MEN'S NAIA CHAMPIONSHIP FIELD | MEN'S NAIA TOP 25
WOMEN'S NAIA CHAMPIONSHIP FIELD | WOMEN'S NAIA TOP 25

ASHLAND – As expected, the Southern Oregon University women's cross country team has received an at-large bid to join the Raider men next week in Tallahassee, Fla., at the NAIA Cross Country Championships.

The Raider men clinched an automatic bid last week by winning the Cascade Conference title, which also boosted them five spots to No. 6 in this week's final NAIA Top 25 coaches' poll. The Raider women, coming off a second-place finish at the CCC Championships, dropped one spot to No. 12 in their poll.

The teams will be appearing together at the national meet for the eighth consecutive season. Last year, the men took 14th and the women were 18th in the team standings. They're four years removed from winning the men's and women's combined national title.

This year's meet, set for Nov. 18 at Apalachee Regional Park, will feature 36 men's and 36 women's squads. They'll get off to an unusually early start, with the men's 8,000-meter race beginning at 5:30 a.m. Pacific Time and the women's race following at 6:30 a.m.

A complete preview will be published next week.