Shakeup Highlights Week Four Division III Rankings

NEW ORLEANS – The UW-La Crosse Eagles’ nest remained on the highest perch of Division III track & field, but the rest of the rankings tree violently swayed. Week 4’s NCAA DIII National Team Computer Rankings were released on Tuesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

UW-Lax’s men’s and women were both ranked No. 1 for the fifth straight week. That was just about the only thing that stayed constant in the DIII rankings, as this was the first edition of the rankings to not include preseason data. Four men’s and three women’s teams joined the top ten, and seven men’s and women’s teams joined the top twenty-five.

Breaking down the men first: Nos. 2 and 3 UWs-Whitewater andEau Claire were two of just five teams (along No. 15 Widener, plus their WIAC bretheren La Crosse and No. 16 UW-Stout) to keep their same ranking from a week ago.

No. 4 Monmouth (Ill.) rocketed to the top five from No. 27; No. 5Augustana, No. 6 Mount Union, No. 7 SUNY Oneonta, No. 8Haverford, No. 9 Whitworth, and No. 10 Wabash filled out the rest of the top ten.

This week’s rankings heralded a possible changing of the guard in DIII. It’s the first time this season outside of the top five for Mount Union, and it’s just the second time in the last six regular seasons that No. 11 North Central (Ill.) was outside of the top ten. The Cardinals have not finished outside of the top five at DIII outdoor nationals since the computer rankings began in 2010.

In addition to the Fighting Scots of Monmouth, six more men’s squads were newly ranked this week: No. 17 Williams, No. 18Brockport, No. 20 Redlands, No. 23 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, and No. 25 Wesley all joined the top twenty-five. Wesley, up from No. 57, made the biggest move of any men’s team this week. This isn’t only the first-ever ranking for Brockport and Wesley; it’s also the first time either program cracked the top forty.

With twenty out of the twenty-five ranked teams making moves this week, there were too many high-scoring performances to highlight them all. Here’s a look at the four teams that moved up twenty or more slots. For ease of reference, we’re mentioning points that were scored by teams this weekend, as opposed to points teams lost due to the end of preseason data:

• Monmouth did it with great sprinting from the duo of Ethan Reschke and Raimius Foulkes at Augustana. Those two ran the Nos. 2 and 4 400 times in DIII, and each ran a leg of the No. 3 4×100 meter relay.
• Brockport’s Darius Favors launched the discus 54.94m (180-3) for the No. 1 mark in the division and a fat twenty rankings points.
• Claremont-Mudd-Scripps lost a No. 1 slot in the 1500 this weekend, but gained thirteen points from a fast 15 by Josh Sealand and a long triple jump from Matt Wong.
• Like Monmouth, Wesley joined the top twenty-five thanks to the sprint/relay double whammy. Matt Bundy ran the nation’s No. 3 time in the 100 hurdles, then doubled back with a leg on the nation’s No. 4 4×100 team.

Brockport (Atlantic) and Christopher Newport (South/Southeast) both moved up from No. 2 to No. 1 in their respective regions.

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The shifts in the women’s poll were even more dramatic, as every spot in the rankings was occupied by a new team this week save Nos. 1, 6, and 8. Most notable was a completely new group of teams at Nos. 2 through 5:Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, Washington (Mo.), Illinois Wesleyan, and UW-Eau Claire, in that order. Those four were the only teams to join the top ten, but seven squads joined the top twenty-five.

Newly ranked schools were No. 14 Roanoke, No. 15 Lehman, No. 16 Rhodes, No. 17 Aurora, No. 19 SUNY Oneonta, No. 20 Buffalo State, No. 24 UW-Stevens Point, and No. 25 TCNJ. Roanoke’s sixty-five ranking jump was the biggest of the week for either sex. It was the first-ever ranking for Aurora, Oneonta, and Stevens Point, and for both Aurora and Oneonta, it was only their second time cracking the top fifty.

How did C-M-S and WashU make double digit leaps into the top three? The Athenas got a fast 10k from Sara Mostatabi, and a quick 4×4 from Hanna Tarleton, Carmen Mejia, Brina Jablonski, and Aiyanna Cameron-Lewis. And the Bears’ biggest points this weekend were produced by long sprinter Emily Warner in the 400. Warner already had the No. 3 DIII time in the 800.

The two biggest movers of the week both made gigantic moves on the backs of fast and versatile duos. No. 14 Roanoke, up a whopping sixty-five spots, mostly thanks to nationally elite 400/200/4×1 triples from Alexis Janney and Alease Kinney. And No. 25 TCNJ moved up from No. 77 thanks to a great 400 from Joy Spriggs, a fast 800 from Katelyn Ary, and a 4×4 including Spriggs, Ary, Michelle Cascio, and Amanda Cucarese/

Two teams made big moves to take over as a regional No. 1: Oneonta (Atlantic) and Johns Hopkins (Mideast)

The DIII rankings will be released on Tuesdays between now and outdoor nationals.