The Warm-Up Lap: 120th “Big Meet” Headlines a Big Schedule

NEW ORLEANS – After several weeks in a row of big relay meets and invitationals being designated National Meets of the Week by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA), one of the nation’s oldest dual meet series is in the spotlight this Saturday.

For the 120th time in a tradition spanning back to 1893, Cal’s and Stanford’s men will clash in the annual "Big Meet", while the women will compete against one another for the 32nd year as part of this week’s USTFCCCA Division I National Meet of the Week.

After last year breaking the Stanford men’s six-meet winning streak, the Cal men are No. 2 in the latest Track & Field News dual meet rankings and No. 23 in the USTFCCCA National Team Computer Rankings. The Golden Bears hold a 67-50-2 edge in the overall series.

Cal has been one of the most active dual-meet teams in the nation with wins over Michigan and Virginia just last weekend. Stanford, meanwhile, is ranked No. 31 in the USTFCCCA National Team Computer Rankings.

The meet has the potential for several top-25 individual battling for valuable team points. Collegiate-leading Tyler Stutzman at 1500 meters leads three other top-25 Stanford metric milers against 21st-ranked Thomas Joyce of Cal, while sophomore triple jumpers No. 13 Darain Brooks of Stanford and No. 15 Jonte Grant of Cal are separated by just half of an inch.

Stanford’s women, ranked No. 13 by the USTFCCCA computers, have claimed three in a row and hold a 21-11 advantage in the all-time series. Cal will look to bounce back from dual meet losses last week to Virginia and Michigan to snap the Cardinal’s streak and work toward evening the series.

Larger invitationals and relays are still taking place elsewhere around the nation in Division I as part of a very active weekend with nearly 130 different collegiate meets on the schedule. More information on these competitions can be found on the USTFCCCA InfoZone’s Meets This Weekend page.

The state of Arizona has a couple with top-25 teams in Arizona State’s Sun Angel Classic and Arizona’s Jim Click Shootout. Tennessee’s Sea Ray Relays and the Texas Invitational also feature a number of nationally ranked teams.

A full list of which top-10 teams will be competing at those meets can be found below, as can the weekend schedule for all national top-10 teams from all three NCAA divisions and the NAIA.

Division II’s National Meet of the Week will take place in Charlotte, N.C., with Johnson C. Smith hosting its home invitational today and Saturday. The defending men’s outdoor champion No. 1 Saint Augustine’s men will take on the No. 22 JCS men, while the No. 2 JCS women are up against No. 15 Saint Aug’s and No. 23 Livingstone.

Among those who could be in the field include reigning individual outdoor national champions in Johnson C. Smith’s Danielle Williams and Livingstone’s Quanera Hayes on the women’s side and Jermaine Jones of Saint Augustine’s for the men. Fans may also see world-leading 400-meter hurdler Roxroy Cato of the Saint Aug’s men.

In Division III, Wisconsin is a hotbed for perennial track & field contenders and 2014 is no different. This year’s first showdown between many of these in-state rivals will take place this Saturday at the UW-Platteville Invitational, this week’s Division III National Meet of the Week.

The men’s competition will feature each of the top four teams in defending national champ No. 1 UW-La Crosse, No. 2 UW-Oshkosh, No. 3 UW-Eau Claire and No. 4 UW-Whitewater, along with No. 8 Wartburg of Iowa.

The top-ranked women of UW-La Crosse will contend with two-time defending outdoor national champion No. 2 Wartburg and two-time defending indoor national champion No. 3 UW-Oshkosh, in addition to No. 7 UW-Whitewater and No. 24 UW-Eau Claire.

NAIA competition has its focal point at the Pomona-Pitzer Invitational this Saturday for the first NAIA USTFCCCA National Meet of the Week. Headlined by No. 8 Cal State San Marcos, six top-25 women’s teams are slated to compete (No. 11 Westmont, No. 13 The Master’s, No. 15 Biola, No. 18 Vanguard, No. 23 Concordia (Calif.)), while the No. 7 Cal State San Marcos men square off with No. 13 Westmont.

USTFCCCA InfoZone: Broadcast Schedule

Thursday, April 10, 2014

Friday, April 11, 2014

Saturday, April 12, 2014

Top-Ranked Teams In Action