AVE MARIA, Fla.- The Ave Maria University cross country teams will both begin the 2021 season as one of the top three teams in The Sun Conference, according to the preseason Coaches' Polls released by the league on Thursday. The AMU women's team was picked to finish second in the conference, while the men's team was picked to finish third.

The preseason polls see each of the league's head coaches rank the other eight schools, with coaches unable to vote for their own school. The Gyrene teams were both picked in the same spots as the 2020 preseason poll, and are coming off runner-up finishes in the 2020 Sun Conference Championships, which were held in Ave Maria.

In the women's poll, the Gyrenes earned 53 points, including one first place vote. Ave Maria edged out SCAD-Savannah, who did not compete last fall due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The defending conference champion Southeastern Fire earned six of the nine first place votes, and are the preseason favorite to repeat. 

Following the Gyrenes are the Bobcats of St. Thomas University, who earned 39 points in the poll.Keiser (36 points) and USCB (36 points) tied for fifth, while Thomas (seventh with 22 points) Warner (eighth with 14 points), and Webber International (ninth with 12 points) round out the poll.  

On the men's side, the Gyrenes slotted third behind Southeastern and SCAD-Savannah. The Bees actually earned more first-place votes than the Fire - four to three, but Southeastern earned the preseason favorite nod due to a 58-56 edge in total points. Ave Maria was given the other two first place votes, and sat third with 49 points.

USCB was picked to follow the top three with 37 points. Rounding out the poll were Thomas (fifth place) with 35 points, St. Thomas (sixth place) with 32 points, Keiser (seventh place) with 27 points, Warner (eighth place) with 21 points, and Webber International (ninth place) with nine points.

The 2021 Ave Maria cross country season is scheduled to begin on Saturday, August 28, when the Gyrenes run in the STU Cross Country Invitational, hosted by St. Thomas University in Miami Gardens. That event kicks off a fall schedule that will see Ave Maria run six times before The Sun Conference Championships, which are scheduled for November 6 in Lakeland, with Southeastern University as the host. This season's NAIA National Championships are slated for November 19 in Vancouver, Washington.