2017 NCAA DI Women’s Outdoor Team Rankings – Week 1

NOTE: Only USTFCCCA member programs are eligible for rankings. Please check your membership status HERE.

NEW ORLEANS — It has been two weeks since the NCAA Division I Women’s Preseason Team Computer Rankings came out, but so far those rankings have held true.

While there were one-spot jumps or drops here and there, the 1st week of rankings – released on Monday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) – showed very little movement throughout the entire top-25, with just one team making its season-debut in the rankings.

Oregon –behind a pair of collegiate records – and Kentucky still sit pretty in the top two slots, with LSU, Arkansas and Florida bringing up the rear in the top-5. Southern California slipped a spot to 6th, followed by Georgia (7th) and Texas (8th) in their same spots from two weeks ago. Texas A&M made a three-spot jump to 12th as the only new member of the top-10 this week, and Florida State sees itself in 10th-place for the second-consecutive rankings.

The Ducks relay squads were unstoppable this weekend. The quartet of Makenzie Dunmore, Hannah Cunliffe, Deajah Stevens and Ariana Washington set a new collegiate record in the 4×100 relay at the Florida Relays, posting a time of 42.34. That time bested the previous record set by Texas A&M back on June 12, 2009 by 2 one-hundredths of a second.

They weren’t done.

The same group, featuring three Bowerman Award Watch List members, posted the fastest 4×200 relay later in the day in Gainesville, Florida, running a 1:28.78. Couple those two performances with Alaysha Johnson (12.69) and Sasha Wallace (12.94) in the 100 hurdles, and the Ducks had a pretty strong showing this past weekend.

Kentucky also competed at the Florida Relays, where it benefitted from 7 top-10 NCAA Division I marks on the descending order lists. Jasmine Camacho-Quinn led the way for the Wildcats with a 12.69 in the 100 hurdles, good for 2nd in NCAA Division I. Katy Kunc ran a new personal-best in the steeplechase with a time of 10:11.99, ranking 4th in the event.

More Info NCAA Division I Rankings Central
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LSU and Arkansas traded spots in the rankings, with the Tigers moving to 3rd and the Razorbacks dropping to 4th. Both teams competed at the 90th Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays, and both teams had stellar outings.

Dennis Shaver got NCAA Division I leading performances out of two women in Kymber Payne (400 hurdles) and Rebekah Wales (javelin). Payne ran a 56.12 in her event, outdistancing Purdue’s Symone Black by 6 one-hundredths of a second. Wales heave of 57.31m (188-0) is over 5½ feet further than her nearest competitor in NCAA Division I this year. In addition to those two Tiger performances, Kortnei Johnson (100 meters), Aleia Hobbs (100 meters), Travia Jones (400 meters) and Mikiah Brisco (100 hurdles) all recorded top-5 NCAA Division I marks on the weekend.

Much like LSU, Arkansas was a major player at the Texas Relays, with Taliyah Brooks (6075), Payton Stumbaugh (5880) and Leigha Brown (5721) recording the 1st, 2nd and 3rd-best heptathlon marks in NCAA Division I this year, respectively. Twin pole vaulters Tori and Lexi Weeks were also impressive in Austin, with clearances of 4.50m (14-9) and 4.40m (14-5¼), respectively.

Southern California, Texas and Texas A&M all took part in the Texas Relays, as well. The Trojans 4×400 relay team recorded a time of 3:26.27 at the Texas Relays, good for 2nd in NCAA Division I, while Georgia’s Beatrice Llano (hammer) and Aliyah Johnson (triple jump) both notched top-10 NCAA Division I performances in their respective events.

The Longhorns saw Rushelle Burton and Kally Long have solid days. Burton ran a 12.80 in the 100 hurdles, while Long posted a mark of 4.40m (14-5¼). Both marks are good for 4th in NCAA Division I. In-state rival Texas A&M had strong marks turned in from Aaliyah Brown and Lajarvia Brown, as the former of the two ran a 11.21 in the 100 meters (5th in NCAA Division I), while the latter leapt 13.11m (43-0¼) in  the triple jump (7th in NCAA Division I).

Florida State was relatively quiet this week, with just Gleneve Grange posting a discus mark of 56.53m (185-5) as its only new top-10 mark on the year.

Outside of the top-10 was very similar to the top-10 itself, as there was little to no movement in a majority of the slots.

The aforementioned Purdue was the only new team to crack the top-25 this week, behind Black and Savannah Carson’s NCAA Division I leading long jump mark of 6.54m (21-5½). The Boilermakers leapt 6 spots to 21st.

Virginia Tech (up 5 spots to 15th) and Ole Miss (up 5 spots to 18th) were the only other two teams in the top-25 that saw movement of 4 spots or more.

The 2017 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships will be held in Eugene, Oregon, from June 7-10 at Hayward Field. Check back at www.USTFCCCA.org each week throughout the season for updated rankings.