Small Shifts In Top-5 Of Men’s And Women’s NAIA ITF Rankings

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NEW ORLEANS – While the shifts weren’t of seismic proportions, there were some new names in the top-5 of both NAIA National Team Rankings released by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) released on Wednesday.

As has been the case all season, Indiana Tech remains in the top spot on the both the men’s and women’s side. Doane (Neb.) also remains in second place on the men’s side after an outstanding performance in the shot put by sophomore Zach Brittain, who registered the NAIA’s best mark on the season at 17.70m (58-1) at last weekend’s Concordia Indoor Invite.

However, after those stalwarts, quite a few minor changes occurred in the fourth week of the Computer Rankings.

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The biggest of said changes comes on the women’s side, where Carroll (Mont.) took over the 2nd spot for the highest ranking in program history. At the Mountain States Games this past weekend in Pocatello, Idaho, the Fighting Saints recorded 12 top-10 NAIA marks on the season, including the number one overall pentathlon total by Crystal Schmidt, who scored 3,404 points.

Wayland Baptist (Texas) moved up to 3rd in both polls from the outer banks of the top-5 a week ago. Tre Hinds ran the 3rd-best time in the NAIA in the 800 meters at the Dunamis Sports Group College Classic II last weekend at 1:52.65, while the women’s 4 x 800 relay squad put together the NAIA’s top mark in the event on the year with a finish of 9:25.23.

Concordia (Neb.) move back to 4th on the men’s side after falling from that spot after the second week of the season. Cardinal Stritch (Wis.) remained in 5th on the men’s side after its distance medley team notched the NAIA’s top time on the year at 9:50.20, while Doane (Neb.) and Siena Heights (Mich.) each dropped two spots to 4th and 5th, respectively, in the women’s rankings.

The remainder of the top-10 saw a few teams flip flop spots from last week to this week, but the only new teams who broke into the top-10 from a week ago were Dordt (Ind.) at 10th in the men’s rankings and Oklahoma City at 10th in the women’s poll. Oklahoma City’s Aminat Olowora ran the 3,000 meters in 9:43.83 at the 2nd Annual Indoor Gorilla Classic over the weekend, good for first in all of the NAIA.

On the men’s side, Bacone (Okla.) jumped to a program-high 19th, thanks in large part to Thomas Jackson, who notched the top 3,000 meter time in the NAIA this year at the 2nd Annual Indoor Gorilla Classic last weekend. Jackson recorded a finish of 8:05.70.

William Carey made its season debut over the weekend and the men’s squad immediately shot to 13th, as Geoffrey Kipchumba notched the fastest 5,000 meter run in the NAIA on the season, recording a time of 14:30.71 at the Samford Two Day Open Indoor.

Four teams at the bottom of the women’s poll saw tremendous improvements, with Milligan (Tenn.) at 21st, Southern Oregon at 23rd, Northwest (Wash.) at 24th and Indiana Wesleyan at 25th all moved up at least 30 spots. The rankings were the highest in program history for both Southern Oregon and Northwest (Wash.). Milligan (Tenn.) was led by Hannah Segrave, who recorded the top 800 meter mark in the NAIA this year at the Music City Challenge.

Two full weeks are what separates now and the 2017 NAIA Track & Field Indoor Championships, as they will be held March 2-4 on the campus of East Tennessee State University. The rankings are bound to change between now and then, so be sure to check www.USTFCCCA.org for updates.

Men’s #EventSquad Leaders (Best Foursome in the Country By Event)

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Women’s #EventSquad Leaders (Best Foursome in the Country By Event)