Lady'Backs move up in rankings

FAYETTEVILLE – The University of Arkansas Lady Razorback track and field team has been steadily moving up the rankings all season and heading into the Southeastern Conference Championships Arkansas is among the top 25 in all three of the indoor track and field rankings.

In the Trackshark.com rankings, the Lady Razorbacks are fourth in the nation behind LSU, Miami (Fla.), Florida. Holding steady with 56 points, the Lady’Backs are the third SEC team in the top four and are one of five conference schools in the top 10 and nine that are ranked. The trackshark.com rankings take into account a school’s conference affiliation and Trackwire.com ranking when determining its standings.

“I think that you have to weigh each of the polls with a grain of salt,” Arkansas head coach Lance Harter said. “It’s nice to be respected by our peers but we couldn’t draw a single vote four weeks ago and now they have taken notice. That is a tribute to the kids and the hard work that they have put in. No matter what anyone thinks, the Southeastern Conference speaks for itself as the most powerful track conference in the nation and that is backed up by each of the polls.”

In the Trackwire.com ranking, the Lady Razorbacks made their debut in week six at 18th and dropped slightly to 21st in week seven. Trackwire.com looks at a team’s potential scoring at the NCAA Championships and records their top 25 based on those potential finishes. Trackwire.com also puts out a weekly list of the top 12 athletes in each event and this week has four individuals and a relay ranked among the nation’s elite. Senior Aneita Denton, who currently holds the fastest time in the nation in the 800-meter run, is ranked third in the event. Fellow seniors Brandy Blackwood, Kasia Williams and Erica Sigmont rank sixth, 10th and 11th, respectively in the weight throw, 60-meter hurdles and mile. The Lady Razorback distance medley relay is placed to finish sixth.

The final set of collegiate track and field rankings is the US Track Coaches Association’s power rankings which factor the top two athletes at every event and gives each a score. In the power rankings Arkansas is sixth in the land with 288.91 points. Leading the way in the power rankings is Nebraska followed by Pittsburgh, Penn State, Florida and Arizona State.

The Lady Razorbacks are in action this weekend when they take on some of the best track athletes in the nation at the Southeastern Conference Championships, Friday, Feb. 27, through Sunday, Feb. 29 at the Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville.