LOCK HAVEN, Pa. – The Shepherd University women's cross country team has been picked to finish 17th in the 2026 PSAC Men's Cross Country Preseason Poll released by the league office on Wednesday. East Stroudsburg has been chosen as the league favorite.
East Stroudsburg will be looking to capture a second straight PSAC championship, after winning a dramatic tiebreak with Edinboro at last year's meet. The Warriors return their top 7 from last year's team, including a trio that finished in the top 15 of last fall's PSAC meet for First Team All-Conference honors: Payton Falkenstein (fourth), Sarah Williams (sixth), and Riley Trentowski (14th).
Edinboro was selected as the No. 2 team in the 2025 poll and received three first-place votes. The Warriors finished tied with East Stroudsburg in points at the 2025 PSAC meet, but return every runner from last fall's top 6. The Fighting Scots' First Team All-Conference returners include Eliza Miller (fifth at last year's PSAC meet), Madeline Hammond (ninth), and Kadi Bauer (12th).
Bloomsburg was voted No. 3 and received one first-place vote. The Huskies finished third at last year's PSAC Championship and return Olivia Magagna (second place in last year's PSAC meet) as well as Second Team All-Conference honoree Alyssa Cunningham (19th).
The No. 4 team in this year's poll is West Chester. The Golden Rams finished fourth as a team in the 2025 championship and return top-15 finishers Kristina Tapia (seventh) and Jessalyn Walsh (15th).
Rounding out the top 10 teams in the 2026 Women's Cross Country Preseason Poll are No. 5 Shippensburg, No. 6 Kutztown, No. 7 Slippery Rock, No. 8 Millersville, No. 9 Gannon, and No. 10 Clarion.
The remaining seven teams and their preseason rankings can be found below.
2026 PSAC Women's Cross Country Preseason Poll (# of first-place votes in parentheses)
1. East Stroudsburg (12)
2. Edinboro (3)
3. Bloomsburg (1)
4. West Chester (1)
5. Shippensburg
6. Kutztown
7. Slippery Rock
8. Millersville
9. Gannon
10. Clarion
11. Lock Haven
12. California
13. IUP
14. Pitt-Johnstown
15. Mansfield
16. Seton Hill
17. Shepherd
