Women's Track and Field Second in Terry Crawford Program of Year Standings
Tuesday, June 15, 2010 | Track and Field
On the heels of one of its most successful seasons in program history, the Florida women's track and field program placed second overall in the Terry Crawford Program of the Year standings, as announced by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association on Tuesday afternoon.
The Terry Crawford Women's Program of the Year Award is awarded annually to the most outstanding NCAA Division I women's cross country/track & field program. The 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 NCAA Division I Championships.
In order to be eligible for the award, teams must qualify for each of the NCAA Championships. Scoring is based on the team's finish at each NCAA Division I 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 recipient. Ties among schools split points for positions taken.
It marked the second top-five finish for the Gator women's program in as many years. Florida finished fifth in 2009 before its second-place finish in 2010. Oregon captured the Terry Crawford Program of the Year honor with 12 total points, while Penn State was third with 31 points.
For the second consecutive year, Florida was the highest-finishing Southeastern Conference program in the award standings.
The Gators are coming off a third-place finish at the 2010 NCAA Outdoor Championships in Eugene, Ore., this past weekend. It was the third consecutive top-10 finish for the Florida women, but the highest outdoor placing since a program-best second in 1992. The Gators also picked up individual national championships from sophomore middle-distance runner Charlotte Browning (1,500m), senior thrower Evelien Dekkers (javelin) and senior thrower Mariam Kevkhishvili (shot put). Head Coach Mike Holloway was the 2010 USTFCCCA South Region Women's Outdoor Head Coach of the Year.
The Gators were fourth at the NCAA Indoor Championships in Fayetteville, Ark., this past March, marking the first top-five indoor national finish for the women since placing second in 2005. Browning (mile) and Kevkhishvili (shot put) each earned national championships. Holloway was the 2010 USTFCCCA South Region Women's Indoor Head Coach of the Year and the 2010 SEC Indoor Women's Head Coach of the Year.
The Florida cross country team finished a program-record seventh at the NCAA Championships in Terre Haute, Ind., this past November, after winning the SEC Championship and the South Region Championship.
For all of the latest information on Florida track and field, please log on to www.GatorZone.com/trackfield or, for up-to-the-minute updates, follow the team's Twitter page @GZTrackField or www.twitter.com/GZTrackField.
2010 TERRY CRAWFORD PROGRAM OF THE YEAR STANDINGS
1. Oregon - 12
2. Florida - 14
3. Penn State - 31
4. Florida State - 31.5
5. West Virginia - 33.5
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