IRVINE, Calif. - Continuous improvement throughout the season and a particularly impressive performance in San Francisco have earned big recognition for the Golden Eagles. The Concordia University Irvine women's cross country program earned its first-ever Top 20 national ranking on Tuesday. The United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) placed CUI at No. 19 in all of NCAA DII. The accolades do not stop there because the team also moved up two spots in the west region to their highest-ever team regional ranking.
 
The team is led by graduate student Jori Paradis who consistently crosses the line first for the Golden Eagles. She constantly pushes the pace and has numerous top-5 individual finishes this season. This includes her first collegiate win in San Bernardino at the team's season opener in September.
 
Paradis is by no means alone, as teammates Porshe Eismann, Maddie Jahshan, Claudia Vera, Hayley Killion, and more are right behind her fighting for the next spots. The "fight for each other" team attitude will play a huge role next week in Fresno, Calif, and will be more crucial there than at any other race so far this season. On October 21, both programs are headed back up north to the PacWest Conference Championships. There they will fight to rewrite more history by finishing higher than they ever have before.
 
CLICK HERE for the most recent USTFCCCA National Rankings

CLICK HERE for the most recent West Regional Rankings for women's cross country

Both CUI cross country squads travel to Fresno Pacific University to compete in the PacWest Conference Cross Country Championships on Saturday, Oct. 21.

CLICK HERE for the full CUI cross country schedule.