NEW ORLEANS, LA. -- After finishing last season with top-10 results at the DII National Championships, both the Augustana men's and women's cross country teams start the 2023 season among the nation's best. On Wednesday, the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) ranked the Augustana women sixth in the nation and the men seventh.
 
In the Central Region poll announced Tuesday, both programs found themselves atop the ladder, with the men ahead of Washburn, and the women ahead of Winona State.
 
Augustana, who was picked first in both the men's and women's NSIC preseason poll, look to lean on different aspects of their team, as the men aim to follow a core of upperclassmen, and the women rely on a strong youth movement in the program. 
 
For the women's side, junior Ella Bakken looks to build off a sophomore season that saw her garner USTFCCCA All-Central Region honors while earning second-team All-NSIC honors. Also earning second-team All-NSIC honors last season was junior Taylor Melton, who is joined by juniors Caroline Sudbeck and Aubrey Surage as three that look to build off of top-25 finishes at the 2022 NSIC Championships.

On the men's side, three All-NSIC first-team members return in senior Colten Brand, junior Ryan Hartman, and sophomore Erik Gundersen, and an All-NSIC second-team member in senior Nick Larson. Hartman was selected as the NSIC Preseason Athlete of the Year after an All-American campaign in 2022, while Gunderson earned 2022 NSIC Newcomer of the Year. 
 
Both the Augustana men and women open their 2023 season with the Augustana Twilight this Friday, Sept. 1, at Yankton Trail Park in Sioux Falls, S.D.
 
About the USTFCCA
 
The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) is a non-profit professional organization representing cross country and track & field coaches of all levels. The organization represents thousands of coaching members encompassing NCAA track & field programs (DI, DII, and DIII) and includes members representing the NAIA and NJCAA, as well as a number of state high school coaches associations.