UW-La Crosse Women Emerge from Division III National Team Rankings Shakeup at No. 1

NEW ORLEANS – The dust has cleared from the removal of preseason marks from the outdoor track & field Division III National Team Computer Rankings, with both the UW-La Crosse men and women left standing tallest in Wednesday’s week four edition released by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

The defending national men’s champion Eagles maintained their significant edge in the men’s rankings while the women reclaimed the top spot after a brief one week respite from No. 1.

Each and every team in the women’s top 25 came in at a different spot from a week ago, while only No. 1 UW-La Crosse, No. 3 UW-Oshkosh, No. 6 North Central (Ill.) and No. 20 Moravian held firm in the men’s rankings.

Marks from the preseason may be gone, but the tight race for the top spot in the women’s rankings remained very much alive and well.

UW-La Crosse (172.95 team rankings score) moved up one position to No. 1 with two-time defending indoor team champion No. 2 UW-Oshkosh (161.74) following right behind with its own one-spot improvement.

Women’s Top Five 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) UW-La Crosse 172.95 pts UW-Oshkosh 161.74 pts Wartburg 147.95 pts Wheaton (Mass.) 119.61 pts Cal Lutheran 100.37 pts View Complete Women’s Rankings

Two-time defending outdoor team champion Wartburg (147.95) was among the hardest hit with a nearly 30-point drop from a week ago to fall from the top spot to No. 3.

No. 4 Wheaton (Mass.) (119.61) and No. 5 Cal Lutheran (100.37) rounded out the top five with improvements of two and five positions, respectively.

Two-time defending cross country team champion No. 6 Johns Hopkins (91.70) fell two positions, as did Rowan (90.99) at No. 7.

No. 8 La Verne (82.70) and No. 9 Rhodes (81.88) both leapt up 17 positions from a week ago, while Baldwin Wallace (81.11) improved four positions to complete the top 10.

Men’s Top Five 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) UW-La Crosse 233.83 pts Mount Union 132.60 pts UW-Oshkosh 122.60 pts Augustana (Ill.) 118.50 pts UW-Eau Claire 104.43 pts View Complete Men’s Rankings

The top of the men’s rankings held its shape slightly better than the women’s with No. 1 UW-La Crosse (233.83 team rankings score) maintaining an approximately 100-point lead over the next-best ranked team.

Mount Union (132.60) is that team this week after climbing three positions from a week ago, bypassing No. 3 UW-Oshkosh (122.60).

Augustana (Ill.) (118.50) burst into the top five at No. 4 after a 10-spot gain, while UW-Eau Claire (104.43) fell three from a week ago.

Behind stationary No. 6 North Central (Ill.) (81.66) were No. 7 UW-Whitewater (78.62) down three spots, No. 8 Haverford (78.55) – powered by National Athlete of the Week Avi Bregman – up 26 spots, No. 9 Wabash (78.20) up 10 and No. 10 Wartburg (75.20) down two.

The No. 18 Washington and Lee men’s 66-position jump was the biggest of the week, while the top women’s move was made by No. 13 Ohio Wesleyan with a 46-spot increase.

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 national team race. Rankings points do not equate with NCAA Championships team points. A full description of the rankings can be found here.