The Central College women’s track and field team climbed two spots to No. 5 in the Division III U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Association outdoor power rankings. The men’s squad dropped to No. 5 after being tabbed at No. 2 last week.
The women’s team broke a school record in the 4×400-meter relay at the Jim Duncan Invitational last weekend with a time of 3 minutes, 50.16 seconds. The mark is almost a full second faster than Central’s previous record (3:51.04) and improves the squad’s earlier NCAA-provisional mark of 3:51.92. Central posted two personal bests with a victory in the 100 meters (12.34 seconds) and a third-place finish in the 10,000 meters (10:04.63).
The men’s squad captured two event titles in the shot put (51-5) and the 4×400 relay (3:18.13). The Dutch also posted a season’s best time in the 800 meters (1:54.38).
Both squads will play host to the Central Open Thursday at Ron and Joyce Schipper Stadium in Pella. Field events are slated for noon with running events beginning at 2 p.m.