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NEW ORLEANS – The Eastern Kentucky University women’s cross country team jumped from unranked to No. 14 while the men’s team stayed put at No. 7 in the Southeast Region per the pre-NCAA Championships poll released on Tuesday by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.

Led by the performance of senior Kat Pagano, who placed 39th in a 6K time of 21:30.7, the women’s team finished 14th at the Southeast Region Championships on Saturday at E.P. “Tom” Sawyer Park in Louisville.

The Colonel women finish the season tied at No. 14 with Kentucky, just one spot behind No. 13 Louisville and three spots behind No. 11 Western Kentucky.

The men’s team finished seventh at the Southeast Region Championships and was powered by the performance of freshman Soufiane Bouchikhi, who placed third with a 10K time of 30:18.8. The six teams that beat the Colonel men (William and Mary, Duke, NC State, Richmond, Louisville and Virginia) all qualified for the NCAA Championships, meaning EKU was one of the first teams in the country out. Bouchikhi, though, qualified for the NCAA Championships as an individual and will compete in Terre Haute, Ind. on Monday, Nov. 22 at 12:48 p.m.

The men’s team finishes the season ranked ahead of such notable schools as Liberty, North Carolina, Wake Forest, Virginia Tech and in-state rivals Kentucky and Western Kentucky.

The Southeast Region is one of the largest, and toughest, of the nine regions in the nation, consisting of all NCAA Division I schools from the states of Kentucky, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina. The region also features all Atlantic Coast Conference schools.