WESTERVILLE, Ohio – Otterbein, under first-year head coach Eric Fox, has been picked by the league's coaches to win the 2026 Ohio Athletic Conference Men's Cross Country title.
The Cardinals collected 59 points and five of the nine available first-place votes in the preseason poll. Ohio Northern was picked second with 52 points, while Mount Union and Baldwin Wallace tied for third with 49 points apiece (one and two first-place votes, respectively). Capital followed in fifth with 41 points (one first-place vote), and Heidelberg rounded out the top six with 28 points. Head coaches do not vote for their own teams.
Last season, Otterbein won its first team OAC championship since 2019, with five individuals earning All-OAC honors.
The Cardinals open their season by hosting the Otterbein Invitational on Sept. 4 at 6 p.m.
2026 OAC Men's Cross Country Preseason Poll
|
Rank
|
Team
|
Points
|
1st-Place Votes
|
|
1
|
Otterbein (OTT)
|
59
|
5
|
|
2
|
Ohio Northern (ONU)
|
52
|
—
|
|
3 (tie)
|
Mount Union (MTU)
|
49
|
1
|
|
3 (tie)
|
Baldwin Wallace (BW)
|
49
|
2
|
|
5
|
Capital (CAP)
|
41
|
1
|
|
6
|
Heidelberg (HEID)
|
28
|
—
|
|
7
|
Wilmington (WC)
|
23
|
—
|
|
8
|
Muskingum (MUSK)
|
12
|
—
|
|
9
|
Marietta (MAR)
|
11
|
—
|