2017 NCAA DIII Men’s Outdoor Team Rankings – Week 3

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

NEW ORLEANS – There was minor movement in the NCAA Division III Men’s Outdoor Track & Field National Team Computer Rankings in Week 3 as they were released Tuesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

UW-La Crosse, Rowan and North Central (Ill.) are still 1-2-3 for the 2nd week in a row.

This marks the 4th time in program history that the Eagles have been ranked No. 1 for the first four weeks of the season. UW-La Crosse also accomplished that feat in 2014, 2015 and 2016. Ross Denman came through in a big way for the Eagles this past weekend as he ran NCAA DIII’s fastest time over 400 meters (47.19) and is 3rd in the USTFCCCA Event Rankings.

The biggest movement in the top-10 came behind UW-La Crosse, Rowan and North Central (Ill.), as Aurora moved up one spot from No. 5 to No. 4, SUNY Cortland went from No. 7 to No. 5 and UW-Whitewater jumped from No. 10 to No. 6.

The reason for the Red Dragons’ jump was the performance of Jack Flood in the decathlon this past weekend. Flood totaled 7021 points and moved to the top of the USTFCCCA Event Rankings in the multi. Not to be outdone, Flood’s teammate Connor Christopherson put up a total of 6831 to take over 3rd place on the USTFCCCA Event Rankings.

For those uninitiated, the USTFCCCA Event Rankings are a composite list using marks from the current season and previous seasons until enough data can be collected from the current one.

Speaking of those USTFCCCA Event Rankings, Parker Witt is now 2nd in the 100 at 10.44 and that propelled the Warhawks. Witt is also ranked 5th at 200 meters from an effort in 2016.

Another big mover into the top-10 was Benedictine (Ill.). The Eagles continued to climb the rankings and come in at No. 8 this week. Benedictine (Ill.) saw Luther Newburn hop, skip and jump his way to a mark of 15.31m (50-2¾) in the triple jump and take over 2nd place in the USTFCCCA Event Rankings. Newburn joined teammates Matt Fleming (long jump) and Roman Hill (long jump) in the top-5 of their respective horizontal jumps.

The Move of the Week belonged to Pomona-Pitzer. The Sagehens went from No. 29 in Week 2 to No. 18 in Week 3 thanks to Andy Reischling’s effort in the 5000 at the Mt. SAC Relays. Reischling clocked a time of 14:15.70, which is 2nd on the USTFCCCA Event Rankings.

There is a great chance we’ll see many of these athletes and teams compete at the 2017 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships from May 25-27 in Geneva, Ohio. You’ll want to check back on USTFCCCA.org between now and then to see how the National Team Computer Rankings continue to shift.