EVANSVILLE, Ind.—The University of Southern Indiana men’s and women’s cross country teams were both ranked in the U.S. Track and Field & Cross Country Coaches’ Association preseason poll.
USI’s men, who enter the season in search of their sixth consecutive GLVC title after finishing sixth at the NCAA II National Championships last fall, are ranked eighth in the poll and second in the Midwest Region.
The Screaming Eagles return their top three runners from last season’s squad and five of their top seven. Juniors Dustin Emerick, Brendan Devine, and Andrew Dixon all finished in the top 50 at the national meet last season, with Emerick and Devine garnering All-America honors.
USI also will be bolstered by the return of sophomores Michael Callison and Michael Jordan. Callison was the GLVC Freshman of the Year last fall and was one of the top steeplechase runners during the outdoor track season this past spring. Jordan also had a strong freshman campaign in 2009-10, capturing the GLVC championship in the steeplechase and coming within three seconds of breaking the school record in the same event.
The women’s squad, in search of its third straight GLVC crown after finishing 12th at the NCAA II National Championships in 2009, is ranked 13th in the national poll and third in the Midwest Region.
USI must replace four of its top seven runners from the 2009 campaign, including three-time All-American Mary Ballinger, if it wishes to continue its GLVC title run. Juniors Jackie Henderson and Adrienne Curtis along with sophomore Lauren Minor are expected to pick up a lot of the slack.
Henderson had an outstanding spring as she qualified for the NCAA II Outdoor Track & Field Championships in the 10,000 meters, while Minor returns after earning GLVC Freshman of the Year accolades last fall. Curtis earned All-GLVC and All-Midwest Region honors on the cross country course last season.
The Eagles begin the season September 17 when they travel to Boone, North Carolina, to compete in the Appalachian State Mountaineer Open.