HAVERFORD, Pa. – The Haverford College women's cross country team is up two spots to No. 11 in the latest United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) poll. The week's poll is the second release of the regular season after the Fords ranked 13th in both the preseason and week 1 polls.
Haverford's rise to No. 11 in the national rankings is the highest the Fords have been ranked since the 2012 season when they came in at No. 8 in the eighth weekly release of that season. That one poll is the only time the Fords have been ranked higher than they currently are in the poll archives which date back to the 2006 season. The Fords also placed 10th as a team at the NCAA Championship in 1993 and 11th overall in 1996.
The Fords move up the national rankings comes after a strong performance at the Dickinson Long/Short Invitational. Competing solely in the long course, which is the same course that will host the Mideast Regional, the Fords were second to only Division I Bucknell in the long race team standings. The Fords were also 17 points better than Dickinson in the 6,000-meter race. Dickinson moved up to No. 9 in the national rankings this week.
Nora Weathers was Haverford's top finisher in the race. Her third-place finish in a time of 23:09.15 earned her co-Centennial Conference Runner of the Week honors. Kelley Riffenburgh (23:41.70) and Charlotte Lellman (23:44.86) filled the team's final two scoring spots in this particular meet. Maggie Heffernan (23:46.44) and Katie Sullivan (23:59.07) were the team's fourth and fifth finishers.
Women's cross country will send select members of the team to compete in Thursday's Main Line Invitational. The women's race will get underway at 5 p.m. and be followed by the men's race at 5:30 p.m.