From Washington University Athletics
The Washington University in St. Louis women's cross country and track & field program was named the 2017-18 Deb Vercauteren NCAA Division III Women's Program of the Year, as announced by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
The WashU women's program totaled 11 points to finish five ahead of second place Williams College. The WashU women had trophy finishes in all three seasons, placing third in cross country, tied for fourth at the indoor nationals and third during the outdoor nationals last weekend. The Bears won the honor for the third consecutive year.
WashU has finished in the top-three of the Deb Vercauteren award five of 10 times in the awards existence. The Bears previously finished second in 2011-12 and third in 2014-15.
The WashU men finished 13th in the Al Carius Program of the Year award as announced by USTFCCCA. The men had a fifth place finish in cross country, 30th at indoor nationals and 38th at outdoor nationals.
The USTFCCCA Program of the Year Award is bestowed annually to the most outstanding cross country/track & field programs in each of the NCAA's three divisions and for each gender. The award honors the institution that has achieved the most success in each academic year (spanning the cross country, indoor track & field, and outdoor track & field seasons) based on the institution's finish at the NCAA Championships.
In order to be eligible for the award, teams must qualify for each of the NCAA Championships. Scoring is based on the team's finish at each NCAA Championship in cross country, indoor track & field, and outdoor track & field (i.e. 1st = 1 point, 2nd = 2 points, 31st = 31 points) with the lowest total score for all three championships combined determining the award recipient. Ties among schools split points for positions taken.