CMS Men's Track and Field Ranked No. 22 Nationally in Indoor Poll

CLAREMONT, Calif. - On the strength of the performance of distance runners Henry Pick and Miles Christensen in December, the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps men's track and field team is currently ranked No. 22 in the nation in the latest USTFCCCA Division III Indoor Track and Field poll.

The CMS women's track and field team, which also saw a strong performance from Meredith Bloss and Laura Zimmer in December, also is currently ranked at No. 44 in the nation. 

Pick and Christensen recorded two of the top 20 times in NCAA Division III history at the Boston University Season Opener on Dec. 4. Pick earned a time of 8:11.26 at the event to finish third in his heat amongst a field of largely Division I runners. He was coming almost straight off a spectacular performance at the cross country nationals two weeks prior, which saw him finish in 23:40.4, placing third at the meet and shattering the CMS record for an 8K race by almost 40 seconds. 

Christensen, meanwhile, wasn't far off the pace, crossing the line in 8:13.57 to move into 16th place in Division III history. The last time he was able to compete in track and field, Christensen earned the championship in the 5000 meters at the 2019 SCIAC Championships at home at the Burns Track Complex. 

The Athenas also sent two competitors to the Boston University Season Opener, as Laura Zimmer won her heat in the mile with a time of 5:10.49. Meredith Bloss, meanwhile, ran in the 5000 and came in just under 17 minutes, crossing in 16:59.41, which would place fifth among the list of top times at CMS in outdoor track and field season. 

Bloss and Zimmer were two of the seven runners for the CMS women's cross country team who competed at the NCAA Championships and earned a national runner-up finish. Bloss earned All-America honors with a 13th place finish to lead the Athenas within just two points of the national championship, as Johns Hopkins barely held on for a 130-132 win in one of the closest national championships in cross country history. 

CMS will begin its spring semester schedule this weekend, when it hosts its annual OIDFE Challenge Meet at Burns Track Complex, featuring indoor distances on an outdoor track. 

To view the complete polls, head to the following link:

USTFCCCA Division III Indoor Track and Field Poll