FULL RELEASE (PDF)
OGDEN, Utah (January 18, 2017) - Preseason polls tend to be a “what have you done for me lately?” type of thing. In the past year, the Northern Arizona program has taken that idea to another level. The NAU men were a unanimous favorite while the Sacramento State women were also picked first in the 2017 Big Sky Indoor Track & Field coaches’ preseason polls.
Between the most recent outdoor track & field, cross country and now indoor polls, the Lumberjack men have received every single one of the possible 36 first-place votes. Southern Utah was a runner-up with 119 points, Sacramento State was third with 115 and Montana State grabbed 95 points for fourth. Idaho State (84) and Weber State (82) rounded out the top six.
NAU has gained just about as much momentum as a program can potentially reach, headed by a distance program that won the school’s first Division I national title this past fall in cross country. In track & field, the ‘Jacks have won five straight indoor titles and seven of the last eight as well as the past five outdoor championships. NAU will have a new face at the helm, as Mike Smith takes over the program after 27-time Big Sky Coach of the Year Eric Heins retired after guiding the Lumberjacks to a national championship in the fall.
The Hornet women picked up eight first-place votes and 135 out of a possible 144 points in the polls. Defending outdoor champion NAU earned three No. 1 nods and 119 points, while Weber State grabbed the lone remaining first-place vote in third with 115 points. Eastern Washington was close behind in fourth with 113 points, while North Dakota (96) and Montana (83) rounded out the top six.
Sac State defended its indoor title last season, and has earned six of the last nine Big Sky championships indoors and seven of the past nine outdoors.
NAU is coming off of two consecutive Big Sky sweeps, earning its second sweep in three years outdoors and taking both titles in cross country. The Lumberjacks are the most recent program to win both titles indoors, doing so in 2014 in Pocatello, Idaho. Sac State last achieved a sweep in 2011, also in Pocatello.
The 2017 Big Sky Indoor Track & Field Championships will be hosted by Idaho State University on Feb. 23-25 in Pocatello, Idaho.
| 2017 Big Sky Conference Men's Preseason Indoor Track & Field Polls |
| Rank. School |
Points (First-Place Votes) |
| 1. Northern Arizona |
144 (12) |
| 2. Southern Utah |
119 |
| 3. Sacramento State |
115 |
| 4. Montana State |
95 |
| 5. Idaho State |
84 |
| 6. Weber State |
82 |
| 7. Montana |
76 |
| 8. Eastern Washington |
68 |
| 9. Idaho |
67 |
| 10. Portland State |
33 |
| 11. North Dakota |
29 |
| 12. Northern Colorado |
24 |
| 2017 Big Sky Conference Women's Preseason Indoor Track & Field Polls |
| Rank. School |
Points (First-Place Votes) |
| 1. Sacramento State |
135 (8) |
| 2. Northern Arizona |
119 (3) |
| 3. Weber State |
115 (1) |
| 4. Eastern Washington |
113 |
| 5. North Dakota |
96 |
| 6. Montana |
83 |
| 7. Portland State |
81 |
| 8. Montana State |
63 |
| 9. Northern Colorado |
44 |
| 10. Idaho |
37 |
| 11. Idaho State |
31 |
| 12. Southern Utah |
19 |