UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich. – The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) announced the 2026 men's and women's cross country preseason coaches poll on Wednesday afternoon.

The Cardinal men received one first-place vote and finished with 72 points to claim second in the poll. Grand Valley State topped the conference in both men's and women's polls, with the men collecting nine first-place nods to total 81 points. Michigan Tech fell behind SVSU with 62 points while Wayne State was fourth with 61. Ferris State claimed fifth with 43 points, one point ahead of sixth-place Parkside. Davenport reached 38 points to finish seventh, with Purdue Northwest trailing in eights with 25. Lake Superior State (17 points) and Roosevelt (9 points) rounded out the preseason selections.

The men's team hopes to build upon the recent success and compete for a conference championship and improve upon the sixth-place finish in the NCAA Championship a season ago. Jacob Walker is a key returner to lead this year's squad. Walker finished seventh at the 2025 GLIAC Championship race and set a PR in the 10k at the NCAA Championships a season ago.

On the women's side, the Lakers grabbed 10 first-place votes for 100 total points. Northern Michigan claimed second with 85 points. The Cardinals tied for third with Wayne State after collecting 79 points. Michigan Tech was granted one first-place vote and finished with 65 points for fifth place. Ferris State fell to sixth with 53 points and Parkside was seventh with 49. Purdue Northwest placed eighth after totaling 33 points, edging out Lake Superior State by a point. Davenport (19 points) and Roosevelt (11 points) took the final two spots in the poll.

Jenna Sweeney, Tara Szuper, and Kinsie Jacques return to the women's team after having top 50 finishes at the NCAA Midwest Regional Race last year. Szuper was the top women's finisher in the race, while Jacques set a PR with her time. Sweeney also collected second-team All-GLIAC with her finish at the GLIAC championship race.

SVSU cross country will begin its season next Saturday, September 12 at the Northwood Invite in Midland, Michigan.