A combined 15 Missouri Valley Conference best times were set over the weekend, eight on the men’s side and seven from the women.  UNI’s men led the charge with six new league standards while Missouri State and Illinois State’s women each set two new top marks. Five women’s teams recorded at least one Valley best time.

This week, Valley teams will compete in large meets at the Husker Invitational, Indiana Relays, Meyo Relays and the UNI Invitational. 

MVC Men’s Track Athlete of the Week - Tyler Mulder, UNI, Jr., Orange City, Iowa

Mulder is picking up where he left off in 2007, a season that saw the middle distance specialist earn three All-America citations. Mulder was part of two winning efforts for the Panthers in Saturday’s Wisconsin Elite Invitational, claiming the 800 meters and also running the third leg of UNI’s winning 4x400 relay entry. Mulder clocked in at 1:52.44 in the 800 to win the race by a full two seconds and vault himself to the top of the MVC best list in the event. Mulder owns The Valley’s best time by nearly two seconds.  He also powered the Panthers to a time of 3:15.06 in the 4x400, giving UNI’s quartet the second-fastest time in the MVC this season.

MVC Women’s Track Athlete of the Week - Leander Ernest, Missouri State, Castries, St. Lucia

Ernest turned in a stellar performance for the Bears, placing fourth overall in the 800-meter run in a time of 2:09.98. . Her time in the 800-meter sets a new Missouri Valley Conference leading mark.  In the 4x400-meter relay, Ernest, Yanieka Malcolm, Courtenee Boulard, and Jacqui Lindsey teamed for a time of 3:45. The squad finished 0.14 seconds behind Texas A&M in their section for sixth-place overall. Ernest also registered the conference’s second-best time in the 200-meter clocking a time of 25.14.

MVC Men’s Field Athlete of the Week -Alex Straughn, Illinois State, Sr., St. Philip, Barbados & Ehi Oamen, UNI, So., Hinton, Iowa

Straughn reached a season-best height of 6-10.25 feet to win the high jump, highlighting the Illinois State track and field teams performance Saturday at the Carle/Health Alliance Classic in Champaign, Ill., inside the University of Illinois Armory. Straughn currently shares the top high jump in The Valley (6-10.25) with Northern Iowa’s Ehi Oamen.

Oamen won the high jump at the Wisconsin Elite Invitational on Saturday. Oamen, an MVC champion and NCAA Outdoor Championships qualifier as a freshman, cleared 6-10 1/4 to improve his season-best mark and remain tied for the league lead in the event.

MVC Women’s Field Athlete of the Week - Rachel Jansen, UNI, Sr., Orange City, Iowa

Jansen swept the women’s throws events for the second consecutive week, taking the shot put and weight throw titles at Saturday’s Wisconsin Elite Invitational. Jansen improved upon her Missouri Valley Conference-leading mark in the shot put with a throw of 53-1 3/4, while also bumping her season best in the weight throw to 63-8 3/4, good for second among conference athletes. A three-time All-American, Jansen has provisionally qualified for the NCAA Indoor Championships in both events.

Notables

Men’s Track

Rob Barkulis, Illinois State

Scott Keeney, Indiana State

Chris Allen, Wichita State

Women’s Track

Katie Nowak, Bradley

Anna Lovell, Illinois State

Adriane Wunderlich, Indiana State

Traci Hawley, UNI

Kiara Moore, Wichita State

Men’s Field

Rylen Peterson, Indiana State

Tyler Simmons, Wichita State

Women’s Field

Amanda Albrecht, Illinois State

Lauren Martin, Indiana State

Kate Schaake, Wichita State

BU

Katie Nowak finished third in the mile run Saturday at the Iowa State Open with a time of 5:05.13, the fastest time by a runner in The Valley this season.  Nowak’s effort marked the second consecutive event in which she placed in the top three.  The junior from Avon Lake, Ohio placed third in the 1,000 meter run with a time of 3:03.98 at the Panther Open hosted by UNI Jan. 19.

ILS

Illinois State senior Anna Lovell ran a season-best performance in the 400-meter dash clocking in with a time of 57.78 seconds (4th), Saturday at the Carle/Health Alliance Classic in Champaign, Ill., inside the University of Illinois Armory. The Barbados native also ran the 400 leg of the distance medley relay that placed first with a time of 12:10.62.

Illinois State freshman Amanda Albrecht hit a height of 5-03.25 (5th) in the high jump, Saturday at the Carle/Health Alliance Classic.

Sophomore Rob Barkulis ran a personal-best (4:19.77) dropping eight minutes from his previous best and placed fifth in the mile, he also finished with a time of 2:43.01 in the 1000-meter run (9th) Saturday at the Carle/Health Alliance Classic.

INS

Adriane Wunderlich filled in for standout Erica Moore, who missed the meet with the flu, and did so in impressive fashion in the 800 meter run.  Wunderlich, who normally runs longer distances for the Sycamores, ran a personal-best time of 2:14.19 to take first place in the event.

Lauren Martin had a strong outing in the triple jump, posting a distance of 37’07.75 (11.47m) to earn a first place finish for the Sycamores.  Martin was the only winner in the field for ISU on Saturday.

Scott Keeney ran a personal-best time of 8:29.35 in the 3000 meter run to take first place at the Purdue Triangular on Saturday.  That time was good enough to edge out Purdue’s Matt DeSilva, who ran 8:31.72 in the race for second place.

Rylen Peterson jumped 23’06.00 (7.16m) in the long jump to take third place behind John Berry of SEMO (7.21m) and Nolan Petties of Purdue (7.20m) at the Purdue Triangular.  The jump was a season-best for Peterson and moved him up to second on the conference best list. 

UNI

UNI senior Traci Hawley looked strong in her first effort of the season in the 3,000 meters, winning the event at the Wisconsin Elite Invitational with a time of 10:10.05 seconds. That mark sits third-best on The Valley’s performance list and was the top time by any MVC athlete in the event over the weekend. Hawley, runner-up at the MVC Cross Country Championships in October, also holds the conference’s fifth-fastest time in the women’s mile this season.

WSU

Kiara Moore, a freshman, doubled up in the 200m and 400m races on Friday at the Jayhawk Classic. In the 200, she placed third with a time of 26.14 seconds. Moore also took home a seventh-place finish in the 400, with a time of 58.82. Her time ranks her 10th in the Missouri Valley Conference in the event.

Kate Schaake, a junior, outdistanced her previous career best in the shot put with a throw of 48-5 1/4. The toss placed her fourth at the Jayhawk Classic and second all-time in the Wichita State record books in the indoor shot put. It also places her second in the Missouri Valley Conference in the event this season.

Chris Allen, a sophomore, placed third in the 60m hurdles at the Jayhawk Classic in Lawrence, Kan. The hurdler is currently ranked fourth in the Missouri Valley Conference in the event. It also marked the second week in a row that Allen finished in the top four places in the 60m hurdles.

Tyler Simmons, a sophomore, took the long jump title at the Jayhawk Classic on Friday with a personal-best leap of 23-5 1/2. The jumper broke his previous best by five inches, and moved into the third spot on the Missouri Valley Conference performance list in the event this season.