Florida senior Garrett Fox competes during Day 1 of the Razorback Invitational. (Photo by Jordan Perez/Florida Gators Galleries.)

Florida Track and Field Vaults Up Rankings After Razorback Breakthrough

Championship season is knocking on the door, and Florida track and field is answering with momentum. The response: 11 all-time top-10 performances at the Razorback Invitational last weekend and a rise up the national and regional rankings three days later.

On Tuesday, the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) released its Week Two 2026 NCAA Division I Coaches Poll.

Florida checked in at No. 13 in the women’s rankings and No. 12 on the men’s side. The orange and blue also held top-three spots in the South Region.

The women made their statement at the Razorback Invitational, posting five personal bests and six top-10 marks in program history, while vaulting 14 spots in the national rankings to No. 13 after opening the season at No. 27.

Sophomore Abigail Elmore competes in the women’s pentathlon high jump during Day 1 of the Razorback Invitational. (Photo by Jordan Perez/Florida Gators Galleries.)

One of those performances came on Day 1, when sophomore Abigail Elmore made her career debut in the pentathlon and recorded two personal bests. Elmore clocked a 9.34 in the 60-meter hurdles and cleared 1.63 meters in the high jump, placing 14th and 11th in the respective events.

The strong showing continued into Day 2, when three Gators recorded personal bests. One of them was sophomore Ashley Fitzgerald, who clocked a personal-best 9:38.87 in the 3,000 meters during the morning session to finish in the top five.

John Luke Witte won the men’s weight throw with a first-place mark of 20.97m at the Razorback Invitational. (Photo by Jordan Perez/Florida Gators Galleries.)

Week Two brought an even larger jump for the men. The team skyrocketed 66 spots from No. 78 nationally in Week One to No. 12, posting five top-10 marks in program history and setting a school record in the 3,000 meters.

Responsible for shattering the 34-year-old school record was freshman Kelvin Cheruiyot, who broke the 3,000-meter school mark by nearly 11 seconds with a time of 7:47.45. He also holds the program record in the 5,000 meters, marking the second school record of his career.

The movement didn’t stop at the national level. Both teams opened Week One ranked No. 8 in the South Region, but by Week Two, the women climbed to No. 3 out of 40 teams while the men moved one step higher to No. 2 among 30.

From Feb. 13–14, Florida returns to the Natural State for the second of three trips this indoor season, competing at the Tyson Invitational in Fayetteville, Arkansas. At the same time, another group of Gators will split off and head north to Boston for the BU Hemery Valentine Invitational.

Category: Gator Sports, Gators Track and Field, NCAA, SEC