XU Gold Nuggets receive most points ever in NAIA rankings

By Ed Cassiere, SID, Xavier University of Louisiana

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana reached new heights Wednesday in the NAIA Women's Cross Country Coaches' Top 25 poll. The Gold Nuggets received a school-record 18 points from the panel of 25 coaches and rank 34th.

The previous XU mark for poll points was 14 in the 2008 preseason. This is the 23rd time that the Gold Nuggets received points — the first time was in 2002 — and the fourth time they collected 10 or more points. Three of those double-figure occasions occured this season.

This is the third time this season that the Nuggets rank 34th. They were 37th a week ago with three points.

The XU women qualified automatically for the NAIA National Championships after a resounding victory Saturday in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Championships at Clinton, Miss. Xavier had the top six finishers — Zahri Jackson, Catherine Fakler, Briana Simms, Hali Yarmush, Hannah Finnegan and Donyé Coleman — in the 5,000-meter race, and Jackson and Fakler became the first Nuggets to run that distance in less than 19 minutes. Jackson (18:54.69) won by about a half-second over Fakler to repeat as GCAC individual champion. Xavier won the team championship for a GCAC-record-tying seventh consecutive season, this time by 63 points over runner-up Edward Waters. Xavier is 33-9 against all opponents this season.

Both XU teams qualified for the national meet, which will be Nov. 17 in Vancouver, Wash. The Gold Nuggets and the Gold Rush will compete at nationals for the second consecutive year and the fourth time in five years.

The final two polls of 2012 will be released Nov. 4 and 22.

NAIA Women's Cross Country Coaches' Top 25 Poll(first-place votes in parentheses) Rank Team Points Last 1 Cal State San Marcos (22) 653 1 2 British Columbia 628 2 3 College of Idaho (3) 604 3 4 Olivet Nazarene 599 4 5 Biola 569 5 6 Carroll (Mont.) 547 6 7 Northwest Christian 522 7 8 Westmont 501 8 9 Cornerstone 484 9 10 Oklahoma Baptist 472 11 11 Dordt 440 10 12 Lewis-Clark State 407 13 13 The Master's 394 14 14 Rocky Mountain 361 15 15 Huntington (Ind.) 346 24 16 Concordia (Calif.) 337 16 17 Embry-Riddle (Fla.) 319 22 18 St. Francis (Ill.) 296 17 19 Milligan 279 19 20 Concordia (Neb.) 275 23 21 Aquinas 243 12 22 Eastern Oregon 207 21 23 Taylor 174 25 24-tie Northwest 131 RV 24-tie SCAD Savannah 131 NR Others receiving votes: Saint Xavier 130, Indiana Wesleyan 107, Southern Oregon 52, Central Methodist 41, Shawnee State 41, Doane 37, Rogers State 23, Spring Arbor 19, Xavier 18, Park 15, Baker 10, Lee (Tenn)