Razorbacks stay on top of national rankings

FAYETTEVILLE – The University of Arkansas men’s track and field team remains the No. 1 team in the country with Monday’s release of the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) national rankings. The Razorbacks were the top-ranked team in the preseason poll and have held on to the top spot as the team heads into the championship portion of its schedule.

Arkansas is one of five Southeastern Conference teams ranked in this week’s USTFCCCA Top 25. All five teams are positioned inside the top 20. The Razorbacks are joined in this week’s rankings by No. 2 Florida, No. 4 Texas A&M, No. 14 LSU and No. 16 Ole Miss. The SEC continues to sit atop the conference index with a decisive points lead over the Big Ten and Big 12 which are second and third, respectively.

This most recent release from the USTFCCCA is the first of the season based solely on performances from the 2013 campaign. All preseason data has been removed from the equation. The next round of computer rankings will be released Feb. 19, three days before the start of the SEC Indoor Championships which will be hosted by the Razorbacks at the Randal Tyson Track Center.

Individually, the Razorbacks own 11 top-10 national marks on the NCAA Division I Indoor Qualifying List including a No. 1 spot for Tarik Batchelor in the triple jump. In the SEC event rankings, Arkansas owns the top spot in seven events with Batchelor, Patrick Rono at 800 meters, Kemoy Campbell at 3,000 meters, Stanley Kebenei at 5,000 meters, Caleb Cross in the 60-meter hurdles, Kevin Lazas in the heptathlon and the team’s distance-medley relay.

In their last outing, the Razorbacks posted three wins at the Tyson Invitational with personal-best efforts from Rono at 800 meters (1:47.66), Cross in the 60-meter hurdles (7.65) and Anthony May II in the high jump (2.23m/7-3.75). At the Husky Classic in Seattle, Campbell and Kebenei established their conference-leading marks at 3,000 meters and 5,000 meters, respectively.

For more information regarding Razorback track and field or University of Arkansas athletics, please visit ArkansasRazorbacks.com. Fans can also keep up with Arkansas cross country and track and field through the team’s sport-specific RazorbackTF Facebook and Twitter pages.

USTFCCCA Top 10 (Week 4)
1. ARKANSAS
2. Florida
3. Oklahoma State
4. Texas A&M
5. Penn State
6. Texas Tech
7. Nebraska
8. Oregon
9. Texas
10. Indiana