Central men stay firm in national ratings

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA — A multitude of strong individual performances at the American Rivers Conference Championships kept the Central College track & field squads in the national top 25 for another week.
           
Central’s men’s team stayed at No. 21 and the women slipped to No. 23.

Points in the National Team Rating Index are based off placement in the National Descending Order Lists. The higher an athlete sits on the top-50 list, the more points he or she adds to his or her team’s total. These points do not reflect placement or scoring at the NCAA Championships but are to show the individuals and teams that have the best chances at scoring well at said meet.

The Dutch men had nine individual performances that either matched or improved their status on the top-50 lists. The hurdlers headlined those efforts Gunner Meyer (junior, Fairbank, Wapsie Valley HS) moved up to No. 6 in the 110-meter hurdles (14.10 seconds), Grant Miller (junior, Norwalk) moved up to No. 11 in the same race (14.20 seconds) and Kale Hobart (sophomore, Mason City) is No. 15 in the 400-meter hurdles (52.71 seconds). Both Meyer and Hobart set new school records.

Central had four improved marks from its women’s team, most prominently Peyton Steffen (junior, Marion) moved up to No. 4 in the 3,000-meter steeplechase (10 minutes, 33.21 seconds). She is also top 50 in the 1,500 meters (No. 9 – 4:27.48), 5,000 meters (No. 19 – 16:42.09)and 800 meters (No. 30 – 2:11.67). Olivia Bohlen (junior, Belle Plaine) remains No. 3 in the heptathlon (5,045 points).

The University of Wisconsin – La Crosse is No. 1 for the men but fell to No. 2 on the women’s list as Washington University – St. Louis (Mo.) moved into the top spot.

The Dutch will send a select group of athletes to the Augustana Twilight Qualifier this week. The two-day meet starts Wednesday with the majority of competition being held on Thursday.