April 6, 2011
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By Pat Salvas
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - Ranked No. 45 just a week ago, the UCF outdoor track and field team made the jump up 20 spots to land at No. 25 in the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association poll. The improvement was thanks in large part of several record-breaking performances this past weekend at the Florida Relays in Gainesville.
UCF runners broke program records in the 4x100-meter (43.53) and 4x200-meter relays (1:32.81) as well as in the 200 meters at Percy Beard Track. Freshman Aurieyall Scott's 22.98 to claim second place in the 200 meters was a new school record by more than seven-tenths of a second, eclipsing the old mark of 23.70. Scott was rewarded with her first-career Conference USA Women's Outdoor Track & Field Athlete of the Week award as she also ran in both record-breaking relays.
The 4x100-meter relay team's new mark ranks as the third fastest in the nation this season, while Scott's 200 record also ranks as the third best nationally.
Sonnisha Williams helped the Knights with a first-place finish in the long jump for the second time in as many weeks. The sophomore jumper registered a mark of 20-9.25/6.33m to place first in a field of 30.
The Knights earned their first-ever spot in the national indoor rankings this past season and have made their debut in the nation's top 25 just three weeks into the outdoor season. UCF joins SMU (No. 19) as the only two programs from C-USA to make their way into the rankings this week.
The 20-spot improvement was the largest by any team currently in the top 25.
| Rank | School | Points | Last Week |
| 1 | Texas A&M | 344.02 | 1 |
| 2 | LSU | 326.85 | 3 |
| 3 | Oregon | 306.54 | 2 |
| 4 | Oklahoma | 215.66 | 4 |
| 5 | Clemson | 209.01 | 6 |
| 6 | Southern California | 196.88 | 5 |
| 7 | Texas | 184.66 | 7 |
| 8 | Florida State | 158.95 | 8 |
| 9 | Arkansas | 152.25 | 9 |
| 10 | Arizona | 145.75 | 11 |
| 11 | Tennessee | 143.68 | 15 |
| 12 | Auburn | 140.67 | 10 |
| 13 | Texas Tech | 136.74 | 13 |
| 14 | Baylor | 129.96 | 24 |
| 15 | Arizona State | 116.27 | 16 |
| 16 | Stanford | 114.23 | 12 |
| 17 | SMU | 109.69 | 20 |
| 18 | Washington State | 106.69 | 22 |
| 19 | BYU | 102.46 | 17 |
| 20 | Colorado | 98.79 | 21 |
| 21 | Miami (Fla.) | 97.34 | 18 |
| 22 | Penn State | 97.29 | 19 |
| 23 | Southern Illinois | 95.29 | 25 |
| 24 | TCU | 92.09 | 27 |
| 25 | UCF | 84.83 | 45 |
| | |||
| Women's Conference Index Top 10 | |||
| Rank | Conference | Points | Top 25 Teams |
| 1 | Big 12 | 1389.69 | 6 |
| 2 | Pac-10 | 1177.68 | 6 |
| 3 | SEC | 1044.65 | 4 |
| 4 | ACC | 783.86 | 3 |
| 5 | Big Ten | 398.26 | 1 |
| 6 | Conference USA | 346.48 | 2 |
| 7 | Mountain West | 314.71 | 2 |
| 8 | BIG EAST | 266.92 | |
| 9 | Missouri Valley | 170.17 | 1 |
| 10 | Big West | 117.52 | |