2024 NCAA DIII Men’s Outdoor Track & Field Rating Index – Week 9
NEW ORLEANS – Let’s crown some champions!
Here is the newest edition of the 2024 NCAA DIII Men’s Outdoor Track & Field National Rating Index, which was released on Tuesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) ahead of the NCAA Championships this weekend in Mrytle Beach, South Carolina. No marks from previous seasons are being used in this objective calculation.
National TFRI is presented by AthleticNET.
NCAA Division III — Men's Outdoor Track & Field
This Week's National Top Five
1
UW-La Crosse
UW-La Crosse
2
UW-Oshkosh
UW-Oshkosh
3
Bethel (Minn.)
Bethel (Minn.)
4
UW-Eau Claire
UW-Eau Claire
5
Rowan
Rowan
All TFRI Reports
UW-La Crosse has been a force this year and will look to cap it with its 16th national title in program history. The top-ranked Eagles, who last won in 2017 as part of a three-peat and a four in the past five years run, bring 25 entries with them to the Palmetto State. UW-La Crosse has an athlete entered in at least 17 events. All eyes will be on Sam Blaskowski, who is expected to score big points for the Eagles. Blaskowski is the NCAA DIII record-holder in the 100 meters at 10.09 and is ranked third nationally in the 200 meters and is part of a record-setting 4×100 relay team.
UW-Oshkosh sets its sights on its second national title in program history. The second-ranked Titans, who last won this meet back in 2009 in a nailbiter over McMurry, own 15 entries. Look for several UW-Oshkosh athletes contending for national titles: Davian Willems, who is ranked second all-time in the 100 meters at 10.14; Joshua Rivers in the long jump, who recently soared 7.75m (25-5¼) for one of the farthest jumps in recent history; and Charlie Nolan in the decathlon, who is just 41 points shy of the national lead the combined event.
Bethel (Minn.) has been on a meteoric rise and heads to South Carolina on a wave of momentum. The third-ranked Royals, whose best finish at this meet was eighth two years ago, bring nine entries with them. Bethel (Minn.) has quality, not quantity, with athletes ranked among the top-5 national performers in three events, including national-leader Joel Smith in the 400-meter hurdles. Jacob Parent is ranked second nationally in the 200 meters at 20.76.
UW-Eau Claire is no stranger to success at this meet. The fourth-ranked Blugolds, who are relying on 11 entries for points, eye their seventh podium finish in program history. Yakob Ekoue and Mitch Stegeman go to South Carolina as national leaders in their respective events: Ekoue headlines the seasonal chart in the discus; Stegeman is the nation’s top decathlete.
Rowan should make things interesting for the rest of the top-5. The fifth-ranked Profs, who travel with 13 entries, aspire for their tenth podium finish in program history. Rowan has the nation’s top 4×400 relay and sends three athletes to compete in the 110-meter hurdles: Kwaku Nkrumah and Marquise Young, who are second and third on the seasonal chart at 14.00 and 14.01, respectively, and Jason Agyemang, who is tied for sixth at 14.12.
Here are the rest of the top-10 teams in Week 9: No. 6 Wartburg, No. 7 Pomona-Pitzer, No. 8 Dubuque, No. 9 Loras and No. 10 McMurry.
