May 7, 2001
Bulldog Women Finish Second at MIAA Track & Field Championships
The Truman State University women's track and field team brought home conference championships in seven events and a second-place team finish in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association Outdoor Track & Field Championships on Saturday and Sunday in Joplin, Mo. Truman finished 31 points behind champion Emporia State (Kan.), while Pittsburg State (Kan.) was third with 98 points.
The Bulldogs broke five school records, two conference marks and substantially reworked their list of NCAA Division II Automatic and Provisional qualifiers. It marked Truman's third top-three finish in as many years.
As was the case last year, the 'Dogs did much of their damage in the sprints, led by sophomore Jill Lowry (Jefferson City, Mo.), who claimed her first-ever conference crowns by winning the 100- and 200-meter dashes. Lowry's time of 11.89 seconds in the 100 was an NCAA Division II provisional mark and her time of 23.98 seconds in the 200 was not only a provisional, but also a school record. Truman placed runners in three of the top four positions in the 200-meter dash.
Likewise, the 'Dogs dominated in the 400-meter dash, capturing the top three spots. Junior Jamille Curry (Chicago, Ill./Morgan Park), who was second in the 200 meters, won the event with a school-record time of 56.06 seconds and earning a new provisional qualification and her first career individual MIAA title. Junior Kasye Hahn (St. Louis, Mo./Horton-Watkins) was second, also with a provisional qualifying time of 56.45. Freshman Candi Jones (Oskaloosa, Iowa) placed third in 56.84 seconds.
Junior Megan Williams (Columbia, Mo./Hickman) ran away with the 100-meter hurdles championship, the second of her career. Her time of 13.89 seconds in the final was not only a half-second better than second place, it also improved her previous NCAA automatic qualifying mark by five hundredths of a second.
While Williams owned the 100-meter hurdles, the 400-meter intermediate hurdles saw a pair of Truman youngsters, freshmen Jackie McDuffey (Pineville, Mo./McDonald County) and Sara Jessen (Brookfield, Mo.) place second and fourth, respectively. Both set provisional qualifications.
Junior Beth Luebbering (St. Thomas, Mo./Helias) added her seventh career outdoor conference title by winning the 10,000-meter run for the third straight year. It marked the 10th conference championship (indoors and outdoors) for Luebbering, who was also third in the 5,000-meter run. Sophomore Jennifer Tesmer (Harrisonville, Mo.) finished second in the 10,000-meter run and fifth in both the 3,000 and 5,000. Alisha Smyth (Fairbanks, Alaska/Lathrop)'s fourth-place finish in the 10,000 made it three Bulldogs in the top four.
Senior Kristi Morton (Mexico, Mo.) successfully defended her league title in the pole vault with a conference- and school-record vault of 11'-11.75". That mark also bettered Morton's previous provisional mark by four inches.
Junior Karena Singleton (Glenwood, Ill/Homewood-Flossmoor) broke her own school record in the triple jump with a leap of 39'-6", for second place. She also finished fourth in the 200-meter dash.
Truman also won the 4x100- and 4x400-meter relays. The 4x100 team of Curry, Lowry, Singleton and Williams improved their provisional time in winning the race in 47.65 seconds.
Other meet highlights were junior Amy Johnson (Blue Springs, Mo./South) finishing fifth in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, and senior Heidi Shearer (Higginsville, Mo./Holden) earning a fourth-place finish in the hammer.
This Saturday (May 12), Truman will compete in the Emporia State (Kan.) Twilight Qualifier.
The NCAA Division II Championships will be held on May 24-26 in Edwardsville, Ill.
TRUMAN WOMEN'S RESULTS -- MIAA Championships, Joplin, Mo. (May 5-6, 2001) 100 meters 1st, Jill Lowry 11.89 Prelims 1st, Jill Lowry 12.07 200 meters 1st, Jill Lowry 23.98 2nd, Jamille Curry 24.50 4th, Karena Singleton 24.79 7th, Kasye Hahn 25.01 Prelims 1st, Jill Lowry 24.57 4th, Karena Singleton 24.94 5th, Jamille Curry 25.08 6th, Kasye Hahn 25.16 400 meters 1st, Jamille Curry 56.06 2nd, Kasye Hahn 56.45 3rd, Candi Jones 56.84 Prelims 1st, Kasye Hahn 57.31 2nd, Candi Jones 57.77 3rd, Jamille Curry 57.69 800 meters 8th, Jody Shanks 2:21.41 Prelims 5th, Jody Shanks 2:17.73 1,500 meters 4th, Jody Shanks 4:49.81 8th, Brandy Leffler 5:03.21 3,000 meters 5th, Jennifer Tesmer 10:41.44 6th, Beth Luebbering 10:46.72 5,000 meters 3rd, Beth Luebbering 19:00.32 5th, Jennifer Tesmer 19:02.85 8th, Brandy Leffler 19:36.74 10,000 meters 1st, Beth Luebbering 39:14.48 2nd, Jennifer Tesmer 39:23.91 4th, Alisha Smyth 40:42.44 100 meter hurd. 1st, Megan Williams 13.89 6th, Jackie McDuffey 14.85 Prelims 1st, Megan Williams 13.98 7th, Jackie McDuffey 14.98 400-meter hurd. 2nd, Jackie McDuffey 1:01.74 4th, Sara Jessen 1:02.53 Prelims 2nd, Sara Jessen 1:03.30 4th, Jackie McDuffey 1:03.26 3,000m steeple 5th, Amy Johnson 12:10.68 8th, Sonya Yamnitz 12:36.36 4x100 meters 1st, Lowry, Curry, Singleton, Williams 47.65 4x400 meters 1st, Curry, Hahn, Jessen, Jones 3:49.20 Pole Vault 1st, Kristi Morton 11'-11.75" Triple Jump 2nd, Karena Singleton 39'-6" Discus 9th, Becky Kudrna 125'-7" Hammer 4th, Heidi Shearer 147'-3" 8th, Becky Kudrna 138'-8" Heptathlon 4th, Jackie McDuffey 4,246 points Event held on April 29-30 Women's Final Team Standings 1. Emporia State (Kan.) 195 2. Truman 164 3. Pittsburg State (Kan.) 98 4. Central Missouri 73 5. Missouri Southern 68 6. Northwest Missouri 49 7. Missouri-Rolla 28 8. Southwest Baptist 7
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