Jan. 20, 2010

The Great West Conference announced this past Tuesday the Indoor Preseason Polls for the 2010 season with the women's team tied for third and the men's team ranked fourth in a field of eight.

The women's team received 39 points to tie them with Houston Baptist for third place. Utah Valley took first place by one vote with 60 points.

"We are very pleased that the conference coaches think highly of our women's team," said head coach Dave Hartman.

"We will have to rely on several newcomers to the program to put us in the top half of the conference, but we look forward to the challenge. We are excited about getting the season started."

South Dakota finished in a close second with 59 points, while North Dakota (35 points), Seattle (25 points), Chicago State (16 points), and NJIT (15 points) round out the remaining eight in the field.

On the men's side, UTPA ranked fourth as they tallied 42 points. The Utah Valley men took first place with 60 points, followed by South Dakota with 58 points.

"We do lack some depth on the team, but we hope with some of our individual standouts and the support of a lot of the newcomers, we can be in the top half of the conference, along with the women," said Hartman.

Houston Baptist took the third slot with 43 points, North Dakota finished in fifth with 31 points, Seattle in sixth with 26 points, Chicago State in seventh with 17 points, and NJIT in eighth with 10 points.

The 2010 Great West Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships will take place on Feb. 26-27 when South Dakota hosts the event at the DakotaDome in Vermillion, SD.

UTPA Sports Information