NEW ORLEANS, La. --- For the first time in program history, the Moravian University men's cross country team is ranked first in the NCAA Division III Metro Region and nationally ranked at number 30 by the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association in this week's polls.
The Greyhounds are coming off an 11th place finish in the White Race at the annual Paul Short Run hosted by Lehigh University this past weekend, and the Blue & Grey placed ahead of Rowan University, TCNJ and Swarthmore College in the Metro Region to jump from third to first in the fourth regular season poll.
Nationally, Moravian has received votes in the National Coaches' Top 30 Poll twice this season and once last year; however, the Blue & Grey have never been ranked nationally by the USTFCCCA with polls dating back to 2006. The Greyhounds finished in front of No. 25 Rowan and No. 30 SUNY Brockport in the Paul Short Run to help move from receiving votes to the Top 30.
"It's rewarding to see the men's team perform as well as they have over the past two meets to get to the point where we could earn this kind of respect on the national stage," commented Director of Cross Country and Track & Field Jesse Baumann. "We've been working for a long time, even before this senior class was at Moravian, to get to the point where making NCAAs was a realistic goal for this program. With that being said, a ranking in early October is not what we're aiming for. Furthermore, we know we left a lot on the course on Saturday at Paul Short, so we're focused on getting back to training in a key part of the season so we can accomplish what we know this group is capable of."
The Hounds have this week off before returning to action at the Mike Woods Invitational hosted by No. 8 SUNY Geneseo at the Wartime Plane Museum on Saturday, October 19 at 12:00 p.m.
