Three bring home All-America honors for Southern track & field squads

Three members of the Missouri Southern track & field squads captured All-America honors at the 2003 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Edwardsville, Ill.

Juniors Mary Garrett (Carthage, Mo.) and Magnus Holmstrom (Inga, Finland/Karis Billnas HS) as well as sophomore Mika Alahaivala (Ylivieska, Finland) earned the honor for the Southern squads by finishing in the top eight of their respective events.

Garrett became a three-time outdoor All-America in the 400-meter hurdles as she placed second, her second national runner-up finish in the event in three years. She ran a time of 59.20 seconds in Saturday’s final of the event, beating her school-record time of 59.31 set in the preliminary round on Thursday. Garrett entered the national meet tied with eventual national champion Kinsey Coles, of North Dakota State, for first in the nation with a MSSC-record time of 59.92. Coles defeated Garrett by less than two-tenths of a second (0.15) in the championship race.

Holmstrom collected his second All-America award in the 3000-meter steeplechase by virtue of his seventh-place finish this year. In Saturday’s final, he turned in a time of 9:05.91, a clocking that topped the Southern record he’d set on Thursday (9:08.39). Holmstrom improved by one place on his eighth-place national outdoor finish of 2002.

In the javelin, Alahaivala made good on his second national appearance in the event, bringing home national runner-up accolades with a throw of 218’-2”, a throw that was the second-best mark in Southern history and just four inches short of the eventual national championship-winning mark. Alahaivala came in ranked No. 1 in the nation in the javelin.

Five more Missouri Southern athletes, including three throwers, also competed at the NCAA-II Outdoor Championships.

Arley Smith (Pierce City, Mo.) topped his own school record in the hammer throw with a mark of 185’-7” on Thursday, but it was only good enough to earn him a 10th-place national finish. He also placed 13th in the discus with a mark of 155’-10”.

Senior Jamie Tallman (Neodesha, Kan.) made his first ever national championships appearance and collected a 12th-place showing in the hammer with a mark of 181’.

On the women’s side, sophomore Danee Jones (Clayton, Mo.) doubled up in the hammer and discus. Like Smith, she placed 10th in the hammer (162’-7”) and 13th in the discus (143’-6”).

The Southern men had two pole vaulters involved in the national meet, junior Chris Turner (St. Louis, Mo./Clayton HS) and senior Seth Isringhausen (Nixa, Mo.). Turner cleared 15’-9” for 12th place, while Isringhausen did not place.

In the final team standings, the Lions tied for 22nd place overall with 10 points, while the Lady Lions tied for 33rd with eight points.


	May 27, 2003 Three bring home All-America honors for Southern track & field squads

	Three members of the Missouri Southern track & field squads captured All-America honors at the 2003 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Edwardsville, Ill. Juniors Mary Garrett (Carthage, Mo.) and Magnus Holmstrom (Inga, Finland/Karis Billnas HS) as well as sophomore Mika Alahaivala (Ylivieska, Finland) earned the honor for the Southern squads by finishing in the top eight of their respective events. Garrett became a three-time outdoor All-America in the 400-meter hurdles as she placed second, her second national runner-up finish in the event in three years. She ran a time of 59.20 seconds in Saturday’s final of the event, beating her school-record time of 59.31 set in the preliminary round on Thursday. Garrett entered the national meet tied with eventual national champion Kinsey Coles, of North Dakota State, for first in the nation with a MSSC-record time of 59.92. Coles defeated Garrett by less than two-tenths of a second (0.15) in the championship race. Holmstrom collected his second All-America award in the 3000-meter steeplechase by virtue of his seventh-place finish this year. In Saturday’s final, he turned in a time of 9:05.91, a clocking that topped the Southern record he’d set on Thursday (9:08.39). Holmstrom improved by one place on his eighth-place national outdoor finish of 2002. In the javelin, Alahaivala made good on his second national appearance in the event, bringing home national runner-up accolades with a throw of 218’-2”, a throw that was the second-best mark in Southern history and just four inches short of the eventual national championship-winning mark. Alahaivala came in ranked No. 1 in the nation in the javelin. Five more Missouri Southern athletes, including three throwers, also competed at the NCAA-II Outdoor Championships. Arley Smith (Pierce City, Mo.) topped his own school record in the hammer throw with a mark of 185’-7” on Thursday, but it was only good enough to earn him a 10th-place national finish. He also placed 13th in the discus with a mark of 155’-10”. Senior Jamie Tallman (Neodesha, Kan.) made his first ever national championships appearance and collected a 12th-place showing in the hammer with a mark of 181’. On the women’s side, sophomore Danee Jones (Clayton, Mo.) doubled up in the hammer and discus. Like Smith, she placed 10th in the hammer (162’-7”) and 13th in the discus (143’-6”). The Southern men had two pole vaulters involved in the national meet, junior Chris Turner (St. Louis, Mo./Clayton HS) and senior Seth Isringhausen (Nixa, Mo.). Turner cleared 15’-9” for 12th place, while Isringhausen did not place. In the final team standings, the Lions tied for 22nd place overall with 10 points, while the Lady Lions tied for 33rd with eight points.