Shawnee State Picked First in RSC Men's Cross Country Poll

MIDDLETOWN, Ohio- The Bears of Shawnee State University have been picked to go back-to-back as the River States Conference men's cross country champions, taking the top spot in the 2024 RSC Preseason Coaches Poll. The poll, announced Thursday by the River States Conference office, saw each of the conference's eleven head coaches rank the other member schools in order of predicted finish.

In their first year of conference membership, the Bears cruised to the RSC crown in 2023, placing five runners within the top nine and finishing 12th in the nation at the NAIA National Championships. Shawnee State took eight of the eleven first place votes, with Rio Grande taking the other three. The Red Storm finished second in the conference last year, and return conference individual champion Tyler Jenkins, now a junior.

The top half of the coaches poll was rounded out by third place IU East, fourth place IU Kokomo, and fifth place Midway. The Pomeroys of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods are picked to finish in the middle of the conference, at sixth place. The bottom half of the poll sees WVU Tech seventh, Oakland City eighth, Brescia ninth, IU Columbus tenth, and Alice Lloyd rounding out the conference at eleventh.

The River States cross country schedule is scheduled to begin Friday, August 30, with five teams in competition, including three at the Thundering Herd Invitational on the campus of Marshall University in West Virginia. The season will culminate in Evansville, Indiana on Saturday, November 9, when a champion is decided at the River States Conference Cross Country Championships, hosted this year by Oakland City University.

2024 RSC PRESEASON MEN's CROSS COUNTRY COACHES' POLL
1. Shawnee State (98 points, 8 first place votes)
2. Rio Grande (90 points, 3 first place votes)
3. IU East (84 points)
4. IU Kokomo (72 points)
5. Midway (66 points)
6. Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (55 points)
7. WVU Tech (42 points)
8. Oakland City (34 points)
9. Brescia (30 points)
10. IU Columbus (24 points)
11. Alice Lloyd (10 points)