Posted: April 3, 2007

Athletics: Arkansas Track Opens Outdoor Season with No. 11 Ranking

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Arkansas track and field is ranked No. 11 by Trackwire 25, it was announced on Tuesday. Five Razorbacks were also tabbed in the Trackwire Dandy Dozen. 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. <>The Razorbacks will travel as a team to Texas Relays this weekend for their outdoor debut. Last weekend, Scott MacPherson and Peter Kosgei competed in the 10K at the Stanford Invitational. MacPherson was under the NCAA provisional mark with his time of 29:16.74 while Kosgei did not finish the race because of cramping. Defending NCAA Outdoor Champion Florida State is seated at the top of the list while USC and Auburn round out the top three, respectively. Among the SEC schools, Tennessee is seated at No. 6, LSU at No. 7, Florida is 17th, Ole Miss is 22nd while Georgia is No. 25. Also released on Tuesday are the Dandy Dozen rankings. Five Razorbacks are ranked in four events. 10-time All-American Peter Kosgei leads the ranks in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. Colin Costello, a 2007 NCAA Indoor national qualifier, is ranked No. 11 in the 1,500 meters. In the field events, the 2007 NCAA Indoor bronze medallist Alain Bailey opens his collegiate outdoor career with a ranking of No. 3 in the long jump. In the triple jump, All-American and SEC Indoor Champion Nkosinza Balumbu is ranked third in the triple jump with teammate All-American Mychael Stewart in the eighth spot. The Cardinal and White will return begin competition at Texas Relays, Wed., April 4. For complete details of Texas Relays, visit www.texassports.com For complete a complete listing of the Trackwire 25, visit www.trackshark.com.