The Drake University men's cross country team has been picked second in the Missouri Valley Conference's annual preseason coaches' poll.
The Bulldogs' men's squad earned three first-place votes and 70 total points in the poll, just behind preseason favorite Bradley. The Braves collected six first-place votes and 78 total points.
The league's coaches picked Drake's women's team fourth after the Bulldogs recorded their best finish since 2000 with a third-place showing at the spring MVC Championship.
The Drake men earned their ranking after finishing third at the spring MVC Championship for the program's third-straight top-three finish. The Bulldogs return MVC runner-up and track All-American Adam Fogg as well as their other All-American Isaac Basten. The Bulldogs also bring in a talented class of newcomers.
Drake's women have a strong core returning as their first, second, fourth and fifth place finishers from last season are back. In addition, MVC Freshman of the Year Brooke Mullins and junior Ashlee Siegle are at the top of the team's roster. Still, second-year runners Anastasia Kirillov and Bella Evan-Cook could break out in their sophomore season, while eight newcomers will also vie for a position in the lineup.
After an abbreviated spring season that only featured one competition, the team has a full schedule for the fall with five regular-season competitions on the schedule. That schedule begins Sept. 3 at the Hawkeye Invitational and culminates with the MVC Championship Oct. 29 in Normal, Ill.