PELLA – After his best season as a coach Joe DunhamDuring her 15-year tenure, the Central College women’s cross country team finished 15th in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association’s Division III national preseason rankings.
The regional preseason rankings were also released earlier this week. The Central women finished 3rd in the Midwest Region, while the men finished 6th.
The Dutch women are ahead of the rest of the American Rivers Conference, ranking behind only the University of Chicago (Illinois) and Washington University – St. Louis (Missouri) in the region. League mates Wartburg College (No. 4), Loras College (No. 5) and Simpson College (No. 7) have also found a place in the regional top 10.
Central returns five All-Conference players from last year’s squad and added a sixth through a transfer from Luther College Teah Miller (2nd year student, Iowa Falls, Iowa Falls-Alden HS). Addison Parrott (Senior, Danville), a 2023 All-American, headlines the returning squad.
In the Midwest men’s rankings, Central is ranked third among the five American Rivers Conference schools. Wartburg College tops the region and is ranked No. 2 nationally, while Loras College is ranked No. 4 in the region.
A young Dutch men’s team returns from Norwalk with only two regular players Jack Brown (sophomore) And Derek Webster (Senior), from last year’s national qualification unit.
Both programs will kick off the 2024 season on Friday, September 6, with the Central Dutch Invitational on the college cross-country course at 6 p.m.
