KU Women Enter NCAA Prelims as Favorite in Rankings

May 20, 2013

USTFCCCA Outdoor Track & Field Week 8 Rankings

Junior Jessica Maroszek

USTFCCCA Women’s Top-10 No. School Conf. Last 1. KANSAS Big 12 1 2. Texas A&M SEC 2 3. Oregon Pac 12 3 4. LSU SEC 4 5. Florida SEC 5 6. Arizona Pac 12 7 7. UCF C-USA 9 8. Arkansas SEC 6 9. Arizona State Pac 12 10 10. Georgia SEC 8 USTFCCCA Men’s Top-10 No. School Conf. Last 1. Florida SEC 1 2. Texas A&M SEC 2 3. Oregon Pac 12 3 4. Arkansas SEC 4 5. Florida State ACC 5 6. USC Pac 12 6 7. LSU SEC 7 8. Texas Big 12 8 9. Wisconsin Big Ten 9 10. Nebraska Big Ten 10 21. Kansas Big 12 21

NEW ORLEANS – The University of Kansas women’s track & field team held on to its No. 1 spot in the NCAA computer rankings it was released by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Monday. KU will begin the preliminary rounds of the NCAA Championships this weekend in Austin, Texas as the favorite to bring home its first national title in program history.

Kansas, which now finds itself as the nation’s top-ranked team for the seventh week this season, has fewer entries to the Prelim rounds than do its closest competitors, but is still favored by the computers. With 22 entries, the Jayhawks will field the fewest student-athletes of any top-six team later this week, but still holds the advantage, boasting 13 top-10 nationally ranked performers.

The Jayhawks feature a foursome of No. 2-ranked competitors in Diamond Dixon (400m), Natalia Bartnovskaya (pole vault), Francine Simpson (long jump) and Andrea Geubelle (triple jump) — three of whom have won NCAA titles in the past in Dixon, Bartnovskaya and Geubelle.

Behind the strength of those entries, the Kansas women checked in at No. 1 for the seventh time in nine weeks this outdoor season and are projected as the favorites by the computers slightly ahead of No. 2 Texas A&M, No. 3 Oregon and No. 4 LSU.

The Kansas men have also closed their season strong, finding themselves ranked in the top-25 for the third-consecutive week. The Jayhawks checked in at No. 21 on the latest national list after securing 13 qualifying spots in the upcoming NCAA West Prelim.

Both teams will begin their drive through the NCAA Championships rounds this weekend inside Mike A. Myers Stadium in Austin, Texas May 23-25. Preliminary rounds of each event will take place in a “bracket” style format, which athletes must advance through in order to earn a trip to the NCAA Championship meet in Eugene, Ore., June 5-8. Follow the Jayhawks as they look to claim team and individual national titles over the next three weeks by logging on to KUAthletics.com and following on Twitter at KUTrack.

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