March 29, 2006
NORMAL, Ill. -
Illinois State track and field student-athlete, Laura Kennedy, may not have competed during the indoor season, but no one would have known that after her performance in the steeplechase last weekend at the Saluki Spring Classic in Carbondale. Kennedy's performance earned her this week's State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Track Athlete of the Week and also the Prairie Farms Missouri Valley Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Week honors.
Not only did Kennedy reach the regional qualifying standard for the NCAA Mideast Regional in the steeplechase, but she also set a new school record in the event that she personally set last season, while also breaking the track record at Southern Illinois. A native of Wildwood, Mo., Kennedy won the event at the Saluki Spring Classic in 10:38.21. Not only is Kennedy a stand-out on the track, but in the classroom as well. The family and consumer science major carries a 3.40 grade-point average.
With Kennedy's honor, Illinois State has won the Prairie Farms Missouri Valley Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Week three times in the past month, as fellow track athlete, Lian Lucas, won the award on March 1, while softball player Stacy Birk received the award on March 9.
Head track and field coach Elvis Forde may have been surprised at how well Kennedy is running at this point in the season, but is certain that she is deserving of this honor.
"She's very deserving of it," said Forde. "I'm even surprised at how well she's doing so early in the season, since she missed the entire indoor season. To jump right in and show her presence in the conference is very exciting. I think she's going to run very fast throughout the course of the season and it couldn't happen to a more deserving person. Laura might be the quietest athlete we have on the team, but yet the most dedicated to what she's involved in."
Kennedy, along with the Redbird women's first-place team finish last weekend will use their accomplishments as a spring board for the Missouri Relays. The Relays will begin Friday, March 31 at 2 p.m. and wrap up Saturday, with events beginning at 9:30 a.m.
Over 20 colleges and universities will be competing in the 7th Annual Missouri Relays in Columbia, Mo., held at the Audrey J. Walton Track Stadium. However, Forde and his coaching staff don't worry about what other teams will be competing, but instead focus on getting the athletes ready to compete.
"It's always a good test when you go up against Missouri," said Forde. "The competition is going to be good this weekend. I really don't know what other teams are going to be there. We try not to get caught up in the other teams and just focus on getting the athletes prepared to compete at the best of their ability."
Trying to get healthy, Sam Watts, Jeremy Johnson, Brian Glaza as well as Andrea Mosher and Kimberli Smudde will be amongst the Redbirds not competing in the meet this weekend.
"I'm expecting a very good weekend from our kids again," added Forde. "We still have a number of individuals out who are very important to our program, but we have to keep them on the sideline to get them back in the next couple of weeks. They are all an integral part of what we are trying to do here this season."
Forde is happy with the progress the women's program has made this season and expects good things this weekend from Lian Lucas, Anna Lovell, Suzy Turner, and Kennedy again as well as Samantha Springer and Taylor Carbaugh in the throwing events.
On the men's side Forde expects strong performances from Maxwell Mkwezalamba, Bronco Meeks, Alex Straughn and Brian Krantz and Mark Jackson in the throws.
