Oklahoma Baptist Men & British Columbia Women Are New No. 1 Teams in NAIA National Rankings

NEW ORLEANS – Just a month ago, the Indiana Tech men and women – both defending national outdoor champions – were the overwhelming early-season favorites in the NAIA National Team Computer Rankings by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

Fast forward to Wednesday’s week four edition, the field has caught up and neither the Warriors’ men or women are even in the top two.

Oklahoma Baptist’s men jumped three spots to the No. 1 spot vacated by Indiana Tech two weeks ago to Concordia (Ore.), while the British Columbia women beat out Oklahoma Baptist for the top spot in their rankings.

Team rankings points do not equate to NAIA Championships team points scored at the national meet, but rather the number of student-athletes a team has near the top of the descending order list in their resepctive events and how highly they are ranked.

A full explanation of the points system used in the National Team Computer Rankings can be found here.

Qualification for the NAIA Championships will not be determined in any way by these rankings, which are not officially sanctioned or endorsed by the NAIA for the 2014 season. These rankings are supported by the NAIA from the standpoint of media and entertainment purposes only.

Men’s Top Five 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) Oklahoma Baptist 429.36 pts Concordia (Ore.) 426.70 pts Wayland Baptist 422.84 pts Indiana Tech 413.65 pts Concordia (Neb.) 279.23 pts View Complete Men’s Rankings

The Bison men’s newly top-ranked 4×800 relay from the Drake Relays boosted their team rankings score to 429.36, just ahead of a trio of teams that, despite all seeing their team rankings scores drop, remained well within striking distance of the rankings’ top spot.

Formerly top-ranked Concordia (Ore.) dropped 43 points from a week ago to 426.70 and fell to No. 2, while No. 3 Wayland Baptist (Texas) slipped 31 points to 422.84 and Indiana Tech tumbled 22 points to 413.64.

Concordia (Neb.) (279.23) rounded out the top five.

Women’s Top Five 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) British Columbia 500.98 pts Oklahoma Baptist 491.46 pts Indiana Tech 467.67 pts Doane (Neb.) 416.45 pts Wayland Baptist 300.25 pts View Complete Women’s Rankings

After holding a nearly 90-point advantage just one week ago, the Indiana Tech women dropped two positions to No. 3 after their team rankings score plummeted by 87 points to 467.67.

Both new No. 1 British Columbia (500.98) and two-time defending indoor champion No. 2 Oklahoma Baptist (491.46) registered gains of more than 35 points to battle past the falling Warriors.

Sprinter Joy Spear Chief-Morris moved into the top 10 on the national descending order list at both 100 and 200 meters to propel BC to a 35-point gain, while Hannah Helker’s second-ranked run at 5000 meters and a sweep of the top spots in the 4×100, 4×400 and 4×800 relays were the spur for OBU’s nearly 38-point gain.

Doane (Neb.) (416.45) remained in the hunt at No. 4, with Wayland Baptist (Texas) (300.25) completing the top five.

The Mid-South Conference champion men of No. 24 Cumberlands (Ky.) moved up the farthest in the top 25 with a 75-position gain, while the No. 22 Wiley (Texas) women were the biggest movers in their rankings with a 13-spot improvement.