COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – With the 2024 Mountain West Cross Country Championships set for later this week, the New Mexico men’s and women’s teams were selected as the Conference favorites heading into the postseason, as voted by the league’s head coaches.
After collecting eight of nine first-place votes and 64 points, the Lobos enter Friday’s MW Men’s Cross Country Championship as the favorite to win the title and are currently ranked No. 6 in the nation. Utah State collected 54 points to place second in the pre-championship poll, edging out third-place Wyoming, who received 53 points and the other first-place vote.
Following the Cowboys in the men’s poll are Air Force in fourth (38 points), Colorado State in fifth (36 points), Boise State in sixth (31 points), Nevada in seventh (20 points), Fresno State in eighth (18 points) and San José State in ninth (10 points).
Leading up to the MW women’s championship, the Lobos earned 9 of 11 first-place votes and tallied 98 points. New Mexico jumped into the top 10 in the latest national poll, ranking No. 8 heading into the postseason.
Colorado State received the other two first-place votes and took second with 87 points, followed by Boise State in third with 74 points, Utah State in fourth with 72 points and Air Force in fifth with 69 points.
Rounding out the MW women’s pre-championship poll is Wyoming in sixth (63 points), San Diego State in seventh (44) points), Nevada in eighth (34 points), Fresno State in ninth (31 points), San José State in 10th (17 points), and UNLV in 11th (16 points).
The 2024 Mountain West Cross Country Championships will be hosted by Air Force at Eisenhower Golf Course in Colorado Springs on Friday, Nov. 1. The women’s 6k race will start at 10 a.m. MT, while the men’s 8k race begins at 10:45 a.m. MT. Both championship races will be broadcast on the Mountain West Network.
