KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Eastern Oregon Men's Cross Country team will open the season ranked No. 7 in the country, as announced by the NAIA on Thursday.

The Mounties received a total of 451 points, the second most among Cascade Collegiate Conference members. EOU is joined by fellow CCC institutions College of Idaho, Lewis-Clark State, and Corban in the rankings, with Southern Oregon receiving votes.

The Top 25 rankings are determined by a panel of head coaches from various conferences and unaffiliated groups. Each panelist assigns points to teams based on their rankings, with 30 points for a first-place vote, 29 for second, and so on. The highest and lowest ratings for each team are excluded, and the team's score is adjusted by adding an extra point for each ballot the team appears on. Teams with only one point are not included in the rankings.

Eastern Oregon is coming off a tremendous 2023 season that saw the Mounties win a conference championship as well as achieve a 7th place finish at the NAIA Championships. The team will open the season with the Cascade Conference Preview on September 20th in Portland.