Utah State Cross Country Teams Remain in Top 10 of Region Rankings

Utah State’s cross country teams remained in the top 10 in the latest NCAA Division I Cross Country Regional Rankings, released October 15 by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
 
The Aggie women dropped three spots to No. 7, while the men fell one spot to No. 8.
 
On the men's side, Northern Arizona and BYU stayed put in the top two spots, while Colorado jumped two spots to No. 3. Wyoming had the biggest improvement out of any team in the poll, climbing from No. 9 to No. 4. Rounding out the top five is Colorado State at No. 5.
 
Colorado holds the top spot in the Mountain Region on the women's side for the second-straight week, while New Mexico, the defending NCAA Cross Country champion, and BYU remained at Nos. 2 and 3, respectively.
 
Improving two spots to No. 4 is Southern Utah after taking eighth place in the Cardinal Race at last weekend's Pre-Nationals in Madison, Wis. Climbing four spots to join the top-five for the first time this season is No. 5 Northern Arizona.
 
In Utah State's last outing, the men and women both placed 12th in the White Race at Pre-Nationals. No. 1 Northern Arizona took home the top spot in the men's team standings with 41 points, while Utah State placed 12th out of the 35 teams with 383 points. On the women's side, No. 3 New Mexico won the team race with 67 points, while the Aggies finished 12th out of 35 teams with 385 points.
 
Junior Luke Beattie was the top Aggie finisher for the men, placing 52nd with a time of 24:38.4. Fellow junior Adam Hendrickson was the second finisher for USU, crossing the line 60th with a time of 24:42.8. Other Aggie finishers for the men included redshirt freshman Stockton Smith in 80th (24:52.7), junior J.D. Thorne in 97th (25:02.3), junior James Withers in 99th (25:04.1), sophomore Haydon Cooper in 123rd (25:17.7) and junior Sam Clausnitzer in 137th (25:24.0).
 
In the women's race, senior Alyssa Snyder recorded her second top finish of the season for Utah State by placing 39th with a time of 21:04.6. Senior Cierra Simmons crossed the line 42nd with a time of 21:07.3. After Snyder and Simmons came senior Megan Ryan in 82nd (21:37.5), senior Tavia Dutson in 98th (22:00.7), junior Josie Givens in 124th (22:03.1), senior Tylee Skinner in 143rd (22:13.6) and freshman Mica Rivera in 158th (22:22.0) to round out the Aggie competitors.
Utah State also had men's and women's runners in the unseeded races as senior Kody Gould finished 12th (25:09.7), while senior Shannon Maloney placed 37th (22:19.7).
 
Fans can follow the Utah State track & field and cross country programs at twitter.com/USUTF_XC, on Facebook at USUTrack and on Instagram at instagram.com/USUTF_XC. Aggies fans can also follow the Utah State athletic program at twitter.com/USUAthletics or on Facebook at Utah State University Athletics.
 
Women's Week 5 Mountain Region Rankings:
1. Colorado
2. New Mexico
3. BYU
4. Southern Utah
5. Northern Arizona
6. Air Force
7. Utah State
8. Utah
9. Colorado State
10. Nevada
11. Wyoming
12. Montana State
13. Weber State
14. Utah Valley
15. Idaho State
 
Men's Week 5 Mountain Region Rankings:
1. Northern Arizona
2. BYU
3. Colorado
4. Wyoming
5. Colorado State
6. Air Force
7. Southern Utah
8. Utah State
9. New Mexico
10. Montana State
11. Weber State
12. Idaho State
13. Utah Valley
14. Northern Colorado
15. New Mexico State