GREENVILLE, Pa. (pacathletics.org)--The Allegheny College women's cross country program was picked as the favorite in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) this fall, according to the league's annual preseason coaches' poll. The results of this year's poll, voted on by the PAC's 11 head coaches, were announced with the PAC's Runners to Watch List Thursday afternoon. 

Led by sixth-year head coach Ben Mourer, Allegheny claimed eight of 11 first-place votes and 100 total points to top this year's poll.

Allegheny announced its return to the PAC on August 23, 2021 after a 38-year run as a founding member of the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC). Allegheny was a PAC member from 1958 through the spring of 1984 and reentered the PAC as its 11th full-time member on July 1, 2022. 

Allegheny won its 16th NCAC championship last fall. Mourer was voted the NCAC's Coach of the Year for the third time. After a six-place showing at the Division III Great Lakes Regional Championships, Allegheny was one of 22 programs to receive an at-large bid to the national championship. Allegheny posted a 30th-place finish in the 32-team national championship field. 

Allegheny was recently slotted in the No. 7 spot in the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Great Lakes Region preseason regional rankings. 

Waynesburg University, led by 13th-year head coach and seven-time PAC Coach of the Year Chris Hardie, collected one first-place vote and 92 points to finish second in this year's poll. Waynesburg won its sixth-straight PAC team title in 2021. Waynesburg posted 54 points at last year's conference championships, edging runner-up Franciscan University (55) by just one point. It was the first time in league history the women's team championship was decided by one point. Waynesburg was 11th at last year's Division III Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships. 

Grove City College, winners of a PAC-best 27 conference titles, was third in the preseason poll with 83 points. Washington & Jefferson College and Franciscan finished fourth and fifth, respectively, with each program collecting one first-place vote. W&J totaled 82 points while Franciscan secured 77 points. Geneva College was sixth (72), Saint Vincent College was seventh (66), Chatham University was eighth (48), Westminster College was ninth (38), Bethany College was 10th (31) and Thiel College was 11th (26). 

This season’s runners to watch list includes a pair of All-PAC First Team selections, four All-PAC Second Team selections and three All-PAC Honorable Mention selections from last fall. 

Allegheny rising senior Megan Aaron (Cranberry Township, Pa. | Seneca Valley), W&J rising junior Cassie Carr (Girard, Pa. | Girard) and Grove City rising sophomore Lydia Bennett (Bethel, Maine | Gould Academy) highlight this year's runners to watch list.

Aaron earned the NCAC Runner of the Year award last fall, winning the 89-runner championship event with a time of 22 minutes, 43.70 seconds. She claimed All-Region honors with a seventh-place finish at the Great Lakes Championships (22:12.7) and was 49th at the national championships (21:57.3).

Carr posted a third-place finish at last year's PAC Championships with a time of 24:38.39. She secured All-Region honors after finishing 21st (24:20.70) at the Mid-Atlantic Championships. Carr went on to qualify for the Division III Championships in 2021, becoming W&J's first national qualifier since Kristen Galligan finished 12th at the Division III Championships in 2012. She finished 189th at the national championships (23:02.20).

Bennett was honored as the PAC Newcomer of the Year at last year's conference championships after finishing in seventh place (25:08.55). Bennett earned All-Region honors at the Mid-Atlantic  Championships with a 28th-place finish (24:37.90). 

The runners to watch list also includes 17 members of the Fall 2021 PAC Academic Honor Roll, which recognizes student-athletes on varsity sports teams who have earned a grade-point average (GPA) of 3.6 or higher on a 4.0 scale during their semester of competition.

Last January the USTFCCCA recognized nine PAC women's programs as All-Academic Teams. The programs at Allegheny, Bethany, Chatham, Franciscan, Geneva, Saint Vincent, Thiel, W&J and Waynesburg all posted cumulative GPAs of at least 3.1. Eight women were also honored by the USTFCCCA as Division III All-Academic Athletes after registering cumulative GPAs of at least 3.3 and finishing in the top 25 percent of their respective regional championship meet. 

On Saturday, October 29 Saint Vincent will host this year's PAC Championships. The women's 6,000-meter race will begin at 11 a.m., followed by the men's 8,000-meter race at 12 p.m.

The 10 Division III regional championships are scheduled for Saturday, November 12. Bethany, Chatham, Geneva, Grove City, Saint Vincent, Thiel, W&J, Waynesburg and Westminster will compete in the Mid-Atlantic region, while Allegheny and Franciscan will compete in the Great Lakes region. Susquehanna University will host the Division III Mid-Atlantic Championships at Lock Haven University's West Branch Cross Country Course. Hope College will host the Division III Great Lakes Championships at the West Ottawa Golf Club in Holland, Mich. 

The Division III Championships are scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 19 in Lansing, Mich. Olivet College will host the national championships at Forest Akers East Golf Course. 
 

2022 PAC Women's Cross Country Preseason Coaches' Poll (Predicted order of finish)
School (first-place votes)	Points	2021 Conference finishes
1. Allegheny College (8)	100	1st (of 8) at NCAC Championships, 33 pts.
2. Waynesburg University (1)	92	1st (of 10) at PAC Championships, 54 pts.
3. Grove City College	83	4th (of 10) at PAC Championships, 97 pts.
4. Washington & Jefferson College (1)	82	6th (of 10) at PAC Championships, 165 pts.
5. Franciscan University (1)	77	2nd (of 10) at PAC Championships, 55 pts.
6. Geneva College	72	3rd (of 10) at PAC Championships, 66 pts.
7. Saint Vincent College	66	7th (of 10) at PAC Championships, 171 pts.
8. Chatham University	48	5th (of 10) at PAC Championships, 164 pts.
9. Westminster College	38	9th (of 10) at PAC Championships, 222 pts.
10. Bethany College	31	8th (of 10) at PAC Championships, 205 pts.
11. Thiel College	26	10th (of 10) at PAC Championships, 248 pts.

2022 PAC Women's Cross Country Runners to Watch

Allegheny College
Name	Yr.	Hometown | High School
Megan Aaron	Sr.	Cranberry Township, Pa. | Seneca Valley
Eva Kerr	Sr.	Fredericksburg, Va. | James Monroe
Sarah Maue	Sr.	Tamaqua, Pa. | Tamaqua

 

Bethany College
Name	Yr.	Hometown | High School
Summer Whelan	Sr.	Parma Heights, Ohio | Valley Forge
Danielle Williams	Sr.	Stoneboro, Pa. | Lakeview

 

Chatham University
Name	Yr.	Hometown | High School
Tresa Coon	Sr.	Valencia, Pa. | Pine-Richland
Clare Erwin	So.	Milford, N.J. | Delaware Valley Regional

 

Franciscan University
Name	Yr.	Hometown | High School
Jessica Campbell	So.	Medina, Ohio | Medina
Rachel Hurley	So.	Sterling, Va. | Homeschooled
Claire Walters	Jr.	Manlius, N.Y. | Fayetteville-Manlius

 

Geneva College
Name	Yr.	Hometown | High School
Hailey Carroll	Fr.	Bremerton, Wash. | Central Kitsap
Madison Castro	So.	Colorado Springs, Colo. | Evangelical Christian Academy
Carmen Medvit	Fr.	New Castle, Pa. | Shenango
Jaci Mennetti	Jr.	Coolspring, Pa. | DuBois Central Catholic
Catherine O'Donnell	Jr.	Blairsville, Pa. | Homeschooled

 

Grove City College
Name	Yr.	Hometown | High School
Lydia Bennett	So.	Bethel, Maine | Gould Academy
Sabrina Bergey	So.	Boyertown, Pa. | Boyertown
Emma Fiscus	So.	Brookville, Pa. | Brookville

 

Saint Vincent College
Name	Yr.	Hometown | High School
Lauran Brennan	Jr.	Saint Leonard, Md. | Calvert
Miranda Cincotta	Fr.	Emmitsburg, Md. | St. John's Catholic Prep.
Lily Murphy	Fr.	Greensburg, Pa. | Hempfield
Joy Pontzer	Jr.	Glen Burnie, Md. | Chesterton Academy of Annapolis
Kristen Prince	Fr.	Prince Frederick, Md. | Calvert

   

Thiel College
Name	Yr.	Hometown | High School
Jade Rhoads	Sr.	Carlton, Pa. | Maplewood

   

Washington & Jefferson College
Name	Yr.	Hometown | High School
Claire Anderson	Fr.	Jamestown, Pa. | Jamestown
Cassie Carr	Jr.	Girard, Pa. | Girard
Bre Trusler	Sr.	Daisytown, Pa. | California

 

Waynesburg University
Name	Yr.	Hometown | High School
Joula Anderson	Jr.	Greensburg, Pa. | Greensburg-Salem
Reagan Pettis	Fr.	Albion, Pa. | Northwestern
Gabi Reifsnyder	Jr.	Carlisle, Pa. | Big Spring
Grace Tanksley	Fr.	Bedford, Ind. | Bedford North Lawrence

 

Westminster College
Name	Yr.	Hometown | High School
Sadie Cunningham	Sr.	Webster, N.Y. | Webster Thomas