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Now in her 14th year as head women's track and field and cross country coach, Patty Vavra has seen several Lions achieve national recognition for their efforts. She led Southern to the MIAA Cross Country Championship in 1998, 2006 and 2007, as well as the conference indoor track & field title in 2004 and an NCAA Regional Title in Cross Country this year. This past year, Vavra won her third MIAA Cross Country title, second in a row, as sophomore Kimi Shank finished second, and a total of four runners earned All-MIAA status. For her efforts, Vavra was named the MIAA Women's Cross Country Coach of the Year for the second year in a row and was named the Regional Coach of the Year. She had four runners named All-Region after the team won the school's first ever NCAA Regional title and went on to finish 13th at the NCAA National Meet that Southern hosted. Her team was ranked first in the South Central Region for most of the season and finished the year ranked 13th nationally. During her tenure, Vavra has coached three cross country All-Americans, twelve cross country All-Region performers, and two MIAA cross country champions. She has also coached one track & field national champion and 11 All-Americans. Under Vavra, Missouri Southern's track and cross country athletes have also had their share of success in the classroom, as more than 30 have earned Academic All-MIAA recognition, and six have been named to Academic All-District and All-America teams. In 2004, Vavra's indoor squad captured the school's first ever MIAA indoor championship and, for her efforts, she was named South Central Region Indoor Coach of the Year and MIAA Indoor Coach of the Year. After leading the cross country squad to the '98 championship, Vavra was named 1998 MIAA Women's Cross Country Coach of the Year. Vavra's 2003 women's cross country squad turned in one of the best seasons in school history, finishing second at the MIAA Championships and second in the South Central Region en route to the team's first-ever national championships appearance. Vavra spent 14 years as boys and girls cross country and girls track coach at Carthage (Mo.) High School. Southern alumni and friends also remember Vavra from her days as a Southern student-athlete, as she was all-conference in basketball and in track, where she competed in the 100- and 200-meter dashes and hurdles. A 1993 inductee into the Missouri Southern Athletics Hall of Fame, Vavra graduated cum laude from Missouri Southern in 1980 with a bachelor's degree in physical education and health, and from Pittsburg State University in 1983 with a master's degree in physical education. In addition to her coaching duties, she is also an instructor of kinesiology. |
