Former & Defending Champions Rising Toward the Top of the Division III National Team Rankings

NEW ORLEANS – Of all the NCAA Divisions this week, the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Division III National Team Computer Rankings released Wednesday underwent the most changes.

Women’s Top Five
1)	2)	3)	4)	5)
UW-La Crosse 168.23 pts	UW-Oshkosh 158.33 pts	Wartburg 129.01 pts	MIT 128.37 pts	UW-Whitewater 101.98 pts
View Complete Women’s Rankings

Both the UW-La Crosse men and women held firm at No. 1 atop their respective genders’ rankings, but only one other men’s team and four other women’s teams stayed put from a week ago.

While the UW-La Crosse men bolstered their position at No. 1, the UWL women saw their advantage shrink with defending indoor champion UW-Oshkosh now in their rearview mirror.

The Eagles (168.23) are now less than 10 rankings points ahead of new No. 2 UW-Oshkosh (158.33) since the Titans’ multiple-time national champion and multiple-event DIII record-holder Christy Cazzola opened up her senior campaign two weekends ago.

The two programs, along with No. 5 UW-Whitewater, No. 24 UW-Stout and No. 25 UW-Platteville, will square off at this weekend’s WIAC Championships.

Cazzola is now ranked No. 3 at 800 meters, No. 8 in the mile and No. 12 at 3000 meters. She is the defending national champion in the mile indoors and the reigning 800 meter champ outdoors.

Speaking of outdoor champions, 2013 team champion Wartburg (129.01) moved up to No. 3 after dropping from No. 1 to No. 4 last week.

Making room for UW-Oshkosh and Wartburg was No. 4 MIT (128.37), which fell two spots from last week. UW-Whitewater (101.98) stayed steady at No. 5.

Wheaton (Mass.) (80.58) edged out Williams (80.06) for the No. 6 spot, as both No. 7 Williams and No. 8 Johns Hopkins (68.98) fell one spot.

Rounding out the top 10 in a holding pattern were No. 9 Illinois Wesleyan (67.24) and No. 10 Stevens (56.91).

No. 21 Luther made the biggest splash in the rankings with a 17-spot jump from a week ago.

The defending national champion UW-La Crosse men (217.89 team rankings score) fortified their top spot with a slew of top-10 performances boosting their team score by nearly 60 points from a week ago. Chief among those who vaulted up the event rankings were Alex Koenen (No. 2, 200 meters), the 4×400 relay (No. 2), Bryan Klister (No. 2, pole vault) and Gerry Kerska (No. 3, 800 meters).

Men’s Top Five
1)	2)	3)	4)	5)
UW-La Crosse 217.89 pts	North Central (Ill.) 147.86 pts	UW-Oshkosh 136.08 pts	UW-Eau Claire 121.42 pts	Mount Union 114.86 pts
View Complete Men’s Rankings

A stacked WIAC Championships field awaits the Eagles this weekend with No. 3 UW-Oshkosh, No. 4 UW-Eau Claire, No. 8 UW-Whitewater, No. 11 UW-Stout and No. 22 UW-Platteville all appearing in the national rankings this week.

North Central (147.86), the three-time defending indoor champions prior to UW-La Crosse’s 2013 title, moved up to No. 2 this week. The Cardinals replaced UW-Oshkosh (136.08), which fell to No. 3, in the second spot.

Rounding out the top five were a pair of teams on the upward tick in No. 4 UW-Eau Claire (121.42) and No. 5 Mount Union (114.86). The Blugolds stepped up one slot while the Raiders improved by two.

No. 6 Haverford (98.95) remained steady, while MIT (95.10) dropped three spots to No. 7.

No. 8 UW-Whitewater (92.16) was the biggest top-10 mover with a four-slot gain to displace No. 9 Tufts (81.90) down a spot from a week ago. SUNY Cortland (60.80) completed the top 10.

National Athlete of the Week Terrence Gibson led his Worcester State squad to the biggest improvement in the men’s rankings. The No. 15 Lancers are up 10 notches from last week.

The national team rankings will be complied by mathematical formulae based on national descending order lists. The purpose and methodology of the rankings is to create an index that showcases the teams that have the best potential of achieving the top spots in the national team race. Rankings points do not equate with NCAA Championships team points. A full description of the rankings can be found here.

The USTFCCCA National Team Computer Rankings should not be referred to as a “poll” as no voting occurs during the process.