IU East Starts Women's XC Season as RSC Favorites

MIDDLETOWN, Ohio- The Red Wolves of Indiana University East earned the distinction of preseason favorites in women's cross country in the River States Conference, finishing in first place 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.

IU East will enter 2024 looking for their second straight River States Conference title, as the Red Wolves scored 58 points en route to their first-ever RSC title last season. East earned eight of the eleven first place votes, with the other three split between second place Shawnee State, third place IU Kokomo, and fourth place Rio Grande. IU Kokomo features the top returning runner from 2023, RSC individual champion Hannah Wells, now a senior.

After the top four, Midway checks in at fifth, while 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 IU Columbus seventh, WVU Tech eighth, Brescia ninth, Oakland City 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 WOMEN's CROSS COUNTRY COACHES' POLL
1. IU East (96 points, 8 first place votes)
2. Shawnee State (88 points, 1 first place vote)
3. IU Kokomo (82 points, 1 first place vote)
4. Rio Grande (76 points, 1 first place vote)
5. Midway (64 points)
6. Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (55 points)
7. IU Columbus (37 points)
8. WVU Tech (35 points)
9. Brescia (32 points)
10. Oakland City (29 points)
11. Alice Lloyd (11 points)