Minimal Movement In NCAA DIII National Team Rankings As Season Heats Up

NEW ORLEANS — A historic jump proved to be the highlight of the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field National Team Computer Rankings.

NCAA Division III National Team Rankings Top 5 – Men 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) UW-La Crosse UW-Whitewater UW-Eau Claire Monmouth (Ill.) Rowan 163.28 pts 105.16 pts 98.56 pts 94.11 pts 78.38 pts View Complete Men’s National Team Computer Rankings   NCAA Division III National Team Rankings Top 5 – Women 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) UW-La Crosse Washington (Mo.) Illinois Wesleyan Baldwin Wallace Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 173.82 pts 129.22 pts 116.75 pts 113.06 pts 105.54 pts View Complete Women’s National Team Computer Rankings

More on that in a bit, but let’s check out the top-5 in each set of rankings that were released Tuesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

Nothing changed in the top-5 of the men’s rankings as UW-La Crosse remained at No. 1 followed by second-ranked UW-Whitewater, third-ranked UW-Eau Claire, fourth-ranked Monmouth (Ill.) and fifth-ranked Rowan.

A few teams bounced around the top-5 of the women’s rankings, but UW-La Crosse and Washington (Mo.) are still No. 1 and No. 2, respectively. Illinois Wesleyan and Baldwin Wallace swapped spots from last week (No. 3 and No. 4) and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps continued to climb the chart to No. 5.

So back to that historic mark. That belongs to SUNY Cortland.

Just last week, the Red Dragons sat in 28th place. Following a big showing at the Sam Howell Invitational, hosted by Princeton, SUNY Cortland rocketed to sixth. This is the Red Dragons’ best ranking in program history, halving its previous record (12th).

What allowed SUNY Cortland to jump 22 spots? Quite simply, the efforts of Mitch Ryan and Jarred Iacovelli in the steeplechase. Ryan ran the fastest time of the season in DIII (9:02.47) and Iacovelli is now ranked third (9:07.27).

And while it wasn’t as notable as the Red Dragons’ rise, Tufts went from No. 36 to No. 19. The Jumbos’ best ranking in program history is 10th (Week 6, 2010), so they still have a bit of work to do.

Looking at the women’s rankings, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps found itself in the top-5 for the first time since Week 6 of last season. The Athenas saw Emily Bassett move up the charts in the hammer throw to fourth (54.95m/180-3).

Ithaca joined the top-25 at No. 21 following a big weekend. Also finding its way into the top-25 is Aurora (24th).

Overall, the WIAC leads all conferences with 12 total ranked teams across the two lists. No other conference has more than four combined ranked teams.

The NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships will be held May 26-28 in Waverly, Iowa.