DENVER – The Western Athletic Conference announced its men's and women's cross country pre-championship coaches' polls on Wednesday and the Utah Valley University men were picked to finish second, while the women's team were projected to finish third.
 
The UVU men, who finished second at last year's WAC Championship, received one first-place vote and 131 points in all to take second on the pre-championship coaches' poll. The defending conference champion California Baptist Lancers were picked to win the men's side with 12 first-place votes and 144 points in all, while Grand Canyon was selected third with 122. The four WAC newcomers followed GCU as Lamar was picked to finish fourth (105), Abilene Christian landed in fifth (97), Sam Houston was sixth (84) and Stephen F. Austin collected the seventh spot (71). UT Rio Grande Valley was slotted in eighth (63), followed by Dixie State in ninth (57), New Mexico State in 10th (48) and Tarleton in 11th (41). Seattle U (39) and Chicago State (12) rounded out the poll. 
 
After also earning a runner-up finish at last season's conference championship, the Wolverine women were tabbed to finish third this time around with two first-place votes and 125 points in all. The reigning conference champion CBU Lancers were picked again to win the women's side with eight first-place votes and 139 total points, followed by Abilene Christian in second with three first-place votes and 127 points. NM State was selected to finish fourth (115) with Grand Canyon (99) and Stephen F. Austin (76) coming next in line. Seattle U was just two points shy of the Lumberjacks as they collected the seventh spot (74). Dixie State was picked eighth (68), followed by Sam Houston in ninth (59), UT Rio Grande Valley in 10th (51) and Lamar in 11th (44). Tarleton (25) and Chicago State (12) closed out the poll on the women's side.
 
UVU will enter this weekend's WAC Cross Country Championship having won five men's WAC titles, as well as a pair of women's WAC titles since joining the league in 2013.
 
The 2021 WAC Cross Country Championships are this Saturday, Oct. 30 at the UC Riverside Agricultural Operations Course in Riverside, Calif. The men's 8k race begins at 10 a.m. MT/9 a.m. PT, followed by the women's 6k at 11 a.m. MT/10 a.m. PT. The championships will air live on ESPN+ for viewers in the United States, while international viewers can find the broadcast at WACDigitalNetwork.com.
 

2021 Pre-Championship Men's Cross Country Coaches' Poll

Rank	School (First-Place Votes)	Points
1.	California Baptist (12)	144
2.	Utah Valley (1)	131
3.	Grand Canyon	122
4.	Lamar	105
5.	Abilene Christian	97
6.	Sam Houston	84
7.	Stephen F. Austin	71
8.	UT Rio Grande Valley	63
9.	Dixie State	57
10.	NM State	48
11.	Tarleton	41
12.	Seattle U	39
13.	Chicago State	12

2021 Pre-Championship Women's Cross Country Coaches' Poll

Rank	School (First-Place Votes)	Points
1.	California Baptist (8)	139
2.	Abilene Christian (3)	127
3.	Utah Valley (2)	125
4.	NM State	115
5.	Grand Canyon	99
6.	Stephen F. Austin	76
7.	Seattle U	74
8.	Dixie State	68
9.	Sam Houston	59
10.	UT Rio Grande Valley	51
11.	Lamar	44
12.	Tarleton	25
13.	Chicago State	12