LANCASTER, Pa. – The Ursinus College Women's Track and Field team was tied for fourth in the Centennial Conference preseason poll, announced by the conference on Wednesday.

Leading the way was 10-time defending champion Johns Hopkins who received nine of the 10 possible first-place votes in the poll to tally 81 total points. Dickinson came in second in the preseason vote among the Centennial coaches with 70 points and earned the final first-place vote. Swarthmore slotted in third in the poll with 58 points and was followed by Ursinus and Haverford with 56 points apiece.

Franklin & Marshall placed sixth in the poll with 34 points while Gettysburg was posted in seventh place with 32 points. Muhlenberg in eighth with 27 points, Bryn Mawr in ninth with 26 points, and McDaniel in 10^th with 10 points rounded out the poll.

The Centennial Conference women's indoor track & field teams return to competition this winter after a year-long hiatus due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Centennial indoor teams last competed at the 2020 CC Championship, just before the pandemic forced the cancellation of the NCAA Championship. This year, Ursinus will be hosting the Centennial Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships at the Floy Lewis Bake Center on February 26^th and 27^th.

Ursinus finished fourth at the 2020 Centennial Indoor Championships which was the highest finish for the team since 2013. The Bears won their second-straight gold medal in the 4x200 meter relay during the championships. Among the key returnees for the Bears are junior Rachel Conhoff who finished fourth in the mile at the last Centennial indoor championships in 2020. Senior Kate Hunt also looks to build off her strong 2019-20 season after winning goal in the 4x200 relay, finishing fourth in the 60-meter dash, and fifth 200 meter dash.

The Bears will open their season on Friday, December 10^th as they will host the Bow Tie Invitational beginning at 4 p.m.