Dillard’s Men’s Track & Field Program Is Ranked No. 17 Nationally in the Ninth USTFCCCA National Poll

New Orleans  – The Dillard men's track & field program is ranked at No. 17 nationally in the ninth released 2022 USTFCCCA Coaches' Poll on May 24, the organization announced recently. The team moved up a total of four spots from last week's national ranking.

Dillard received a total of 138.68 points in the poll. The program was ranked No. 5 in the first national poll, No. 7 in the second released poll, No. 8 for each of the next two weeks and then fell six spots to No. 14 in the fifth week despite winning their second consecutive GCAC Outdoor Championship on Saturday, April 23. The program fell another four spots in the sixth week to rank No. 18 nationally. Last week the program again dropped four spots to No. 22 despite not having competed as a squad since April 23 and being one of the few NAIA programs to garner an invitation to compete at the prestigious Penn Relays on April 29. In the eighth week the program moved up one spot to No. 21 on May 17. This week DU skyrocketed up to 17.  Dillard is the only school from the state of Louisiana and in the GCAC to be ranked in the top-25 poll. Last week, the Dillard men were ranked No. 11 in the USTFCCCA South Region Poll.

Dillard is sending a total of nine student-athletes to the 2022 NAIA Outdoor Track and Field Championships from May 25-27.

The 4x100m relay team of Cody Branch, Jamaal Morris Jr. Kaleb McClendon, Willie McCaulley and James Ray Pennington III will start the competition for the men at 4:10 p.m. with the preliminaries of their event on Wednesday, May 25. The finals for the event will be on at 2:50 p.m. on Friday, May 27. The group has the second-fastest time in the country with their school-record mark of 40.12. Dillard is the reigning national champion in the 4x100m as the group of Branch, McClendon, McCaulley and Pennington won DU first-ever national championship last season.

The 200m preliminaries are also on the opening day, May 25, starting at 6:15 p.m. with Branch, Morris and McClendon all qualifying. Morris is placed fourth nationally in the event (20.88), Branch is 10th (21.09) and McClendon is 21st (21.28). The finals are set for Friday, May 27, at 5:20 p.m.

Branch and Morris run the trials of the 100m at 4:40 p.m. on Thursday, May 26, at 4:40 p.m. The finals are set for Friday, May 27, at 4 p.m. Branch is ranked third nationally in the event (10.33), while Morris is seventh (10.40).

Branch and Morris run the trials of the 400m on Thursday, May 27, at 5:20 p.m. The finals are set for Friday, May 27, at 4:40 p.m. Branch is ranked 18th nationally (47.77) and Morris is 25th (48.11).

The preliminaries of the 4x400 relays run by Branch, Morris, Joshun Noel, Christopher Watson and Benjamin Todd is set for Thursday, May 26, at 9:45 p.m. The finals for the event are set for Friday, May 27, at 6:25 p.m. Dillard ranks 14th nationally with their time of 3:15.31. 

Julian Williams leaps in the triple jump on Friday, May 27, at 1:30 p.m. Williams ranks 23rd nationally with his jump of 14.50m.

Dillard won the 2022 GCAC Outdoor Track & Field Championship for the fourth time since 2010 on Saturday, April 23. The program had 15 event victories and 40 All-GCAC selections over the course of the two-days of competition. The program finished that up by seeing Jamaal Morris Jr. placing 17th in the 100m at the Penn Relays on April 29. DU saw their 4x100 relay team of Jamaal Morris Jr., Cody Branch, Kaleb McClendon and Willie McCaulley) get the invitation to the meet, but were not able to compete due to injury. The program finished second overall at the Carey Last Chance Meet on May 13. The program had four top-three finishes, four season bests and two event victories during the competition (the 4x100 relay team and Julian Williams in the triple jump).

The poll was voted on by a panel of head coaches representing each of the conferences around the country.

2022 USTFCCCA National Men's Track & Field TFRI (Track & Field Rating Index) Poll – No. 9 (5/24/22)

Next, Dillard's men's program is off to compete at the 2022 NAIA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Gulf Shores, Alabama at Mickey Blackwell Stadium from May 25-27.
           
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