GREENSBORO, N.C. (theACC.com) – Reigning NCAA women's champion NC State is a unanimous choice to claim its seventh consecutive Atlantic Coast Conference title, while Wake Forest received the nod on the men’s side as the ACC Cross Country Coaches Preseason Polls were announced on Friday.
The Wolfpack, which earlier this week earned a No. 1 preseason national ranking from the USTFCCCA, received all 15 first-place votes in the ACC women’s poll for 225 total points. North Carolina (193 total points), Notre Dame (188) and Florida State (173) followed in the balloting.
The Wake Forest men, seeking the program’s fifth ACC title and first since 1994, received eight first-place votes and finished with 210 total points. The Demon Deacons place just ahead of two-time defending ACC champion Notre Dame (five first-place votes, 205 points). North Carolina (193 points) and Virginia (164) each picked up one first-place vote to round out the top four.
Defending ACC champion and Women’s Runner of the year Kelsey Chmiel leads a strong returning cast for the Wolfpack women, under the watch of 2021 USTFCCCA National Coach of the Year Laurie Henes. Other key returnees include ACC silver medalist Katelyn Tuohy and two other All-ACC performers in Sam Bush and Heather Holt.
Chmiel, Touhy and Bush were among the program-record five NC State runners that earned All-America honors at last year’s NCAA Championship. The Wolfpack has also added Tennessee transfer Sydney Seymour during the offseason.
Other top ACC women’s returnees include Notre Dame 2021 All-Americans Maddy Denner and Olivia Markezich, and 2021 ACC Women’s Freshman of the Year Brynn Brown of North Carolina.
The Wake Forest men took the team title at the NCAA Southeast Region Championships, marking the best regional finish for the program since 1993. The Demon Deacons punched their ticket to the NCAA Championships for the second time since 2001.
This year, the Demon Deacons are led by two-time All-American Zach Facioni and last season's regional runner-up Aaron Las Heras. Wake Forest also returns All-Region honorees Luke Tewalt, Joaquin Martinez de Pinillos and Thomas Vanoppen.
Despite losing several top runners to graduation and the transfer portal, the ACC men again hope to be part of the national conversation after placing five teams among the top 20 at last year’s NCAA finals. Key returnees include ACC Freshman of the Year Parker Wolfe of North Carolina, who earned All-American honors at the 2021 NCAA Championships. Notre Dame enters the season as the two-time defending ACC champion and has posted three consecutive NCAA top-10 team finishes.
Each first-place vote in this year’s polls was worth 15 points, each second-place vote 14 points, etc.
Three ACC programs kicked off their seasons Thursday, and 11 more are scheduled to see their first action over Labor Day weekend. Virginia is set to play host to the 2022 ACC Championships on Friday, Oct. 28.
A look at the 2022 ACC Cross Country Coaches’ Preseason Polls, with first-place votes in parenthesis, followed by total points:
WOMEN
1. NC State (15) – 225
2. North Carolina – 195
3. Notre Dame – 188
4. Florida State – 173
5. Virginia – 149
6. Syracuse – 145
7. Duke – 132
8. Boston College – 128
9. Wake Forest – 105
10. Virginia Tech – 101
11. Georgia Tech – 96
12. Pitt – 64
13. Louisville – 41
14. Miami – 37
15. Clemson – 21
MEN
1. Wake Forest (8) – 210 points
2. Notre Dame (5) – 205
3. North Carolina (1) – 193
4. Virginia (1) – 164
5. Syracuse – 162
6. Florida State – 150
7. NC State – 149
8. Duke – 132
9. Virginia Tech – 99
10. Pitt – 86
11. Louisville – 79
12. Georgia Tech – 62
13. Boston College – 57
14. Clemson – 36
15. Miami – 16