COLUMBIA, Mo. - The men and women of Mizzou Cross Country ranked in the top five of the SEC preseason coaches poll, as released by the conference office on Monday.  The men are slated to finish fourth in the conference, while the women landed in fifth.  Both teams closed the 2014 season fourth at the championship meet, the highest finish yet for the women in the SEC.

The Tigers return a pair of All-SEC finishers on both the men's and women's team from 2014, including the most recent SEC Freshman of the Year in now-sophomore Karissa Schweizer.  Schweizer placed 17th overall at the conference championship, leading the way for the All-SEC Freshman Team, and went on to close her season with an All-Midwest Region finish and NCAA Championships qualification.  Also making the podium for the Tigers was then-sophomore Kaitlyn Fischer, who was an SEC Freshman of the Year (2013) in her own right.  Fischer has two consecutive First Team All-SEC finishes for cross country after placing sixth in 2013 and 2014.

On the men's side. senior Tyler Schneider and junior Dan Roe both return in the black and gold after leading the Tigers at the 2014 SEC Championship meet, earning First Team and Second Team honors, respectively.

The Tigers will kick off their 2015 campaign on Friday (September 4) with the Illini Challenge in Champaign, Ill.  For the latest on Mizzou Cross Country, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team on Twitter @MIZ_TrackField.