Colorado State University Athletics
Rams ranked eighth nationally in USTFCCCA’s week seven coaches’ poll
11/13/2017 1:33:00 PM | Cross Country
Rams head to NCAA Cross Country Championships ranked eighth, matching their highest ranking all-time from USTFCCCA
NEW ORLEANS – The Colorado State men's cross country team will head to the NCAA Cross Country Championships ranked eighth in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches' Association's (USTFCCCA) NCAA Division I Men's Cross Country National Coaches' Poll. The organization released its week seven rankings on Monday.
Colorado State's current No. 8 ranking matches its highest position all-time in a USTFCCCA cross country coaches' poll, and is the Rams' peak position under sixth-year head coach Art Siemers. The Rams were ranked at No. 8 last week, as well as in week two of the 2003 cross country season.
CSU's men were most recently in action at the NCAA Mountain Regional, where the Rams finished fourth among 18 teams, including seven that qualified for the national championships. The Mountain Region features half of the USTFCCCA's top-eight ranked teams, and qualified more teams for nationals than any other region.
The CSU men have now been ranked for 37 consecutive regular-season polls under Siemers, dating back to the week three rankings in 2013. Additionally, CSU has now been ranked within the top 20 for 11 consecutive polls, dating back to week five of the 2016 season. The Rams remain the highest-ranked men's cross country team of any Mountain West school, topping Air Force (No. 17), Boise State (No. 23) and Utah State (No. 26). Each of those teams, along with CSU, reached the NCAA Championships.
CSU began the season ranked 18th, and has risen 10 spots since then. The Rams had been ranked No. 18 for the first three polls (including preseason) before rising to No. 15 in week three after a team championship at the Roy Griak Invitational. The Rams then surged to No. 11 in week four before a No. 9 ranking in week five and its current No. 8 ranking in each of the two most recent polls.
Prior to the NCAA Mountain Regional, CSU was in action at the Mountain West Cross Country Championships, where a dominant performance led to the Rams' first men's MW cross country title. Jerrell Mock took first place to become the third two-time individual champion in conference history, while Cole Rockhold followed him in second. Eric Hamer claimed fifth place, while Grant Fischer took eighth to give the Rams half of the top eight finishers. Trent Powell Rounded out CSU scorers in 15th place.
CSU's rise in the rankings can also be traced back to the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational, where the Rams placed sixth of 35 teams. The Rams toppled 14 ranked teams in the NCAA Championships-caliber field, including then-No. 6 Southern Utah, and placed behind only current No. 1 Northern Arizona, No. 3 Syracuse, No. 4 Portland, No. 6 Stanford and No. 7 Furman. Mock (16th), Rockhold (27th) and Hamer (49th) finished in the top 50 of 234 runners.
The historic season for CSU cross country began with the men's first-ever Roy Griak Invitational team title. Mock became the third athlete to repeat as men's individual champion in meet history, while CSU became the first program in meet history to have the individual champion in three consecutive seasons. Former CSU All-American Jefferson Abbey started that streak in 2015.
The Rams have had four Mountain West athletes of the week in 2017, which tied for the most in the conference this season. Included among those athletes are Mock, Darby Gilfillan, Powell and McKenna Spillar. Mock has also received national recognition this season, as he was named USTFCCCA NCAA DI Men Athlete of the Week following his Griak win. With this season's league honors, CSU is the only current conference member to sweep MW weekly honors outright twice in a single season.
The Colorado State men's cross country team wraps up the 2017 season on Saturday, Nov. 18 at the NCAA Cross Country Championships. The men's 10k is slated for 9:45 a.m. MT/11:45 a.m. ET. The meet will be held from E.P. 'Tom' Sawyer State Park in Louisville, Ky., and will be streamed live for FloTrack subscribers.
Colorado State's current No. 8 ranking matches its highest position all-time in a USTFCCCA cross country coaches' poll, and is the Rams' peak position under sixth-year head coach Art Siemers. The Rams were ranked at No. 8 last week, as well as in week two of the 2003 cross country season.
CSU's men were most recently in action at the NCAA Mountain Regional, where the Rams finished fourth among 18 teams, including seven that qualified for the national championships. The Mountain Region features half of the USTFCCCA's top-eight ranked teams, and qualified more teams for nationals than any other region.
The CSU men have now been ranked for 37 consecutive regular-season polls under Siemers, dating back to the week three rankings in 2013. Additionally, CSU has now been ranked within the top 20 for 11 consecutive polls, dating back to week five of the 2016 season. The Rams remain the highest-ranked men's cross country team of any Mountain West school, topping Air Force (No. 17), Boise State (No. 23) and Utah State (No. 26). Each of those teams, along with CSU, reached the NCAA Championships.
CSU began the season ranked 18th, and has risen 10 spots since then. The Rams had been ranked No. 18 for the first three polls (including preseason) before rising to No. 15 in week three after a team championship at the Roy Griak Invitational. The Rams then surged to No. 11 in week four before a No. 9 ranking in week five and its current No. 8 ranking in each of the two most recent polls.
Prior to the NCAA Mountain Regional, CSU was in action at the Mountain West Cross Country Championships, where a dominant performance led to the Rams' first men's MW cross country title. Jerrell Mock took first place to become the third two-time individual champion in conference history, while Cole Rockhold followed him in second. Eric Hamer claimed fifth place, while Grant Fischer took eighth to give the Rams half of the top eight finishers. Trent Powell Rounded out CSU scorers in 15th place.
CSU's rise in the rankings can also be traced back to the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational, where the Rams placed sixth of 35 teams. The Rams toppled 14 ranked teams in the NCAA Championships-caliber field, including then-No. 6 Southern Utah, and placed behind only current No. 1 Northern Arizona, No. 3 Syracuse, No. 4 Portland, No. 6 Stanford and No. 7 Furman. Mock (16th), Rockhold (27th) and Hamer (49th) finished in the top 50 of 234 runners.
The historic season for CSU cross country began with the men's first-ever Roy Griak Invitational team title. Mock became the third athlete to repeat as men's individual champion in meet history, while CSU became the first program in meet history to have the individual champion in three consecutive seasons. Former CSU All-American Jefferson Abbey started that streak in 2015.
The Rams have had four Mountain West athletes of the week in 2017, which tied for the most in the conference this season. Included among those athletes are Mock, Darby Gilfillan, Powell and McKenna Spillar. Mock has also received national recognition this season, as he was named USTFCCCA NCAA DI Men Athlete of the Week following his Griak win. With this season's league honors, CSU is the only current conference member to sweep MW weekly honors outright twice in a single season.
The Colorado State men's cross country team wraps up the 2017 season on Saturday, Nov. 18 at the NCAA Cross Country Championships. The men's 10k is slated for 9:45 a.m. MT/11:45 a.m. ET. The meet will be held from E.P. 'Tom' Sawyer State Park in Louisville, Ky., and will be streamed live for FloTrack subscribers.
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