BALTIMORE, MD – The Johns Hopkins men's and women's cross country teams are both ranked first in the Mid-Atlantic Region and in the top 10 nationally in the latest USTFCCCA polls, as released by the association earlier this week. The men move into the top spot in the region and climb to seventh in Division III following an impressive opening weekend at the Salisbury Fall Classic while the women retained both their national (10^th) and Mid-Atlantic Region (1^st) rankings.
 
Men's cross country's seventh place ranking in Division III is the program's highest since 2022 and marks the eighth straight year head coach Bobby Van Allen's team has spent at least one week ranked in the top 10. This is also the first time the Blue Jays have sat atop the Mid-Atlantic Regional rankings since 2022, passing Carnegie Mellon which held the top spot for the entirety of the 2023 season.
 
The women's program is no stranger to the top 10, having spent much of the last 15 years ranked among the nation's best. As such, the same reigns true for the Blue Jays' Mid-Atlantic Region ranking where Hopkins has spent every week ranked first since 2008.
 
Both teams will be put to the test this Saturday, Sept. 21 when they run at the John McNichols Invitational — the site of this year's NCAA Championship — against some of the country's top programs. Other competitors on the men's side include top-ranked UW-La Crosse, second-ranked Wartburg, fifth-ranked Lynchburg and sixth-ranked North Central (Ill.) while the women will be facing off against top-ranked NYU, second-ranked UChicago, fifth-ranked Lynchburg, eight-ranked WashU and ninth-ranked UW-La Crosse.
 
The men will kick off Saturday's races at 9 a.m., with the women to follow shortly after at 9:45.