WWU's Bethany Drake named USTFCCCA Division II athlete of the week, plus links...

NEW ORLEANS--Western Washington's Bethany Drake (above/photo courtesy Western Washington University) was selected by the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association as its Division II national track & field athlete of the week for the week ending April 5th.

Drake, the sophomore from Sandy, Oregon, threw the javelin 169-6 (51.66m) at the Shotwell Invitational last Saturday in Tacoma, a mark that was a personal best by more than 12 feet, and was the best throw in Division II since 2009, and the fourth best in D2 history.  

The mark is also the #10 throw by a collegian in all divisions this season.  

The USTFCCCA also released its national Division I rankings, and the University of Washington women's team has moved up three spots in the computer rankings to #16.

Texas A&M, Florida, Texas, Oregon, and Kentucky are the country's top five women's teams.

Other Pac-12 teams in the top 25 include USC at #7, Arizona at #11, UCLA at #12, Stanford at #18. and Arizona State at #21.

Florida, Oregon, Arkansas, Texas A&M and Florida State are the nation's top five men's squads in the latest rankings.

Other Pac-12 teams in the top 25 include USC at #12, UCLA at #15, Arizona at #17. and Cal at #23.

Both releases from the USTFCCCA can be accessed via their home page.

On the pro circuit, the Nike Prefontaine Classic announced the field for the 110 hurdles at the IAAF Diamond League meet on May 31st at Hayward Field in Eugene.

The hurdles will feature a matchup between David Oliver, the reigning world champion against Aries Merritt, the defending Olympic champion and world record holder, with Olympic and world decathlon champ Ashton Eaton, 2011 world champ Jason Richardson, current US champ Ryan Wilson, and current world and US indoor champ Omoghan Osaghae thrown in for good measure.

In previous releases, the Pre Classic has announced several headliners, including world and Olympic champ Brittney Reese in the long jump, and Ethiopian distance sensation Kenenisa Bekele in the 10000.

You can see the current release from the Nike Pre Classic here.

Here's a link to 800 meter runner Phoebe Wright's latest blog post, called "Is That Code for 'Unemployed'?", where she explains what she does for a living to those who don't understand what professional track & field athletes do.

You can read her post here.