MASON CITY- The NIACC men’s cross country team is back on top of the national rankings.
NIACC, which was third in the Oct. 7 rankings, moved past Allen County CC and Cowley CC in the USTFCCCA NJCAA Division II rankings released Wednesday.
Allen County CC, which was No. 1 in in the Oct. 7 rankings, is ranked second and Cowley CC, which was No. 2 in the last rankings, sits in the third spot. Hawkeye CC and Heartland CC (Ill.) round out the top five at fourth and fifth, respectively.
NIACC was ranked No. 1 in the first poll of the season on Sept. 9.
Last Friday, NIACC placed third at the Indian Hills Invitational with 76 points. Iowa Western and Iowa Central, both NJCAA Division I schools, placed first and second, respectively, and Hawkeye CC placed sixth.
At the Indian Hills meet, freshman Melvin Kipkemboiled the Trojans with a fourth-place finish in a time of 25 minutes, 17 seconds, which ranks fourth in NIACC’s career 8-kilometer list. Sophomore Jorge Ruizwas fifth in 25:20, which ranks fifth on the school’s career 8K list.
Other counting scores for the Trojans were Vicente Correia(11th in 26:09), Janvier Irakoze(21st in 26:45) and Richard Marcoux(34th in 27:31).
NIACC returns to action Nov. 1 at the NJCAA Region XI championships in Fort Dodge. The NJCAA Division II national meet is slated for Nov. 14 in Fort Dodge.
USTFCCCA NJCAA Division II men’s poll (Oct. 21, 2020)
NIACC, Allen CC (Kan.), Cowley CC (Kan.), Hawkeye CC, Heartland CC (Ill.), Daytona State (Fla.), Wallace State CC (Ala.), Grand Rapids CC (Mich.), Metropolitian CC (Mo.), Jackson (Mich.), Lake-Sumter State (Fla.), Redlands CC (Okla.), UA Rich Mountain (Ark.), Marion Military Institute (Ala.), Bryant & Stratton (Wis.), Tallahassee CC (Fla.), Kaskaskia (Ill.), St. Clair County CC (Mich.), Moraine Valley CC (Ill.), Danville Area CC (Ill.), Mott CC (Mich.), Florida State-Jacksonville.
NIACC IN THE POLLS
Where the NIACC men’s cross country team has been in the USTFCCCA NJCAA Division II national poll in 2020:
Sept. 9 -1st
Sept. 23 -3rd
Oct. 7 -3rd
Oct. 21 -1st
