Over the past decade, the Hillsdale College women's cross country team has made a comfortable living near the very top of the standings, whether it's a conference, regional or national set.
Conference coaches expect no different from the Chargers in 2019.
Hillsdale was selected to finish second in the upcoming season in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference Preseason Coach's Poll, released Thursday morning by the conference office. The Chargers received one first-place vote and edged out Cedarville for the No. 2 spot in the poll.
Walsh University was a near-unanimous selection to repeat as conference champs, earning 12 of a possible 13 first-place votes.
The Chargers will be led by a pair of First-Team All-Conference competitors, Arena Lewis and Maryssa Depies. Fast-rising junior Christina Sawyer was a Second-Team All-Conference selection last season, and those three helped lead Hillsdale to an impressive second-place finish at the Midwest Regional last fall and a subsequent team berth at the NCAA championships.
The complete poll can be found in the grid below.
2019 Great Midwest Preseason Women's Cross Country Coach's Poll
| PLACE | TEAM (1st PLACE VOTES) | POLL POINTS |
| 1. | Walsh (12) | 144 |
| 2. | Hillsdale (1) | 130 |
| 3. | Cedarville | 123 |
| 4. | Malone | 113 |
| 5. | Findlay | 97 |
| 6. | Ursuline | 79 |
| 7. | Alderson Broaddus | 62 |
| 8. | Ohio Valley | 60 |
| 9. | Ohio Dominican | 57 |
| 10. | Trevecca Nazarene | 48 |
| 11. | Tiffin | 39 |
| 12. | Kentucky Wesleyan | 36 |
| 13. | Lake Erie | 26 |