UW women move up to #2 in latest USTFCCCA national cross country poll; WSU men #15...

NEW ORLEANS—The University of Washington (above/photo courtesy UW Sports Information) women’s strong performance at the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational was rewarded by the voters of the USTFCCCA National Division I cross country poll, as the Huskies moved to the # 2 ranking, according to the coaches’ organization.

In fact, three of the nation’s top five teams in this week’s poll hail from the Pac-12, with defending conference champion Colorado, the winners of the Indiana State University Pre-Nationals, ranked #1, and the University of Oregon ranked number 5.

Colorado received 8 of the 12 possible first place votes from the panel, with Washington taking the other four votes.

The other two teams in the top five are #3 NC State, and #4 Providence, both of whom the Huskies defeated at Wisconsin.

The #2 ranking by Washington is the highest for the Dawgs since the 2013 season when it was ranked #1.

Other teams from the Pac-12 ranked in the national top 30 include Stanford at 11, Utah #17, #23 UCLA, and #25 Cal, giving the conference a total of seven teams, a season high for the conference, with the next highest conference (Big Ten) having three teams.

On the men’s side, Washington State’s ninth place finish at Wisconsin was rewarded by the voters of the national poll, as they went from just outside the top 30 in the last poll to #15.

Washington, which was ranked #23 before the Wisconsin meet, dropped two spots to #25, despite a 16th place finish. 

The nation’s top five teams are Northern Arizona, Stanford, Oregon, BYU, and Arkansas.

The Pac-12 placed four teams in the top ten, with #7 Colorado, the defending conference champs, and #10 UCLA joining the party.

The Cougars and Huskies round out the six teams in the national top 30 from the Pac-12, giving the conference six teams, while the next highest conference (Big Ten) has four teams.

The Pac-12 championships will be contested on Friday October 28th in Tucson, Arizona at the Randolph North Golf Course, hosted by the University of Arizona.

The USTFCCCA women’s release is available here, while the men’s release is available here.

NOTE:  The USTFCCCA, the University of Washington, Washington State University, and the Pac-12 Conference contributed to this report.