Men No. 10, women No. 20 in first indoor rating

MILLIGAN COLLEGE, Tenn. (Jan. 30, 2020) – A successful fall cross-country campaign has transitioned nicely into a successful winter indoor campaign for Milligan College's cross country and track & field program. After the first NAIA Men's and Women's Indoor Track & Field National Rating Indexes of the season, the Buffs rank No. 10 on the men's side and No. 20 on the women's.

Accompanying the men's top 10 team ranking are five top 10 individual rankings. Sophomore Rasheem Brown is No. 1 in the 60 meter hurdles with a 7.93, junior Tim Thacker is No. 3 in both the 1k (2:31.32) and mile (4:18.86), the men's distance medley relay is No. 4 (10:23.40) and Tons Ferguson ranks No.  9 in the triple jump (14.40m).

On the women's side, the Buffs have 11 marks that match their top 20 status. Among them, sophomores Bekah Owen and Avery DeWolf are both inside the top 15 in the 3k and 5k. Owen also represents Milligan on the No. 5-ranked distance medley relay team.

"The national scene continues to get more and more competitive, and our conference has exploded in the last 2-3 years," Head Coach Chris Layne said. "For us to see a little more consistent exposure in the national ratings means we are moving in the right direction, but we still have work to do if we are going to get where we want to be. The line is so fine at the top, so we'll need to keep our focus on the details if we are to build on where we stand right now."

Through four meets of the schedule, the Buffs already have 10 national qualifying times, including three from Thacker and two apiece from Owen and DeWolf.

Thacker is a qualifier in the 1k, mile and men's distance medley relay, earning the latter two from last weekend's Roanoke College's Finn Pincus Invitational. Thacker previously notched a qualifier in the 1k at the Keydet Invitational at Virginia Military Institute. Owen and Dewolf both earned their national qualifiers in the 5k at the Montreat Indoor Kickoff and the 3k at the Keydet Invitational.

Joining Thacker as national qualifiers on the men's side were the other three legs of the DMR, Nathan Baker, Ronan Philippot and Alex Windham, as well as Brown, a two-time national champion who qualified in the 60 meter hurdles.

Amy Ferguson and Gabrielle Mardis join Owen and DeWolf on the women's side, qualifying in the 5k.

The Buffs compete locally again this week, as they head to Johnson City for a two-day meet at ETSU Friday and Saturday. It is one of three meets left on the indoor schedule prior to the AAC Championships (Feb. 20-21) and NAIA Championships (March 5-7).