The BYU women’s cross country team moved to a No. 26 national ranking on Oct. 8, up two spots from last week’s USTFCCCA Coaches Poll.
After beginning the season with relatively quiet expectations, the Cougars turned heads early on with a first-place finish at the BYU Autumn Classic. They kept that momentum going last week by finishing fourth at the Notre Dame Invitational, defeating four nationally ranked teams in the process.
The BYU women's cross country team is ranked No. 26 in the nation this week. Photo courtesy BYU Athletics
The team also moved up to the No. 3 spot in the Mountain Region in the Oct. 7 polls, behind No. 1 Colorado and No. 2 Arizona State. The Cougars are one of two nationally ranked teams in the West Coast Conference. San Francisco began last week at the No. 24 spot but moved all the way to No. 10 in the current rankings.
Head coach Patrick Shane was pleased by his team’s effort in the Notre Dame Invitational on Oct. 4 and optimistic about the future.
“We exceeded expectations in every way,” Shane said. “San Francisco is a really good team, and we were close behind them today,” Shields said. “But we will be able to improve more over the next month and see them again at the conference meet.”
The Cougars will next compete in the Wisconsin Adidas Invitational on Oct. 19 before competing against San Francisco and other regional rivals in the West Coast Conference Championships on Nov. 2.