Big invitational win moves Oregon to No. 1 in Division I men's cross country poll

Oct. 2, 2007

NEW ORLEANS - By taking Wisconsin at Saturday's Bill Dellinger Invitational, Oregon claimed the top ranking in the latest men's cross country poll, the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association announced today.

The Ducks received nine first-place votes in this week's poll, enabling them to jump from third to first in one week. Colorado and Wisconsin are tied for second in this week's poll.

Colorado, the defending NCAA men's champion, claimed three first-place votes. Wisconsin, last week's No. 1 team, earned one first-place vote. Rounding out the top 10 are Oklahoma State, Iona, Stanford, Notre Dame, Alabama, Arkansas and North Carolina State.

Oregon won the Dellinger men's title with 54 points, finishing ahead of Wisconsin (73), Alabama (111), Portland (137), UCLA (147) and UTEP (148). Wisconsin's Matt Withrow won the individual title in 23 minutes 20 seconds. Oregon's Shadrack Kiptoo-Biwott was second.

Alabama's third-place finish at the Dellinger Invitational moved the Crimson Tide up nine spots in this week's USTFCCCA poll.

Fourth-ranked Oklahoma State jumped four spots on the strength of its upset win over Arkansas at the Cowboy Jamboree. Oklahoma State and Abilene Christian tied for first with 69 points but the Cowboys earned team honors on the basis of a tiebreaker.

Notre Dame also made a big move, improving from 12th in last week's poll to seventh in this week's poll. The Fighting Irish won the Notre Dame Invitational with 92 points, finishing ahead of North Carolina State.

This week's second 10 consists of Texas, Georgetown, Portland, Providence, Northern Arizona, William & Mary, Louisville, UCLA, Michigan and Arizona State.

The voting panel for the USTFCCCA Division I men's poll consists of nine elected regional representatives and four at-large members of the USTFCCCA. The rankings are compiled by Don Kopriva.

Stanford is ranked first in this week's Division I women's poll.

NCAA Division I men's cross country rankings
Oct. 2, 2007
(first-place votes and total points)

Team Points

1. Oregon (9) 384

2. (tie) Colorado (3) 371

2. (tie) Wisconsin (1) 371

4. Oklahoma State 319

5. Iona 314

6. Stanford 313

7. Notre Dame 307

8. Alabama 288

9. Arkansas 279

10. North Carolina State 264

11. Texas 238

12. Georgetown 237

13. Portland 222

14. Providence 211

15. Northern Arizona 203

16. William & Mary 186

17. Louisville 175

18. UCLA 159

19. Michigan 148

20. Arizona State 142

21. UTEP 128

22. Villanova 117

23. Iowa State 113

24. Florida State 89

25. Minnesota 77

26. Weber State 70

27. Washington 61

28. Syracuse 52

29. Virginia 51

30. Cal Poly 36

Also receiving votes: Florida 29, Princeton 29, BYU 20, Tulsa 16, Michigan State 14, Eastern Michigan 6, Texas A&M 3, Indiana 2, Washington State 1.