EOU Track and Field and Crossed Country Ranked 15 in the Nation
By Garrett Christensen on Monday, March 27th, 2023 in More Top Stories Northeastern Oregon News
LA GRANDE – (Release from Eastern Oregon University) With two of three NAIA Championships in the books – cross country and indoor track and field – the U.S. Track and Field and Cross-Country Coaches Association has announced a mid-year update for program of the year awards. Eastern Oregon’s Men’s Cross Country and Track and Field currently sits at No. 15 in the nation.
Thus far the Mounties are the highest ranked team in the Cascade Collegiate Conference sitting in 15th place with a total of 54 program of the year points. A strong showing at the NAIA Cross Country National Championships where they finished 12th and in the Indoor Track and Field National Championships where they finished 39th as team have the Mounties in the running for the award with the spring season still to go.
The USTFCCCA Program of the Year Award honors the institution that has achieved the most success in each academic year (spanning the cross country, indoor track & field and outdoor track & field seasons) based on the institution’s finish at the NAIA Championships. The award, named the Jack Hazen Program of the Year (for men), is named after the former Malone University Coach who led the school on a historic run that included four team titles at the NAIA Cross Country Championships.
In order to be eligible for the award, teams must qualify for each of the NAIA Championships. Scoring is based on the team’s finish at each NAIA Championship in cross country, indoor track & field and outdoor track & field (i.e. 1st = 1 point, 2nd = 2 points … 31st = 31 points) with the lowest total score for all three championships combined determining the award winner. Ties among schools split points for positions taken.
