DRAGON WOMEN REMAIN NO. 2 IN WOMEN’S XC RANKINGS

Blue Dragon Women's Cross Country remains No. 2 in this week's USTFCCCA national rankings. (Steve Carpenter/Blue Dragon Sports Information)
Blue Dragon Women's Cross Country remains No. 2 in this week's USTFCCCA national rankings. (Steve Carpenter/Blue Dragon Sports Information)

USTFCCCA/NJCAA DIV. I
WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY
RANKINGS

  Last Poll
1. Southern Idaho
2. Hutchinson
3. New Mexico Junior College
4. El Paso
5. Butler
5. Iowa Central
7. Salt Lake
8. Cloud County
9. Dodge City
10. Central Arizona
11. Iowa Western
12. Southern Nevada
13. Garden City
14. Fort Scott
15. Crowder
16. Vincennes
17. North Central Texas
18. Amarillo
19. Neosho County
20. Monroe
21. Indian Hills
22. Pima
23. Trinidad State
24. Seminole State (FL)
25. Western Texas
25. Eastern Florida State

1
2
4
3
10
5
6
9
11
7
8
12
13
NR
15
14
16
NR
18
NR
23
17
22
19
21
20

Hutchinson CC Sports Information

The Hutchinson Community College women's cross country team set a bunch of individual bests at the Chili Pepper Festival last week in Arkansas, which was enough to keep the Blue Dragons at No. 2 in the latest United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association national poll.

The Top 5 this week has Southern Idaho, Hutchinson, New Mexico Junior College, El Paso and Butler. The Grizzlies made a huge move, jumping five spots from the first poll of the season.

There are four Region VI teams in the Division I Top 10. Along with Hutchinson and Butler, Cloud County is No. 8 and Dodge City is No. 9 this week. Garden City, Fort Scott and Neosho County are ranked 13, 14 and 18, respectively.

Freshman Serenity Larson broke the Blue Dragon record at 5,000-meters by 29 seconds and was 1 of 7 Hutchinson runners to post new personal records. Third-year sophomore Louise Cocking posted an 11-second PR, freshman Taylor Hoskinson bettered her best time by 25 seconds, freshman Ellie Van Zelfden posted a 51-second PR, and freshman Adaline Fulmer set her new PR by 22 seconds.

Sophomore Courtney Baetz docked 44 seconds off her previous best time, freshman Lauran Aiden set a new PR by two seconds, and sophomore Aidyn White set a new PR beating her previous time by 61 seconds.

Those PRs all came as the Blue Dragons competed in the college 5K division with some of the top NCAA Division I cross country teams in the nation. The team finished 27th overall out of 32 schools in the division.

The Blue Dragon men and women will compete at the Ollie Isom Invitational in El Dorado Friday, Oct. 14 before heading into the Region XI cross country meet on Friday, Oct. 28, which will be in Hutchinson.