis XC Crossover last weekend. The men of Mines won their team title by 60 points over Western Washington thanks to Ethan Grolnic's third-place finish. The Oredigger women claimed team gold by a 45-point margin after Jenna Ramsey-Rutledge finished #1 in 20:43.2. She was 11 seconds ahead of the silver medalist.
 
Overall, the national rankings included eight RMAC women's programs and six men's programs from the conference. The breakdown on the women's list includes #1 Adams State, #3 CSU Pueblo, #4 Mines, #7 Western Colorado, #11 UCCS, #18 Colorado Christian, #23 Fort Lewis, and #28 Colorado Mesa. Men's teams from the RMAC included #2 Mines, #5 Western Colorado, #6 Adams State, #11 Colorado Christian, #12 CSU Pueblo, and #22 UCCS. Additional programs from the South Central Region included West Texas A&M's men at #3 and the women at #9 along with Dallas Baptist's women at #24.
 
Postseason racing begins on Saturday, Oct. 26, when Mines will run at the 2024 RMAC Cross Country Championships in Las Vegas, N.M. A full preview will be released on Friday at www.minesathletics.com.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines cross country on "X" (formerly Twitter) and Instagram at @csmtrack. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.