Lincoln (Mo.) Women Take Over Division II Outdoor T&F National Team Rankings

NEW ORLEANS – The Lincoln (Mo.) women were firing on all cylinders at the MIAA Championships, driving them to the team title and on Monday the top spot in the week eight edition of the outdoor track & field Division II National Team Computer Rankings released by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

The Blue Tigers roared to the top past last week’s top-ranked Grand Valley State women, while the defending champion Saint Augustine’s men extended their advantage atop the men’s rankings.

Led by second-ranked Donna-Lee Hylton at 400 meters and third ranked Juneille Barker in the 400-meter hurdles among 11 top-10 sprinters, hurdles and mid-distance runners, Lincoln added more than 84 points to its team rankings score to top the list at 233.44.

The Blue Tigers had previously been No. 1 at least twice both in 2013 and 2011, ultimately finishing third and runner-up at NCAAs, respectively.

Team rankings scores do not mirror the points systems used at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, but rather measure team depth based on their student-athletes’ positioning on the national descending order lists.

That total was high enough to surge upward three positions past GLIAC champion Grand Valley State (225.14), which despite falling to No. 2 remained within nine points of Lincoln.

Women’s Top Five 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) Lincoln (Mo.) 233.44 pts GVSU 225.14 pts Adams St. 166.97 pts Johnson C. Smith 154.23 pts Ashland 151.62 pts View Complete Women’s Rankings

Both No. 3 Adams State (166.97) and No. 4 Johnson C. Smith (154.23) dropped one position each, with Ashland (151.62) right behind to round out the top five. Adams State is competing at the RMAC Championships as of publication, which concludes Tuesday and will be included in next week’s rankings.

No. 25 Lindenwood made the biggest leap of any team in the rankings – men’s or women’s – with a 37-position improvement from last week.

Men’s Top Five 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) Saint Augustine’s 315.79 pts Adams State 218.32 pts Ashland 195.66 pts TAMU-Kingsville 190.32 pts Chico State 124.86 pts View Complete Men’s Rankings

While none of the top five men’s teams changed position from a week ago, defending champion Saint Augustine’s was able to open up a nearly 100-point advantage over No. 2 Adams State.

The Falcons – propelled by top-ranked 200 meters defending national champion Jermaine Jones and three others in the top six after the Liberty Twilight – checked in with a team rankings score of 315.79 after a 40-point gain from last week.

Adams State (218.32) dropped 13 points, but the Grizzlies’ total does not include the RMAC Championships, which conclude Tuesday.

Ashland (195.66) finished runner-up at the GLIAC Championships but remained No. 3, while Lone Star Conference champion No. 4 Texas A&M-Kingsville (190.32) and CCAA champ No. 5 Chico State (124.26) rounded out the top five, just ahead of No. 6 Lincoln (Mo.) (124.26). The Blue Tigers rose five spots from a week ago.

Moving up the farthest on the men’s side was No. 10 Central Missouri, which improved seven spots from last week.

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.