Bearcat Women are 12th in NCAA Division III; Men are 5th in West Region

By Robert McKinney, Athletics Communications Director, (503) 370-6110

SALEM, ORE. -- The Willamette University women's cross country team is ranked #12 in this week's NCAA Division III Poll released by the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). The women's team is ranked #1 in the West Region, while the Bearcat men's team is ranked #5 in the West Region.

Johns Hopkins University (Md.) continued to hold the top spot in the women's National Poll with all eight first place votes and 280 points. Williams College (Mass.) retained the #2 ranking with 268 points. St. Lawrence University (N.Y.) kept the #3 ranking with 267 points, but moved within one point of Williams.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology advanced one spot to #4 in this week's poll. The Engineers received 247 points. Oberlin College (Ohio) also moved up one position and was tied with Washington University (Mo.) for the #5 ranking. Washington made a big jump from #19 a week ago.

SUNY Geneseo (N.Y.) held the #7 ranking -- remaining in the same spot as a week ago -- with 234 points. Middlebury College (Vt.) stayed at #8 with 227 points.

University of Chicago (Ill.) was listed at #4 with 254 points, while moved from sixth into fifth place with 243 points. Oberlin College (Ohio) dropped one spot into #6 with 242 points.

Dickinson College (Pa.) moved up a spot into the #9 ranking with 219 points. Calvin College (Mich.) was #10 with 204 points and Haverford College (Pa.) was #11 with 198 points. Willamette was listed at #12 with 193 points.

This past weekend, Willamette took first place at the Oak Knoll Loop Run with a team score of 19 against Mount Hood Community College. Taylor Ostrander (Jr., Kenai, AK/Kenai Central HS) won the 5-kilometer race with a time of 18:35.7.

North Central College (Ill.) took over the #1 ranking in the men's National Poll after holding the #2 ranking last week. NCC received all eight first place votes and 280 points.

University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire also advanced one position to claim the #2 spot with 270 points. Last week's #1 team, St. Olaf College (Minn.) fell to #3 with 264 points.

St. Lawrence remained at #4 and received 255 points, while Central College (Iowa) stayed at #5 with 247 points. Williams also held its position at #6 with 241 points. University of Wisconsin-Platteville was #7 with 229 points and MIT was #8 with 222 points.

Rounding out the Top 10 were Johns Hopkins at #9 and University of Wisconsin-La Crosse at #10. Johns Hopkins had 219 points, while UW-La Crosse with listed with 212 points.

Willamette was #1 in the women's West Region Rankings. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (Calif.) stayed behind the Bearcats at #2. Whitman College moved up from #4 to #3. University of Puget Sound went from unranked into the #4 ranking. Whitworth University slipped from #3 down to #5 this week.

Additional Northwest Conference women's teams ranked in the West Region were Lewis & Clark College at #7 and Linfield College at #10.

The top team in the men's West Region Rankings remained Claremont-Mudd-Scripps. Pomona-Pitzer was listed at #2 and Occidental College (Calif.) was #3. Whitman jumped over the Bearcats into the #4 position. Willamette was ranked #5.

Other men's teams from the NWC ranked in the West Region were Puget Sound at #6 and Lewis & Clark at #7.

The Bearcats do not compete this weekend, but will host the 40th Annual Charles Bowles Willamette Invitational on Saturday, Oct. 4 at Bush's Pasture Park in Salem, Ore. Action is set to get underway at 9:30 a.m. (PDT).