The gauntlet has been thrown for Allen Community College’s cross country teams.
The ACC men’s squad has been voted the top NJCAA Division II squad in the nation, as per the first Hill N Dale rankings of 2013.
The women also are ranked third in the country.
The ranking is nice, Allen head coach Vince DeGrado said, but has little bearing on his team’s success.
“It’s nice for the social media sites,” he said, “and it means there’s a respect factor with this team. But I’d rather be ranked No. 1 after eight or nine weeks than to be ranked right now.”
Allen was the unanimous choice among Hill N Dale voters, putting the Red Devils above such cross country powerhouses as Iowa Central, Highland and Johnson County.
Iowa Central’s women were the tops in their poll, also by unanimous vote, in front of Johnson County in second and Allen in third.
“Now it’s up to us to prove it,” he said. “If we’re not racing, we have to prove it in practice.”
Allen’s next race is Sept. 21 at Missouri Southern in Joplin.
Allen tops cross country rankings
