By Drew Harris | UTAMavs.com

ARLINGTON, Texas - The UT Arlington men are favored to win the Sun Belt Conference cross country title this year, while the Mavericks women's squad is picked second according to tight votes in the 2015 Cross Country Preseason Polls by the conference's nine men's and 11 women's head coaches.

"It's nice publicity to be ranked so high in the preseason, but we will have to earn it," UTA coach John Sauerhage said. "This is a very tough conference and nothing is ever given to you. It will be quite a challenge for both teams to live up to these rankings. We have a lot of work to and are eager to get started with the season."

With 71 points and four first-place votes, the Mavericks edged Appalachian State (70 points, 3 first-place votes) and South Alabama (70 points, 2 first-place votes) to claim the top spot in the poll by one point in a highly competitive field. UT Arlington finished third at last year's championship after winning league titles the previous two years, including a Western Athletic Conference trophy in 2012.

A pair of first-team all-league picks return for the Mavericks. Senior Craig Lautenslager, who also earned All-South Central Regional honors a year ago, leads the team. Classmate Eric Ojeda finished fourth last year at the SBC meet, one spot behind Lautenslager.

In addition, sophomore Michael Guerrero took eighth last year at his first conference competition to claim second-team all-league mention.

On the women's side, Appalachian State edged the Mavericks by garnering 115 points and six first-place votes. UT Arlington, which won the cross country crown in 2014 and returns five of its top six finishers from that meet, was second with 113 points and five first-place votes.

Senior Katelyn Hayward paced the squad en route to the team's first conference championship since 2001, finishing fifth at the Sun Belt meet to be named first-team all-league. Fellow seniors Gabriela Alfonzo (sixth) and Ashly Wright (eighth) also return following second-team all-league placements.

The Sun Belt Conference Cross Country Championships will take place on Sunday, Nov. 1, in Atlanta, Ga. Following the Sun Belt Championship, NCAA Regional events take place on Nov. 15 at various sites. The NCAA Championships are Nov. 23 in Terre Haute, Ind.

UTA will kick off its season next Tuesday (Sept. 1) at the Bear Twilight Invitational in Waco.

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2015 Men's Cross Country Preseason Poll (First Place Votes)
1. UT Arlington (4) - 71 points
2. Appalachian State (3) - 70 points
3. South Alabama (2) - 70 points
4. UL Lafayette - 52 points
5. Little Rock - 43 points
6. Arkansas State - 37 points
7. Texas State - 32 points
8. UL Monroe - 17 points
9. Troy - 13 points

2015 Women's Cross Country Preseason Poll (First Place Votes)
1. Appalachian State (6) - 115 points
2. UT Arlington (5) - 113 points
3. UL Lafayette - 85 points
4. Arkansas State - 84 points
5. Georgia State - 82 points
6. South Alabama - 63 points
7. Little Rock - 60 points
8. Texas State - 52 points
9. Troy - 34 points
10. Georgia Southern - 22 points
11. UL Monroe - 16 points