2019 NJCAA DI Outdoor Track & Field Rating Index – Week 7
NEW ORLEANS – The 2019 NJCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships are finally here as the nation is ready to do battle for all the hardware in Hobbs, New Mexico, this weekend.
Competition gets underway on Thursday, May 16 and will run until a men’s and women’s champion is crowned on Saturday, May 18 on New Mexico JC’s Ross Black Track.
From The USTFCCCA InfoZone: National Championships Central
The final NJCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field National Rating Index, released by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) on Tuesday, will serve as the final primer to see what programs have the best shot at making the podium and/or bringing home the championship title.
NJCAA Division I — Men's Outdoor Track & Field
This Week's National Top Five
1
South Plains (Texas)
South Plains (Texas)
2
Iowa Central CC
Iowa Central CC
3
Cloud County (Kan.) CC
Cloud County (Kan.) CC
4
Coffeyville (Kan.) CC
Coffeyville (Kan.) CC
5
Barton (Kan.) CC
Barton (Kan.) CC
All TFRI Reports
South Plains (Texas) enters the national meet as the favorites to capture the men’s title and you know that the program will have nothing but revenge on their minds as Barton County CC won last year’s championships, snapping a run of 11-straight NJCAA DI titles by the Texans that dated back to the 2007 season.
The group boasts four national leaders in Bryson DeBerry (high jump), Rylan Olguin (pole vault), Holland Martin (long jump) and Isaiah Griffin (triple jump). Two more athletes you’ll want to keep an eye on are Deion Lightfoot (fourth in the 110H and fifth in the 400H) and Asani Hylton (third in the decathlon) as they too could have a large impact on the scoring.
Looking for its first outdoor national title of its own is No. 2 Iowa Central CC.
The Tritons enter the meet with one national leader in Awet Yohannes (steeple, to go with being No. 6 in the 1500). Other top-ranked athletes that will be looking to make their mark includes Courtney Lindsey (second in the nation in the 200 and fifth in the 100) and Tyler Lienau (second in the discus and fifth in the hammer). The group’s 4×100, 4×400 and 4×800 are all ranked in the top-10 at fifth, third and ninth, respectively.
Holding the No. 3 spot heading into nationals is Cloud County (Kan.) CC who is also looking for its first title in program history. If the T-Birds want a shot at the championship, look towards Dennis Kiptoo who is one of the best distance runners in the division (third in the 10000, sixth in the 5000 and seventh in both the steeple and 1500). Louis Humbert is also second overall in the pole vault while Tanner Brown enters fourth in the decathlon.
Coffeyville (Kan.) CC and defending champion Barton County CC are ranked in the No. 4 and No. 5 positions.
The Red Ravens are led by outstanding jumper Dodley Thermitus (leads the nation in the long jump and third in the triple) and Don’Drea Swint (seventh in both the 100 and 200, along with probably running a leg of the second-ranked 4×100 team).
The Cougars will look to make some noise with some big firepower of its own. Barton County CC has the national leaders in Kevin Nedrick (shot and discus), Alencar Pereira (hammer), Kenroy Williams (400H), Stephon Torrence (110H) and its 4×400 unit.
Only three programs have won the men’s title at the NJCAA DI Outdoor Championships since the division was created in 1998: South Plains (11 times), Barton County CC (8) and Central Arizona (3).
NJCAA Division I — Women's Outdoor Track & Field
This Week's National Top Five
1
Barton (Kan.) CC
Barton (Kan.) CC
2
New Mexico JC
New Mexico JC
3
South Plains (Texas)
South Plains (Texas)
4
Iowa Central CC
Iowa Central CC
5
Central Arizona
Central Arizona
All TFRI Reports
Barton (Kan.) CC is the favorite entering the national meet as the program is looking for its first women’s outdoor title since 2005.
The Cougars will have a good shot with three national leaders in Yoveinny Mota (100H) and their 4×100 and 4×400 units. Other athletes that should factor heavily in the scoring include T’Nia Riley (second in the nation in the 100 and sixth in the 200), Christal Mosley (second in the 400 and seventh in the 200) and Fiona Richards (second in the discus and sixth in the shot put).
Right behind them is last year’s defending champion New Mexico JC as the program is after its third straight outdoor national championship. The Thunderbirds will be look towards Victoria Villanueva (leads the nation in the pole vault), Monique Grant (tops in the long jump, second in the heptathlon, third in the 100H and sixth in the triple jump) and Kristal Liburd (second overall in the long jump and third in the triple jump) to carry the scoring load. The program’s 4×100, 4×400 and 4×800 are all in the top-five as well, coming in at third, fourth and fifth overall.
Slotting in at the No. 3 spot is South Plains (Texas) who is after its first outdoor title since 2015. The Texans will look towards two distance standouts in Gladys Jemaiyo (leads the country in the 10000, second in the 5000, third in the 1500 and 10th in the 800) and Dorcus Ewoi (second in the 1500, fourth in the 800 and fifth in the 5000) along with jumper Ruth Usoro (second in the triple and fifth in the long jump).
Iowa Central CC and Central Arizona enter as the No. 4 and 5 teams in the nation.
The Tritons are another team looking to get major points out of its distance group as Florance Uqajeneza (tops the nation in the 1500, second in the 10000 and third in the 5000), Winrose Chesang (leads in the 5000 and third in the 10000) and Lilian Busienei (No. 1 in the steeple, fourth in the 1000 and seventh in the 5000) will look to do some damage, to go with thrower Lea Grady (fourth in the country in both shot and discus and fifth in the hammer).
The Vaqueras have national leaders in Devia Brown (first in the shot, second in the hammer and third in the javelin) and Regina Yeboah (tops in the heptathlon, which goes with being the No. 1 high jumper) and will also look towards Lesego Mpshe (sixth in both the 5000 and 10000) to capture some points.
The women’s title at the NJCAA DI Outdoor Championships has been won by five programs since the division was created in 1998: Barton County and South Plains are both tied with six, Central Arizona has five, while Iowa Central and New Mexico JC each have two crowns.
