re: UA Volleyball, Soccer, Track, Tennis, Swim/Diving, Rowing

Alabama Men’s Track and Field Remains No. 2 in Latest Rankings

The Crimson Tide’s latest standing ties the highest in program history when it comes to the Men’s USTFCCCA NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field National Rating Index

The Alabama men's track and field team remains at No. 2 in the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field National Men's Track & Field Rating Index with 274.60 points.

Alabama jumped to No. 10 three weeks ago and was fifth two weeks before moving up to second following a strong showing at the Crimson Tide Invitational. Overall, the Tide has 20 individual and relay performances that are ranked in the top-25 nationally this week.

Texas is at No. 1 with 289.96, just 15 points ahead of the Crimson Tide, while Florida (236.94), LSU (219.77) and Texas A&M (198.89) round out this week's top-five.

Alabama in the National Top-10
* Kipsang's collegiate record in the men's 1,500 meters (3:33.74) is ranked No. 1, while his 800-meter effort (1:47.16) has him sitting 10th
*Tarsis Orogot is fourth in the men's 200 meters after posting a career-best 20.15 last weekend
*Mercy Chelangat is ranked third in the women's 5,000 meters after posting a 15:17.28 earlier this season
*Isaac Odugbesan shattered a 42-year-old school record in the men's shot put with a toss of 20.66 meters, which ranks him third nationally
*Kieran McKeag went 71.53 meters in the men's hammer at the Crimson Tide Invitational to rank fourth nationally
*The men's 4x100-meter relay of Jekovan Rhetta, Tarsis Orogot, Mason Phillips and Demetrius Jackson laid down a blistering 38.86 which ranks eighth nationally
*Victor Kiprop is eighth in the 5,000 meters (13:24.48) and 10th in the men's 10,000 meters (28:15.72)
*Bobby Colantonio Jr.'s 70.39 meters at the Crimson Tide Invitational ranks him 10th nationally in the men's hammer
*Alan de Falchi is 10th in the men's discus after a throw of 60.57 meters earlier this season

Up Next
The Crimson Tide opens the postseason at the SEC Outdoor Championship in Oxford, Miss., May 12-14

Alabama’s Planinsek Advances to NCAA Championships Singles Draw

Filip Planinsek will represent Alabama men's tennis at the NCAA Championships Singles Draw, the NCAA announced Tuesday. The 2022 NCAA singles and doubles competition will be held May 23-28 at the Khan Outdoor Tennis Complex in Champaign, Ill.

Alabama Set To Face UCF In First Round of NCAA Tournament

Alabama women's tennis (15-11) will open the NCAA Tournament on Friday against No. 21 UCF (15-7) at Miami's Neil Schiff Tennis Center. First serve is schedule for 9 a.m. CT between the two teams as the Crimson Tide makes its 17th team appearance at the NCAA Tournament.

The winner between Alabama and UCF will face the winner between No. 9 Miami and Stetson Saturday at 12 p.m. CT.

Former Tide Swimming and Diving Coach Dennis Pursley

Guest Editorial: Five-Time Olympic Coach Dennis Pursley Calls For End Of Transgender Participation in Women’s Sports

Five-time Olympic coach and former USA Swimming National Team Director Dennis Pursley has submitted a guest editorial which addresses the debate concerning transgender participation in the sport. Pursley emailed the commentary to Swimming World, stating that he felt the need to weigh in on the topic, which became a major storyline during the collegiate season.

Specifically, transgender participation made headlines during the 2021-22 season due to Lia Thomas competing as a member of the University of Pennsylvania women’s team, following three years of competition as a member of the university’s men’s program. Thomas went on to capture the NCAA title in the 500-yard freestyle.

Follow Alabama Track & Field at the 2022 SEC Outdoor Championships

The 2022 Southeastern Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championships will be held May 12-14 on the University of Mississippi campus.

Alabama opens competition Thursday at 12 p.m. CT with the women's hammer throw. The Crimson Tide gets Friday underway at 4:30 p.m. CT with the men's long jump, while UA opens Saturday, the final day of competition, at 2:45 p.m. CT with the men's discus.

There are several ways to follow the Alabama men's and women's teams at the championships, including social media at AlabamaTrack on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, as well as on RollTide.com. The meet will also be streamed on the SECNetwork+ via WatchESPN.com and the WatchESPN app, with links listed below. Live results links for all events can also be found via the table below.

(Note: I didn’t copy the table into this post. Click the link at the top of the page to access the table)

For more information, visit Ole Miss' Championship Central page.

Alabama Track and Field Opens Outdoor Postseason Thursday at SEC Championships

The Alabama track and field teams finished up their final practice before the start of the postseason at the Ole Miss Track & Field Complex Wednesday afternoon and is now ready to roll into the 2022 Southeastern Conference Championships in Oxford, Miss.

Alabama is seeded No. 1 heading into the conference championships in six different events, including Eliud Kipsang, the collegiate record holder in the men's 1,500 meters. Kipsang is also one of 10 men on the The Bowerman Watch List, tabbing him as one of the nation's top track and field athletes.

Mercy Chelangat, the defending SEC Champion in both the 5,000-meter and 10,000-meter, is set to defend her titles, starting with Thursday night's 10,000 meter race. Chelangat finished second in the 10,000 meters at last year's NCAA Outdoor Championships and was second at the NCAA Cross Country Championships in the fall.

The championships get underway for the Crimson Tide Thursday at noon with the women's hammer throw at 12 p.m. CT.

Alabama Track and Field Wins Three Gold and Five Medals Overall to Open SEC Outdoor Championships

The Crimson Tide opened the day with a pair of medals in the hammer throw, added a medal in the women’s javelin and closed the night by winning double gold in the 10,000 meters

Alabama closed day one of the 2022 Southeastern Conference Outdoor Championships, being held at the Old Miss Track & Field Complex this week, by sweeping the 10,000 meter titles, after opening the day with a pair of medals in the hammer throw and another in the women's javelin.

Bobby Colantonio Jr., the 2022 NCAA and SEC weight throw champion used a career-best throw of 72.59 to win the Crimson Tide's first SEC title in the men's hammer to open the UA men's championship scoring.

Mercy Chelangat defended her 10,000 meter title from 2021, running a 33:15.66 following a nearly two-hour weather delay. After running with the lead group for the vast majority of the race, Victor Kiprop stepped on the gas over the last two laps to win the men's 10,000 meters by more than four seconds with a time of 29:16.07.

In addition to its gold medalist, the Tide earned a pair of additional top-three finishers, including Kassidy Gallagher (women's hammer) and Samantha Zelden (women's javelin).

Alabama advanced four men and one woman to Saturday's finals in the sprints and hurdles, including Corde Long (men's 400-meter hurdles), Jacob Lamb (men's 800 meters), Amari Brown (women's 200 meters), Demetrius Jackson (men's 200 meters) and Tarsis Orogot (men's 200 meters).

The Crimson Tide men are in first place after day one with 29 points, while the women are in second, one point out of first, with 22 points.

Head Coach Dan Waters Said
"This was a good first day for us on both the men's and women's side of the meet. There was adversity with the weather delay, but I think we handled that pretty well and stayed focused on scoring as many points as we could. There's still a long way to go, but we're off to a good start. We're proud of Bobby, Mercy and Victor for winning titles in the toughest conference in the country. We're also proud of Kassidy and Samantha for making it to the podium and of Hillary (Cheruiyot) and Kieran (McKeag) for scoring important points for us. Now we just have to come back tomorrow and stay after it."