By: Brandon Stinson: Assistant AD for Athletic Communications
BILLINGS, Mont.- Coming off a historic fourth-place finish at the 2025 NAIA National Championships, the Rocky Men's Cross Country team has been selected to repeat as conference champions in the 2026 Frontier Conference Coaches' Preseason Poll. The Battlin' Bear women were picked fourth.
Rocky Mountain College will once again host the Frontier Conference Championship races at Amend Park in Billings on Friday, Nov. 6.
The Rocky men earned six of nine first-place votes, taking the top spot with 92 points, just ahead of Carroll College (91 points, three first-place votes). Coaches were not permitted to vote for their own programs.
Building on the most successful season in program history, the Battlin' Bears enter the year ranked No. 14 in the NAIA Preseason Coaches' Poll. Their banner 2025 campaign featured the program's second Frontier Conference title, its highest national ranking in school history (No. 6), and its best finish at the NAIA National Championships (4th).
Rocky returns four of its seven national competitors from a season ago, led by junior John Spinti, the third All-American in program history, alongside fellow All-Conference returners Matthew Conrad and Zachary Zwiesler.
Below is the full 2026 Frontier Conference Men's Cross Country Coaches' Preseason Poll.
|
2026 Frontier Conference Men's Cross Country Coaches' Preseason Poll
|
|
RANK
|
SCHOOL
|
POINTS
(FIRST PLACE VOTES)
|
|
1
|
#14 Rocky Mountain College
|
92
(6)
|
|
2
|
#19 Carroll College
|
91
(3)
|
|
3
|
Dakota State
|
77
|
|
4
|
Bellevue University
|
76
|
|
5
|
Montana Tech
|
68
|
|
6
|
Bismarck State
|
54
|
|
7
|
Dickinson State
|
53
|
|
8
|
Valley City State
|
32
|
|
T-9
|
MSU-Northern
|
25
|
|
T-9
|
Montana Western
|
25
|
|
11
|
University of Providence
|
12
|
Following a third-place conference finish last fall, the Rocky women's team sits fourth in the preseason rankings with 71 points. Defending champion Carroll College took the top spot as the unanimous favorite.
The Battlin' Bears will integrate new faces this fall, returning just two runners from a season ago, both of whom have earned All-Conference honors in their careers in Hannah Geisen and Jayden Woodland.
Below is the full 2026 Frontier Conference Women's Cross Country Coaches' Preseason Poll.
|
2026 Frontier Conference Women's Cross Country Coaches' Preseason Poll
|
|
RANK
|
SCHOOL
|
POINTS
(FIRST PLACE VOTES)
|
|
1
|
#19 Carroll College
|
100
(9)
|
|
2
|
(RV) Montana Tech
|
91
(1)
|
|
3
|
Dakota State
|
74
|
|
4
|
Rocky Mountain College
|
71
|
|
5
|
Bellevue University
|
65
|
|
6
|
Bismarck State
|
61
|
|
7
|
Dickinson State
|
41
|
|
8
|
Montana Western
|
34
|
|
9
|
Valley City State
|
32
|
|
T-10
|
MSU-Northern
|
18
|
|
T-10
|
University of Providence
|
18
|
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To stay up-to-date with the latest Rocky Athletics news, visit www.gobattlinbears.com.
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