CLEVELAND – The UT Arlington men's outdoor track and field program was recognized Monday as the best in the nation in 2021-22 at a D-I institution that does not sponsor football.
 
The Mavericks claimed the NCAA Division I-AAA Athletics Directors Association (DI-AAA ADA) trophy thanks to finishing in a tie for 25th earlier this month at the NCAA Championships in Eugene, Ore.
 
The announcement came earlier on Monday at a luncheon as part of the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and affiliates convention at the Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas.
 
At the NCAA Championships, UTA had three individuals reach the podium – its most since 1996 – as the 13 total points accumulated also was the most for the program in 26 years. Lucas Van Klaveren (4th place, decathlon), Arthur Petersen (6th place, javelin) and Bryson DeBerry (6th place, high jump) led the charge for the Mavs.
 
All told, the aforementioned 25th-place finish tied UTA with Texas A&M and host Oregon, while the Mavs registered ahead of several Power-5 programs, including Mississippi State, Clemson, Nebraska, Auburn, Ohio State, Michigan and others.
 
Petersen, DeBerry and Van Klaveren all went on to earn First Team All-American honors, while Joel Bengtsson – who also reached the NCAA Championships – garnered Second Team All-American accolades in the 110-meter hurdles.
 
It marks the second-straight year that UTA has finished atop a DI-AAA ADA All-Sports Standing in track and field as in 2020-21 the Mavs claimed the honor for men's indoor track and field.
 
ABOUT DIVISION I-AAA ADA
Now in its 20th year, the Division I-AAA Athletics Directors Association's mission is to enhance initiatives common to its Division I-AAA membership (the Division I institutions that do not sponsor football), in particular, aspects related to their flagship basketball programs. For more information on the Division I-AAA ADA, please visit www.div1aaa-ada.com. The Division I-AAA ADA is administered by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA), which is in its 56th year. For more information on NACDA and the 17 professional associations that fall under its umbrella, please visit www.nacda.com.
 
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