The Grand Canyon University men's and women's track and field teams both maintained their spot as the fourth-ranked team nationally in the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) poll.
Both teams also remain atop the West Region as they have for the entire indoor season.
The squads completed the indoor portion of the regular season last week at the NAU Tune-Up in Flagstaff, Ariz. GCU will next be in action when they head to Birmingham, Ala., on March 8-9 for the NCAA Division II Indoor Track and Field National Championship. The men will head into the meet as the defending champions after claiming the title in Minnesota in 2012.
Dario Horvat and
Lance Parker both own automatic marks in the men's 60-meter dash with the second and fourth-fastest times in the country, respectively.
Shavine Hodges punched her ticket to the championship with an automatic mark in the women's 60-meter dash with the third-fastest mark in the nation. The women's 4x400-meter relay team of Hodges,
Jennifer Dowty and
Petra Fanty also secured their place in the finals.
Amber Yingling has the sixth-best mark and automatic qualifier in the triple-jump.