Men’s Cross Country ranks No.1 in NAIA preseason poll

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (August 24, 2023) – The Milligan University men's cross country team was tabbed as the No.1 team in the nation in the NAIA Men's Cross Country Preseason Coaches' Poll on Thursday.

The Buffs ran to a national runner-up finish at last year's NAIA National Championships, Milligan's third-consecutive top-three national finish. The Buffs won the 2021 NAIA national championship, the first NAIA team national championship in school history.

Milligan makes its 29th-straight appearance in the top 25 poll and the 16th-consectutive top-10 showing. The Buffs earned No. 1 status in six of seven national rankings last fall. The 2023 season marks the second time the Buffs collect preseason No. 1 status. Milligan was one of five teams to receive first-place votes. The Buffs tied with defending national champion Dordt with seven first-place nods..

Senior Aaron Jones, graduate student Will Stockley and junior Bryn Woodall are returning NAIA All-Americans. Milligan claimed its fourth consecutive and ninth overall Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) championship in 2022. The Buffs finished the season with four meet titles, a 105-6 head-to-head record and a 15-4 against mark NCAA Division I competition.

Milligan opens its 2023 season at Appalachian State's Firetower Project Run on Sept. 1.