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Feb. 23, 2012
NORMAL, Ill. - The Illinois State men's and women's track & field teams head to Cedar Falls, Iowa, this weekend for the 2012 State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships, hosted by Northern Iowa. The meet will start at 9:30 a.m., Saturday and continue Sunday at the UNI-Dome.
Head track & field coach Elvis Forde is ready for his teams to perform well this weekend.
"We are confident heading into this weekend," said Forde. "We expect both teams to compete hard and for the women's team to contend for the title this year. We have been training hard the past two weeks and judging by the workouts, I would have to say we are ready."
WHO TO WATCH FOR
Jensen leads the Valley in the shot put by more than a foot with a mark of 59-08.50 and ranks 26th in the nation in the same event. He is one of two Redbirds to earn MVC Athlete of the Week honors during the indoor season. He holds two of the top-three throws in the Redbird record book, both being set this year. He looks to improve upon his third-place performance a year ago at the conference meet that earned him All-Valley honors.
Top 5 Missouri Valley Conference | Shot Put |
1 |
Curt Jensen |
Illinois State |
59-08.50 |
2
|
J.C. Lambert |
Southern Illinois |
58-04.50 |
3
|
Justin Romero |
Northern Iowa |
57-00.75 |
4
|
Jordan Williams |
Northern Iowa |
55-11.75 |
5 |
Chris Dupree |
Wichita State |
55-05.50 |
Smith recently broke the eight-second mark in the 60-meter hurdles, running to a time of 7.98 at the Boilermaker Invite. He holds two of the top-three times in Illinois State history. He looks to improve upon his sixth-place performance of 8.15, that he ran last year at the conference meet.
Top 5 Missouri Valley Conference | 60-Meter Hurdles |
1 |
Greggmar Swift |
Indiana State |
7.77 |
2
|
Lawson Montgomery |
Wichita state |
7.88 |
3
|
Sebastian Barth |
Northern Iowa |
7.95 |
4
|
Todd McKown |
Wichita State |
7.95 |
5 |
Kendric Smith |
Illinois State |
7.98 |
Smoody is the defending MVC Champion in the 800-meter run and eclipsed his personal-best in the event three weeks ago, finishing with a time of 1:51.09 at the Meyo Invitational. He currently ranks third in the MVC, just half a second behind SIU's Stephen Arvanis. He will also run one of the legs in the men's 4X400-meter relay which looks to improve its season mark.
Top 5 Missouri Valley Conference | 800-Meter Run |
1 |
Stephen Arvanis |
Southern Illinois |
1:50.49 |
2
|
Aaron Stockstell |
Northern Iowa |
1:50.92 |
3
|
Mat Smoody |
Illinois State |
1:51.09 |
4
|
Zach Dahleen |
Southern Illinois |
1:52.12 |
5 |
Jake Wike |
Wichita State |
1:52.26 |
Knight has been a consistent performer in the triple jump, reaching a career-mark of 49-04.50 during the season. This ranks him third in the conference heading into the weekend. Last year, Knight finished third with a mark of 48-08.75, earning All-Valley honors.
Top 5 Missouri Valley Conference | Triple Jump |
1 |
Ernest Rollins |
Indiana State |
51-01.75 |
2
|
Douglas Palacious |
Southern Illinois |
49-10.00 |
3
|
Tyler Knight |
Illinois State |
49-04.50 |
4
|
Maxim Bakana |
Southern Illinois |
48-01.25 |
5 |
Alex Kaster |
Drake |
46-10.75 |
Smith enters the meet ranked third in the weight throw with a mark of 68-10.50 and second in the shot put with a distance of 55-08.25. Last year, she placed second at the conference meet in the shot put and later went on to finish third at the NCAA Division I Championships, earning All-America honors. She currently holds all Illinois State throwing records, with five of the six coming from this season.
Top 5 Missouri Valley Conference | Shot Put |
1 |
Jeneva McCall |
Southern Illinois |
57-03.75 |
2
|
Brittany Smith |
Illinois State |
55-08.25 |
3
|
Felisha Johnson |
Indiana State |
54-07.25 |
4
|
Mary Theisen |
Indiana State |
54-07.25 |
5 |
Kim Fortney |
Southern Illinois |
51-07.75 |
Praught has carried over her cross country success onto the track, reaching new marks in both the mile and 3,000-meter run. In the mile, Praught broke a 28-year-old Illinois State record, running to a time of 4:44.40. One week later, she broke that time, running a 4:41.49 and earning MVC Athlete of the Week accolades for that performance. In the 3,000-meter run, she shattered her previous personal-best, running a 9:35.03. She ranks first in the MVC in the mile and second in the 3,000-meter run.
Top 5 Missouri Valley Conference | Mile |
1 |
Aisha Praught |
Illinois State |
4:41.49 |
2
|
Aliphine Tuliamuk |
Wichita State |
4:51.83 |
3
|
Elise Sigg |
Illinois state |
4:55.81 |
4
|
Terry Phillips |
Missouri State |
4:58.81 |
5 |
Kristen Zillmer |
Illinois State |
4:59.13 |
Sealy is the two-time defending MVC champion in the 400-meter dash. She holds the top-mark in the event this season, running a personal-best and ISU record of 54.79. She holds the top-two spots in the Redbird record books in the 400-meter dash. She is also a part of the 4X400-meter relay team that ranks second in the conference with a time of 3:43.38, which also ranks first in Illinois State history.
Top 5 Missouri Valley Conference | 400-Meter Dash |
1 |
Sade Sealy |
Illinois State |
54.79 |
2
|
Althia Maximilien |
Missouri State |
54.91 |
3
|
Sam Cameron |
Northern Iowa |
55.20 |
4
|
Michaela Brungardt |
Northern Iowa |
55.29 |
5 |
Stacia Weatherford |
Indiana State |
55.85 |
Elise Sigg | 3,000-Meter Run | 5,000-Meter Run
Throughout the season, Sigg has consistently improved her times in the mile, and the 3,000- and 5,000-meter runs. She holds the second-fastest time in the 5,000-meter run in the Valley with a career-best time of 16:46.37. Ranking ahead of her is Aliphine Tuliamuk of Wichita State. Sigg also ranks third in the Valley in the mile with a time of 4:55.81 and third in the 3,000-meter run with a mark of 9:50.57.
Top 5 Missouri Valley Conference | 5,000-Meter Run |
1 |
Aliphine Tuliamuk |
Wichita State |
15:36.53 |
2
|
Elise Sigg |
Illinois State |
16:46.37 |
3
|
Patrober Murindat |
Wichita state |
17:04.01 |
4
|
Erin Edwards |
Missouri State |
17:11.29 |
5 |
Scarla Nero |
Wichita State |
17:13.72 |
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