University of Tennessee Athletics
LADY VOLS LAND NUMBER-ONE RANKING IN TRACKWIRE PRESEASON POLL
January 12, 2005 | Women's Track
Jan. 12, 2005
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- For the first time in program history, the University of Tennessee women's track & field team has been ranked number one in the nation by Trackwire. The Lady Vols learned of editor Gary Verigin's preseason indoor prediction Wednesday in the initial Trackwire Women's 25 of the 2005 campaign.
The Lady Volunteers, who return six All-Americans and a total of 19 letterwinners from last season's fourth-place NCAA Indoor squad and seventh-place NCAA Outdoor team, tallied 59 poll points to garner the number-one position in the first indoor poll of the season. UT is followed in the top five by Southeastern Conference foes LSU (50), Florida (47) and South Carolina (38) as well as Pac-10 school and 2004 NCAA Outdoor champ UCLA (37). LSU, Florida and Tennessee finished one-two-four at the 2004 NCAA Indoor Championships in Fayetteville, Ark.
"My objective is to achieve and maintain academic and athletic excellence at the University of Tennessee," UT Head Coach J.J. Clark said. "Our focus is on being the best team we possibly can. Rankings are something I tend not to focus on, but they are something I am frequently asked to comment about. It is always good to be seen in a positive light, and we'll continue to focus on pursuing and achieving excellence."
The Trackwire 25 projects a hypothetical score for the NCAA meet, factoring in injury reports and other variables supported by information gathered from coaches and NCAA-qualifying competitions across the country. This projection is generated by scoring the Dandy Dozen, a power ranking of the top 12 athletes and relay squads in each NCAA event.
Lady Vols ranked in the preseason Dandy Dozen include senior Nicole Cook (1st, 800 meters), sophomore Tianna Madison (1st, long jump/11th, 60 meters), freshman Cleo Tyson (2nd, 60 meters/5th, 200 meters), freshman Courtney Champion (3rd, 60 meters/7th, 200 meters) and senior Toyin Olupona (4th, 60 meters). Tennessee's distance medley relay (1st) and 4x400m relay (3rd) also garnered a great deal of respect.
Cook is the defending NCAA Indoor 800m champ, Olupona was the 2004 NCAA Indoor runner-up in the 60 meters and Madison was fifth indoors in the long jump a year ago, while the UT DMR was victorious at last year's national indoor meet. Tyson and Champion, meanwhile, are part of a class of newcomers that was ranked as the fifth-best in the nation by Track & Field News.
The Lady Vols resume their indoor slate on Friday and Saturday, as they travel to the Virginia Tech Invitational in Blacksburg.
| Trackwire 25 Preseason Indoor Poll Jan. 11, 2005 | ||
| No. | Team | Pts. |
| 1. | Tennessee | 59 |
| 2. | LSU | 50 |
| 3. | Florida | 47 |
| 4. | South Carolina | 38 |
| 5. | UCLA | 37 |
| 6. | Texas | 32 |
| 7. | Stanford | 31 |
| 8. | Nebraska | 30 |
| 9. | Michigan | 24 |
| 10. | Notre Dame | 20 |
| 11. | Arizona State | 19 |
| 12t. | BYU | 17 |
| 12t. | Kansas State | 17 |
| 14. | Villanova | 16 |
| 15. | North Carolina | 15 |
| 16. | Cal Poly | 14 |
| 17. | Arizona | 12 |
| 18. | Georgia Tech | 10 |
| 19. | North Carolina State | 10 |
| 20t. | Duke | 9 |
| 20t. | Colorado | 9 |
| 20t. | Miami (Fla.) | 9 |
| 20t. | Florida State | 9 |
| 24t. | California | 8 |
| 24t. | Northern Arizona | 8 |
| 24t. | Mississippi | 8 |
| 24t. | Clemson | 8 |
