CANTON, Ga. - For the second consecutive season, the Trinity Tigers were selected as the 2026 preseason favorite for the Southern Athletic Association (SAA) Women’s Cross Country title.
Trinity brought in eight first place votes for 72 points while Centre captured one first place vote with 63 points. Rhodes and Berry finished third and fourth, repectively with 59 and 52 points. Southwestern was picked to round of the top five with 43 points.
Voting was conducted among the SAA’s nine head coaches.
2026 WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY PRESEASON POLL RESULTS
1. Trinity - 72 (8)
2. Centre - 63 (1)
3. Rhodes - 59
4. Berry - 52
5. Southwestern - 43
6. Sewanee - 35
7. Oglethorpe - 32
8. Maryville - 22
9. Millsaps - 18
Trinity was selected to finish first again this season after dominating last year’s championship race with 30 points, finishing 27 points ahead of runner-up Centre. The Tigers placed six runners in the top 10, including two competitors who earned First Team All-Conference honors with top-five finishes.
The Centre Colonels, who claimed runner-up honors last season had two runners who finished in the top five. Centre also brings a long-standing history of success in the conference, with 10 SAA championships and a stretch of seven consecutive titles from 2017-2023.
Rhodes was picked to finish third after returning the conference’s top individual finisher from last season, Anna Cantrell. Two additional Lynx runners finished in the top 15, helping Rhodes secure a third-place team finish at the 2025 championship.
The 2026 SAA Women’s Cross Country Championship is slated for October 31 in Sewanee, Tennessee, hosted by The University of the South.
For more information on all things SAA, visit the websites of any of the participating schools, or go to the SAA's home on the internet at
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