Husky men ranked number 5 in first USTFCCCA rankings index; Western, Central & SPU women in D2 top 25...
NEW ORLEANS--After an outstanding home opener almost two weeks ago led by a 1-2 finish in the 800 by grad transfers Kyle Reinheimer (#3/UW Athletics photo) and Justin O'Toole (#2), along with a pair of sub 3:52 mile performances by Nathan Green and Ronan McMahon-Staggs, the Washington Husky men's team finds itself ranked number 5 in the first USTFCCCA NCAA D1 Track & Field Rating Index (TFRI) released Tuesday.
Reinheimer (1:46.45) and O'Toole (1:46.59) are ranked numbers 3 and 5 in the 800, while Green and McMahon-Staggs find themselves in the top two spots in the NCAA at 3:50.74 and 3:51.85 after the meets of the past weekend.
Green's mark last month in the 3000, where he ran a school record 7:40.09 in Boston stands as the number 5 time nationally.
Milers Cole Lindhorst (11) and Leo Daschbach (15) are inside the national top 20 in the mile, while pole vaulter Scott Toney and long jumper Prestin Artis are ranked number 20 in their events.
Toney has a better mark this season in the pole vault (18-0.5/5.50m), but he cleared that mark at the National Pole Vault Summit, which for the purposes of NCAA rankings, does not count towards NCAA championship meet qualifying.
The nation's top five men's teams are in order: Texas A&M, USC, defending national champion Texas Tech, Oklahoma and Washington.
Other Big Ten teams in the national top 25 include number 8 Illinois, number 12 Nebraska, number 14 Penn State, and number 23 Purdue.
No Washington women's teams are ranked in the national top 25 after the first rankings were released Tuesday.
Washington State is the highest ranked team at number 31, thanks to top ten marks by hurdler Micaela De Mello (#2, 8.02), and pole vaulter Tatum Moku (#7, 14-5.5/4.41m).
Washington's highest ranked athletes is 3000 meter runner Amina Maatoug, who is tenth at 9:00.65.
The US leading marks by twins Amanda and Hana Moll of 15-3 (4.65m) set at the National Pole Vault Summit in Reno don't count for NCAA championship meet qualifying.
DIVISION II...
In the first Division II ratings index, three of Washington's four schools find themselves in the national top 25.
Defending GNAC champion Western Washington is ranked number 13, while Central Washington and Seattle Pacific come in at numbers 18 and 19.
400 meter runner Bec Bennett is the nation's number 2 runner in the 400, as the 2019 world championships competitor for Australia ran 54.40 at the UW Preview, while Sophie Wright stands tenth on the D2 descending order list in the mile at 4:52.16.
Central Washington's E'lexis Hollis is ranked number 3 in the 60m at 7.37, and number 4 in 200 at 24.13 (converted down from 24.06, as the mark was altitude aided in Reno over the weekend). High jumper Emy Ntekpere's clearance of 5-8.5 (1.74m) in Spokane last month is ranked eighth.
Hannah Chang and Annika Esvelt are leading the way for Seattle Pacific.
Chang's time of 8.55 in the 60 hurdles in Spokane last month is the seventh fastest in D2. Esvelt's run of 16:09.93 in the 5000m is the third fastest so far this season, while her 9:33.10 from the UW Preview in the 3000 stands seventh in Division II.
The nation's top five women's teams in Division II after the initial index are in order: Pittsburg State, Grand Valley State, Minnesota State, Azusa Pacific, and West Texas A&M.
No other teams from the GNAC are in the national top 25.
In the men's Division II ranking index, no Washington teams are in the national top 25, with Western Washington outside at number 59.
Alaska Anchorage is the only GNAC school in the national top 25 at number 16.
The nation's top five Division II teams after last weekend's meets are in order: Grand Valley State, Pittsburg State, Colorado School of Mines, Wingate, and West Texas A&M.
All nine Washington Division I and II schools are in action this weekend.
NOTE: The USTFCCCA and the sports information office of the University of Washington contributed to this report.
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