Date Posted: 9/25/2007

MACON, Ga. – For the second consecutive poll, Belmont garnered unanimous support from both the men’s and women’s coaches and sit atop both of the cross country polls the conference announced on Wednesday. At their last meet, the Belmont men won the Vanderbilt Commodore Classic placing five runners in the top eight for a team score of 21. The women finished sixth at the meet led by Brittany Thune’s ninth place finish.

Both Bruin teams continue to rank among the best in the region. In the second 2007 Division 1 Cross Country regional polls as released by the U.S. Track & Field Cross Country Coaches Association, the Bruin men remained fourth behind Alabama, Florida State and Florida; the Bruins’ women’s team fell one spot to 10th, swapping spots with Tennessee Chattanooga.

Both of Belmont’s squads will next compete at the star-studded Roy Griak Invitational hosted by Minnesota on Saturday.

There was some volatility in the middle of the men’s poll. Campbell made the biggest jump, moving up from sixth to fourth, narrowly moving past Gardner-Webb and UNF on the heels of a win at the Longwood Invitational. Lipscomb and Mercer swapped the seventh and eighth spots after the Bisons finished seventh at the Vanderbilt Commodore Classic. Florida Gulf Coast, USC Upstate, Stetson and Jacksonville all remained in the same spots from the last poll.

Kennesaw State and UNF, each who have held the No. 2 spot in previous women’s polls now share it as the two are tied, 20 points behind Belmont. Campbell retained fourth spot; Lipscomb and Jacksonville swapped the fifth and sixth spots. Likewise Florida Gulf Coast and Gardner-Webb flipped the seventh and eighth positions. Teams nine and 10, Mercer and ETSU remained in the same positions while Stetson tied USC Upstate for No. 11.

Florida Gulf Coast’s women’s team continued its climb in the polls. Two weeks ago, the Eagles moved from 11th in the preseason poll up to eighth and now they find themselves in the seventh position following a sixth place finish at the Florida State Invitational. At the meet, three Eagles’ runners Freshman Angela Hegge, senior Cadie Sly and freshman Megan Thies all recorded times that rank among the five fastest 5K times in school history.

The Atlantic Sun Conference is a 12-member league committed to Building Winners for Life, with a focus on academic and athletic integrity and a balance between the two for the student-athlete, and maintaining a high level of sportsmanship. Headquartered in Macon, Ga., the A-Sun encompasses six of the top eight media markets in the Southeast. The A-Sun consists of some of the most dynamic private and public institutions in the region: Belmont University, Campbell University, East Tennessee State University, Florida Gulf Coast University, Gardner-Webb University, Jacksonville University, Kennesaw State University, Lipscomb University, Mercer University, University of North Florida, University of South Carolina Upstate and Stetson University.