In the first edition of this season's national rankings, the Spartan men find themselves ranked in the top 25. They were the last team selected to the poll, coming in at No. 25 in this first edition of the NJCAA cross country rankings voted on by junior college coaches around the country.

Since the implementation of the current format, this marks just the second time in program history that the Spartan men have cracked the top 25 - the first coming during the third edition of the 2017 poll when the Spartans were ranked as the No. 24 team in the country. The Spartan men are coming off a 28th-place finish at last year's NJCAA Championships and are looking to improve upon that finish this year.

When asked about the ranking, Head Cross Country and Track and Field Coach Trey Bruton said, "It truly is an honor for us to be ranked. I really didn't expect us to make the rankings at this point. We haven't run all that fast yet and are nowhere near our potential."

Bruton continued by talking about the quality of the ICCAC and Region XI.

"We are lucky to be a part of such a great conference," Bruton stated. "Based on the size and the depth of our conferenc,e it is easy to argue we have one of the best conferences in the country and that really helps us succeed. Day in and day out we know if we want to compete well the effort has to be there to get better."

Bruton summarized by saying, "We have a really talented team this year that has the potential to finish as one of the best in program history. We are glad to be ranked, but know we still have a lot to prove to show we are deserving of such consideration. There is still a long way to go this season and we are not satisfied yet. We plan to finish the season well."

http://www.ustfccca.org/2018/09/featured/2018-njcaa-di-cross-country-national-coaches-poll-week-1