Kansas City, MO – The University of the Cumberlands men's cross country team remained atop the NAIA Men's Cross Country Coaches' Top 25, the national office announced Thursday. The Patriots collected 17 first-place votes and 528 points to hold the No. 1 spot in the first regular-season rating of the 2026 season.

Cumberlands has put together a strong start to the season, opening the year with a team title at the Wildcat Twilight Invitational. UC tallied 34 points and placed three runners inside the top five, led by Collin De Julio, who captured the individual title with a time of 18:32.3 in his Patriot debut.

The Patriots followed that performance with the best finish at the Southern Showcase in program history, placing fifth out of 29 teams with 194 points. Cumberlands finished behind NCAA Division I programs Alabama, Appalachian State, Georgia Tech, and Clemson while placing ahead of several other Division I programs.

James Ndayishimiye led UC in Huntsville, placing 22nd overall out of 302 runners with an 8K time of 24:26.2, while Luca Madeo finished 27th in 24:36.9. Ndayishimiye's performance earned him Mid-South Conference Runner of the Week honors, making him the second Patriot to receive the award this season after De Julio.

Southern Oregon moved into a tie for second with Indiana Wesleyan at 504 points, while The Master's (Calif.) sits fourth and College of Idaho rounds out the top five.

The Patriots will return to competition on Saturday, October 3, at the Greater Louisville Classic in Louisville, Kentucky.

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