LOWELL, Mass.  –  The UMass Lowell men's Cross Country has opened some eyes in its second season of Division I competition and, for the first time, earned a spot in the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Regional Rankings.

The River Hawks were ranked 15th in the final USTFCCCA Northeast Region Rankings for the 2014 season.  It is the first time any UMass Lowell athletic team making the transition from Division II to Division I has earned a regional ranking.  It comes just two days after the River Hawks brought home the second place trophy at the America East Conference Championships.

"Those were among our top goals, competing for a championship in America East and to be ranked in the region," said Head Coach Gary Gardner.  "We knocked those two off the checklist this weekend.   These are the final ranking for the year so this is a great springboard for the future."

The recognition may surprise some, but it was not a surprise to the coaching staff.  "We knew what we were capable of doing," said Gardner.  "But, saying it, believing it and doing it are very different things."

Syracuse, Iona and Providence were the three top ranked schools in the USTFCCCA Northeast rankings.

UMass Lowell just missed taking the top prize at the America East Championships.  They finished just three points behind Binghamton University.  Binghamton was the only America East school to finish higher in the Northeast Region rankings.  The Bearcats claimed 12th position.  UMBC, after finishing third at the conference championship, 23 points behind UMass Lowell, was ranked 10th in the Mid-Atlantic Region.

There were indications earlier in the season that the River Hawks just might garner regional or national attention.  The team had finished fourth at the Iona College Meet of Champions in New York City, one of the most prestigious meets in the northeast in September, and sixth in its group at the ISU Pre-National Meet in Terra Haute, Indiana.

"This is a very special group of guys," said Gardner.  "It is probably one of the closest teams, in the relationship with one another, I've ever seen.  They're focused, they work very hard."

Everybody who ran as part of the America East Championships team will be back next year.  Five of the River Hawks top seven finishers at the event were freshmen.

"Seven of our top ten runners have three more years," said Gardner.  "It was an awesome learning experience.  There is every reason to believe they will be terrific as seniors."

This season's freshman class, as seniors, will be the first class eligible to compete for an NCAA championship.