2017 NCAA DI Women’s Outdoor Team Rankings – Preseason

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

NEW ORLEANS — No NCAA Division I women’s track & field/cross country program has won the triple crown. Ever.

As a matter of fact, the last team women’s squad to take home indoor and outdoor track & field championships was Arizona State back in 2007.

All of that could change this season.

Oregon, who won the 2016 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championship last fall before capturing the program’s 7th indoor title in 8 years just a few weeks ago, is ranked 1st in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Preseason Team Rankings, announced on Monday.

The National Team Computer Rankings are compiled by a mathematical formula based on the NCAA Division I Descending Order Lists. Marks from previous seasons are included until enough data can be drawn from the current season and current freshmen aren’t included in the rankings until they compete in an outdoor meet. The purpose and methodology of the rankings is to create an index that showcases the teams that have the best potential of achieving the top spots in the race for a national title. Ranking points don’t equate with points that will be scored at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships.

Oregon features a bevy of talented women in sprinting events, such as Ariana Washington, Hannah Cunliffe, Deajah Stevens, Raevyn Rogers and Sasha Wallace. The quintet of Bowerman Award Watch Listers will be joined by three-time Big Ten Champion Elexis Guster, who transferred from Iowa.

The Ducks are looking to make history in addition to picking up its 2nd outdoor championship in 3 years. While the current rankings show that they have the firepower to do so, Oregon has a team hot on its heels.

More Info NCAA Division I Rankings Central

NATIONAL PDFs Top 25 | By Team | By Event Top TFRRS Qualifiers # of Top-10 Athletes by Team Rankings History This Season By Rank | All-Time

Kentucky comes in ranked 2nd, marking the program’s highest preseason ranking in history. The Wildcats have been dominant on the outdoor circuit, having ranked in the top-10 in every week dating back to the 2014 preseason rankings. Hurdler and sprinter Jasmine Camacho-Quinn and jumpers Sha’Keela Saunders and Destiny Carter are poised to bring a title to Lexington, Kentucky, for the first time in program history.

The SEC owns four of the next eight spots in Arkansas (3rd), LSU (4th), Florida (6th) and Georgia (7th). All eyes will be on Columbia, South Carolina, from May 11-13, as the SEC Outdoor Track & Field Championships will serve as a preview to the national title picture just a few weeks later.

The Razorbacks return athletes who recorded an astounding 18 top-20 marks during the regular outdoor track and field season from a year ago, including 10 top-10 marks. LSU has three top-10 100 meter sprinters in Mikiah Brisco, Aleia Hobbs and Kortnei Johnson all returning to the fold. The Gators from Florida are led by Kyra Jefferson (100 meters, 200 meters, 400 meters) and Marija Vucenovic (javelin) individually, while the 4×100 and 4×400 relay teams both posted top-3 times last season. And of course, Georgia owns all-everything athlete Kendell Williams, as well as super jumpers Keturah Orji and Madeline Fagan.

Southern California joins Oregon as Pac-12 squads in the top-5, as the Trojans come in at 5th. The trio of Kendall Ellis, Amalie Iuel and Dior Hall should strike fear into the hearts of opponents throughout the 2017 campaign. All posted top-10 marks a season ago, while Iuel placed in the top-10 in the 400 meters, high jump and heptathlon.

Texas finds itself at 8th in the preseason rankings, thanks in large part to the return of Chrisann Gordon (400 meters, 800 meters), as well as the Longhorn relay squads.

Stanford (9th) and Florida State (10th) round out the top-10 of the preseason rankings. The Cardinal return Valarie Allman (discus), Olivia Baker (800 meters), Elise Cranny (1500 meters and 5000 meters), Vanessa Fraser (5000 meters) and Mackenzie Little (javelin), who all look to unseat Oregon from the top of the Pac-12.

The Seminoles lead the way in the field categories with top-5 mark holders Kellion Knibb (discus) and Jogaile Petrokaite (long jump) returning after strong 2016 campaigns. Joining them – as well as top-10 heptathlete Melissa-Maree Farrington – is sophomore Veronika Kanuchova, who sat out last season as a redshirt.

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.