NEW ORLEANS- For the first time this season, the Central Washington University men and women's track and field teams rank among the top-25 teams in the nation as the weekly NCAA DII rankings were announced Tuesday by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCA). The women's team checked in at No. 13, while the men's team rests in 21st.
 
"It is really great to have some strong performances early in our outdoor season," CWU head coach Kevin Adkisson stated. "Our effort has landed us in a highly competitive zone on the national level. It is a great way to start the outdoor season, but it is still early in the season. Our goal is to continue to build on what we have accomplished and add to the depth of our performances. The big initial invitational is going to be happening this weekend, so a lot of the big schools will be in action. The next couple of weeks will really be the teller to see if we will be able to maintain our position. I think we are ready for the challenge and we look forward to maintaining a presence at that upper level."
 
Central Washington currently features six athletes who have recorded provisional qualifying marks for the NCAA Outdoor Championships in their respective events. Senior Kodiak Landis holds the nation's top score of 7,098 points in the decathlon, which he posted to capture the event title at the Sam Adams Classic and earn GNAC Field Athlete of the Week recognition. Landis' performance is also a CWU school record. Braydon Maier, who was recently named the GNAC Male Freshman of the Year after capturing the heptathlon event title at the GNAC Indoor Championships, currently rests in ninth place in the decathlon with a season-best mark of 6,562 points. Junior Michael Forster rounds out the list of male competitors and ranks 10th in the decathlon (6,491 points).
 
The No. 13 Central Washington women's team includes three athletes who rank in the top-10 nationally in their respective events. In the 400-meter hurdles, Ali Anderson ranks fourth after recording a season-best time of 1:00.95 at the EOU Team Challenge. CWU features one pole vaulter, sophomore Halle Irvine, who cleared a sixth best height of 12 feet a couple weeks ago. Senior HarLee Ortega earned the women's GNAC Field Athlete of the Week for her victory in the heptathlon with a school-record score of 4,875 points at the Sam Adams Classic. Also a provisional qualifying mark for the NCAA Championships, the score is fourth best in Division II this season. Ortega won two of the discipline's seven events, which included a GNAC-leading leap of 18 feet, 5.25 inches, in the long jump.
 
For the complete national poll, click here.
 
The Wildcats will stay relatively close to home this week as they travel to Tacoma, Wash. this Saturday (March 31) for the UPS Shotwell Invitational.
 
Check back to WildcatSports.com following the meet for a full recap and results.
 
-CWU-