NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State Athletics Department was all set to host the 2020 Midwest Independent Conference Championship before the meet had to be canceled as the global pandemic began a year ago. Fast forward 12 months and ISU is once again poised to host the 2021 MIC Championship at Redbird Arena on Friday, March 19.
Illinois State will welcome Centenary, Lindenwood, Southeast Missouri State and Texas Woman's University for the annual championship, which will be streamed live on ESPN+. The teams are all closely grouped in the latest Road To Nationals rankings, which should mean a very competitive meet in Normal.
"All five teams are performing well headed into the championship," Illinois State head coach Bob Conkling said. "It's really going to come down to which team hits the most routines and stays consistent throughout the meet. We are certainly ready to compete for a title, but I'm sure every team thinks the same thing. We are very excited to serve as host after last year's meet had to be canceled, and Redbird Arena looks better than ever. So many people in the department have worked so hard to make this a special and memorable experience for the student-athletes, coaches and staffs of each of the schools. We looking forward to what should be an exciting competition."
Illinois State Notes:
•   The Redbirds head into the MIC Championships with the highest team National Qualifying Score (NQS) in the conference at 195.194. ISU is currently ranked No. 43 in the country, just ahead of Lindenwood which comes in at No. 44 overall.
•   ISU has also posted the highest meet score in the conference this season of 195.725, when they came in second place behind No. 25 ranked Central Michigan in a quad meet at Redbird Arena on March 7.Â
Centenary Notes:
•   The Ladies are currently ranked 53rd in the nation in the latest Road To Nationals rankings, and are the highest ranked division III team in the country.
•   Centenary recorded a 193.000 team score last Friday at home versus TWU, their best overall score in a meet since March 8, 2019 when they finished with an even 192.00 in the Rutgers Quad Meet.
Lindenwood Notes:
•   Lindenwood heads into the MIC Championships on a high note, after posting a season-high team score of 195.375 in their meet last Friday.Â
•   That moved the Lions up to No. 44 overall in the country with a team NQS of 48.975, which ranks second in the MIC just behind Illinois State.
Southeast Missouri State Notes:
•   SEMO has posted a team-score of 193 or higher in five competitions in 2021 and concluded the regular-season with four straight meets of 194 or higher.
•   The Redhawks wrapped up the regular-season with a season-best team score of 195.150 on March 12.Â
Texas Woman's Notes:
•   The Pioneers turned in their best performance of the season the last time out against Centenary, with a 49.050 on floor – TWU's highest mark since a quad last season against Arkansas, Centenary, and LSU; and a 49.000 on beam – the highest score in the event for the Pioneers since TWU captured the 2018 USAG National Championship.
•   Freshman Madeline Gose has been one of the most consistent performers for TWU all season, competing in 27 events across nine meets and exceeding a 9.7 score in all but three.Â
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