Women's cross country cracks top 10 with No. 9 national ranking

NEW ORLEANS (Oct. 2, 2018) — The BYU women’s cross country team moved up two spots to rank ninth in the US Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association’s (USTFCCCA) most recent national coaches’ poll released on Tuesday. The BYU men's team retained its No. 2 national ranking. 

The Cougars improved in the rankings after winning Notre Dame’s Joe Piane Invitational with a 37-point performance. All-American Erica Birk-Jarvis was the individual champion for the second meet in a row, while teammates Whittni Orton and Courtney Wayment finished in second and fifth, respectively.

The BYU women’s team last cracked the top 10 at the start of the 2017 season when USTFCCCA ranked the Cougars 10th in the nation after the first week of competition. This marks the highest in-season ranking the women’s team has received since 2006 when the team reached sixth in the standings.

The BYU men’s cross country team remains ranked No. 2 in the nation after winning the Joe Piane Invitational with a dominating 23-point performance. All-American Connor McMillan led the way for the Cougars with his first individual win of the season. Danny Carney took second, just tenths of a second after McMillan, and Conner Mantz placed fifth.

The USTFCCCA’s official release and full rankings can be found on ustfccca.org.