COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Ahead of the 2024 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Cross Country season, Colorado School of Mines earns the top spot in the 2024 RMAC Men’s Cross Country Preseason Coaches’ Poll, the league announced Wednesday. The Orediggers received 12 first-place votes and 192 total points across ballots from the league’s 15 head coaches. Coaches are not permitted to vote for their own program.
 
Colorado School of Mines enters the season as the five-time defending conference champion and the national runner-up in 2023. Three All-Americans return for the Orediggers, with Loic Scomparin, Logan Bocovich, and Paul Knight anchoring a squad hungry for more this season. Head coach Chris Siemers enters his 13th season with the Orediggers, who have won seven RMAC crowns and six NCAA South Central Regional titles during his tenure. Together, the Colorado School of Mines team aims to add more hardware to its trophy case this fall.
 
Adams State earned the remaining three first-place votes and checked in second with 185 total points. The Grizzlies narrowly finished as the runner-up at the RMAC Championships and recorded a top-six finish at the national meet. Senior Romain Legendre will lead a team looking for its first conference crown since 2018.
 
Western Colorado secures third place with 168 total points. The Mountaineers found themselves on the podium in 2023, taking the bronze in Denver, Colo., at the RMAC Championship. Tyler Nord, the reigning RMAC Freshman of the Year, highlights the team’s returners in 2024 as he seeks to build off his stellar debut campaign.
 
University of Colorado Colorado Springs follows with 141 points, while Fort Lewis (137 points) and Colorado Christian (130 points) are closely behind. Colorado State University Pueblo earns 128 points, while Metropolitan State University of Denver grabs 105 points for seventh place and eighth place, respectively. New Mexico Highlands (88 points) and Colorado Mesa (77 points) round out the top 10 programs in the poll.
 
Black Hills State follows with 68 points, ahead of South Dakota Mines’ 58 points. Chadron State (50 points), Regis (26 points) and Westminster (22 points) complete the results of this year’s RMAC Men’s Cross Country Preseason Coaches’ Poll.
 
The 2024 RMAC Men’s Cross Country Championship is set for Saturday, Oct. 26, at Gene Torres Golf Course in Las Vegas, N.M. More information can be found on the tournament central page on the RMAC website.