Both Track Squads Ranked Top-Five Nationally
SEATTLE – For three straight weeks the Husky track and field teams have made some type of program history. Two weeks ago the women achieved an all-time high of No. 2. Last week the men earned their first ever No. 1 ranking. And today both teams were simultaneously ranked in the top-five of the National Ratings Index for the first time.
The men's team lost its hold on the No. 1 spot but only dropped to No. 2 nationally, while the women's team shot up ten spots this week back up to No. 5. Washington is one of three programs in the top-five in both the men's and women's national rankings along with Texas and Arkansas.
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Another first for the Dawgs as BOTH the men's and women's teams are now nationally ranked in the Top-5!#GoHuskies pic.twitter.com/qGx6JW4GYq
— Washington Track & Field (@UWTrack) February 6, 2023
The women's team had several key new marks to climb up ten spots, starting with the Collegiate Record from the distance medley relay, now pulling in the most team rankings points as the NCAA leader. Sophie O'Sullivan, Marlena Preigh, Carley Thomas and Anna Gibson ran a 10:46.62 in Boston to break the collegiate mark by two seconds.
Thomas and Preigh also improved their national standing in the 800-meters, with Thomas setting the School Record and going to No. 3 in the NCAA this season, and Preigh running the second-fastest time and going to No. 12. Another new top-five mark came from Ida Eikeng, as she went to No. 4 in the NCAA this season by breaking the UW record in the pentathlon with 4,198 points.
In the newest Event Group Rankings, which rank teams in separate events based on an average of their four best individuals in that event, the Husky men continue to own the men's mile, as UW remains ranked 1-2-3-4 nationally in the mile thanks to Joe Waskom, Brian Fay, Nathan Green, and Kieran Lumb.
The women's team has four event groups ranked in the top-four. The women have the No. 1-ranked event group in the 800-meters (Carley Thomas, Marlena Preigh, Anna Gibson, Chloe Foerster); the No. 1-ranked mile group (Gibson, Thomas, Sophie O'Sullivan, Madison Heisterman), the No. 4 3,000-meters group (O'Sullivan, Gibson, Andrea Markezich, Naomi Smith), and the No. 3-ranked pole vault squad (Sara Borton, Nastassja Campbell, Sarah Ferguson, Ashleigh Helms).
The Huskies will host the Husky Classic this coming Friday and Saturday in the Dempsey.