Jumbled-Up Top-25 In NCAA DIII Women’s ITF Rankings

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

NEW ORLEANS — There was a bunch of movement in the NCAA Division III Women’s Indoor Track & Field National Team Computer Rankings for the second consecutive week.

In the most recent rankings, which were released Tuesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA), only three teams remained in place from Week 4 to Week 5 – and one of them was top-ranked MIT. Otherwise, the top-25 is unrecognizable – but we’re here to help you make sense of it all.

The Engineers lost a bit of ground on the rest of the top-5. MIT fell 1.38 points to 124.60 and own a 7.02-point advantage on new-No. 2 Washington (Mo.). The Bears moved up thanks to the effort of its DMR team this past weekend — which is now ranked No. 1 in the nation at 11:48.89 — and Daisy Ogede (No. 4 at 60 meters).

Williams moseyed up one spot as well from No. 4 to No. 3, which meant Ithaca had to tumble two spots to make way for the Ephs and Washington (Mo.).

The newest addition to the top-5 — and a team that hits its best ranking since Week 3 of 2015 — is UW-Whitewater. The Warhawks were buoyed by the performance of their 4×400 relay, which is now ranked 1st in the nation (3:50.93). That gives UW-Whitewater six entities ranked in the top-10 of the NCAA DIII Descending Order List.

UW-Oshkosh is back in the top-10 for the first time since Week 3 of 2016. The Titans are ranked 8th and the biggest reason why was Kristen Linzmeier’s effort in the 800, which left her 4th in the nation (2:14.03).

Further down we find Otterbein at No. 12. The Cardinals moved up 14 spots to an all-time best mark after a great weekend. Otterbein saw Claire Lamb run the 2nd fastest time over 3000 meters this season in NCAA DIII (9:46.76) and coupled with two top-10 pole vaulters (Harmony Kolling and Jenna D’Errico), things are looking up.

UW-Platteville and Bridgewater (Va.) jumped 5 (No. 18 to No. 13) and 8 spots (No. 22 to No. 14), respectively. The former is led by top-5 pentathlete Amber Williams, while the latter is guided by the reigning NCAA DIII National Athlete of the Week Amber Celen (No. 1 60, No. 1 200).

Watch out for Greenville as well. After Chelsea Gilles moved up to No. 1 in the 400 and No. 5 in the 200, the Panthers jumped 35 spots to No. 25, its best rankings since Week 7 of 2012 (23rd).

With NCAA Division III’s final qualifying date set for March 4, a lot can happen between now and then so keep it locked on USTFCCCA.org to see what changes in the rankings.