BATON ROUGE — Both LSU’s men’s and women’s track and field teams will enter this week’s SEC Outdoor Championships ranked among the nation’s top eight, according to the latest polls released Tuesday.
The Tigers held steady at No. 2 in the Coaches’ Poll for a second straight week, while dropping one spot to No. 3 in the Trackwire 25.
The Lady Tigers did not shift in this week’s polls at they remained at No. 7 in the Coaches’ Poll and No. 8 in the Trackwire standings.
On the men’s side, Florida State tops both polls once again this week. The Seminoles hold a slight lead over UTEP and LSU in the Trackwire 25 with 50 points to the Miners’ 49 and the Tigers’ 48. The coaches tab LSU and Texas behind FSU in the top three.
For the women, both polls list Texas at No. 1 followed by Miami, USC, Nebraska and Georgia in the top five.
This week LSU has 11 athletes and all four of its relay teams listed among the nation’s top 12 in their specialty events.
Highlighting the men’s ranks is sophomore Xavier Carter. He is again listed at No. 1 in the 200 meters and No. 2 in the 100 meters.
He also runs on both the Tigers’ 4×100 and 4×400-meter relay team that are also ranked No. 1 in the county.
Also ranked No. 1 this week is Lady Tiger sophomore Kelly Baptiste. She tops the charts in the 100 meters and is also listed at No. 4 in the 200 meters.
In addition, both the Lady Tigers’ 4×100 and 4×400-meter relay teams are ranked third nationally.
The LSU track and field team will have the opportunity to put their rankings to the test this weekend as they return to competition at the SEC Outdoor Championships in Fayetteville, Ark., May 11-14.
TRACKWIRE 25
Men
1. Florida State, 50; 2. UTEP, 49; 3. LSU, 48; 4. Texas, 44; 5. Arizona, 34; 6. Arkansas, 30; 7. Tennessee, 26; t8. Virginia Tech, 23; t8. BYU, 23; 10. Florida, 22; t11. Wisconsin, 21; t11. North Carolina, 21; 13. Oregon, 19; 14. Oral Roberts, 18; t15. Texas Tech, 17; t15. Houston, 17; t17. Nebraska, 16; t17. USC, 16; t19. TCU, 15; t19. Texas A&M, 15; t21. Kansas State, 14; t21. Kansas, 14; t23. Louisville, 13; t23. South Carolina, 13; 25. Boise State, 12.
Women
1. Texas, 63; 2. Miami, 59; 3. USC, 47; t4. Nebraska, 43; t4. Georgia, 43; 6. Arizona State, 35; 7. Auburn, 34; 8. LSU, 31; 9. South Carolina, 29; 10. UCLA, 25; t11. North Carolina, 22; t11. Stanford, 22; 13. Oregon, 20; 14. Florida State, 18; 15. Michigan, 15; 16. Tennessee, 14; 17. Texas A&M, 13; t18. Colorado, 11; t18. Illinois, 11; t20. Villanova, 10; t20. Iowa, 10; t20. Houston, 10; t20. Air Force, 10; t20. Minnesota, 10; t20. Penn State, 10; t20. Brown, 10.
COACHES’ POLL
Men
1. Florida State; 2. LSU; 3. Texas; 4. UTEP; 5. Arkansas; 6. Arizona; 7. Tennessee; 8. Virginia Tech; 9. Florida; 10. BYU; 11. Oregon; 12. North Carolina; 13. Wisconsin; 14. Nebraska; 15. Southern California; 16. Texas Tech; 17. Oral Roberts; 18. Texas A&M; 19. Kansas; 20. Houston
Women
1. Texas; 2. Miami; 3. USC; 4. Nebraska; 5. Georgia; 6. Arizona State; 7. LSU; 8. Auburn; 9. South Carolina; 10. UCLA; 11. Stanford; 12. Oregon; 13. North Carolina; 14. Florida State; 15. Michigan; 16. Tennessee; 17. Texas A&M; 18. Minnesota; 19. Colorado; 20. Illinois.