Oct. 30, 2007

NEW ORLEANS - The Illinois State men's cross country team improved to No. 9 in the NCAA Division I Cross Country Midwest Regional Rankings while; the Redbird women dropped to No.14, as announced by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

The Redbird men improved to No. 9 in the polls after coming in at No. 11 last week. The Redbirds' improvement in the regional rankings came after ISU finished second at the 2007 State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Championships.

At the conference championship, ISU placed three runners on the all-conference team. Sophomore Scott Krapf (24:40.60), sophomore Jordan Anderson (24:46.68) and junior Mike Richardson (24:51.22), placed fourth, sixth and eighth, respectively.

The Redbird women also had a solid performance at the MVC Championships, as they finished fourth as a team. Leading the `Birds for a fifth-straight meet was senior Suzy Turner, who finished the race with a personal-best time of 17:40.71 (6th).

Illinois State is not the only school in the Missouri Valley Conference gaining recognition in the USTFCCCA regional polls. On the men's side, The Valley is also represented in the Midwest region by 2007 Valley Champion Southern Illinois (No. 6), Creighton (No.13) and Drake (No. 15); and in the Great Lakes region by Indiana State (No. 12). Wichita State is ranked No. 5 in the women's Midwest regional poll, followed by Missouri State (No. 8) and Northern Iowa (No.13).

The ISU men's and women's cross county teams return to action at the NCAA Midwest Regional in Peoria, Ill., Nov. 10.