Women’s track & field signs four Women’s track & field signs four

Head coach Patty Vavra announced today that four high school freshmen have signed with the Missouri Southern State University women’s track & field program.

Abbey Adams (Carthage, Mo.), Amanda Littlefield (Stella, Mo.), Whitney Metcalf (Pawhuska, Okla.) and Jessica Self (Neosho, Mo.) have announced their intentions to participate in women’s track & field with the Lions.

“Overall, I feel we have added some outstanding local talent in Adams, Littlefield and Self,” Vavra said. “Each should make an immediate impact for us next year. And Whitney Metcalf is a multi-time state champion and has posted outstanding times in the sprints and 300m hurdles. She could make an immediate impact in the MIAA as well.

“All of these additions have been multi-sport participants, so I think when they can come in and just concentrate on track & field we could see some big improvements.”

Here is a rundown of the four newest additions for the MSSU track & field program:

Abbey Adams, 5-6, Distance, Carthage, Mo. (College Heights Christian)

A four-sport letter winner for the Cougars, Adams is expected to bolster the distance corps and will also participate in cross country for the first time. She has posted some impressive performances for the Cougars of Dan Lewis. Adams was second at the state Class 1 meet in the 3200-meter run as a sophomore with a 12:15.74 clocking and placed third in the 1600 meters in 5:39.90. As a junior in 2003, she was third at state in the 3200 with a school record time of 12:13.79 and ran on the winning 4x800-meter relay team that finished with time of 9:56.29. She also holds the school 1600-meter run record (5:35.06) and ran on record-setting relay teams in the 4x800 and 4x400.

Adams, the daughter of Randall and Holly Adams, also lettered four years in basketball, three years in volleyball and one year in soccer.

Several of Adams’ cousins have participated in college athletics, including Jacob Osborne, a former soccer player at Missouri Southern. Two others have been swimmers at the NCAA Division I level.

Amanda Littlefield, 5-10, Throws, Stella, Mo. (McDonald County HS)

A three-sport athlete for the Mustangs, Littlefield holds McDonald County High School records in the shot put (36 feet, 1 inch) and discus (122 feet, 5 inches). She placed 10th in both events in state competition in 2003. Littlefield, who plans to study secondary education, participated in high school track under coach Bruce Stancell.

Littlefield, the daughter of Tim and Mary Littlefield, also started at middle blocker in volleyball and at center in basketball for teams coached by Sue Buttram. She was a three-year starter and letterwinner in both sports.

Whitney Metcalf, 5-9, Sprints/Hurdles, Pawhuska, Okla. (Pawhuska HS)

Metcalf will join the Lions on the heels of a highly successful high school career in track & field. She entered her senior track season as a six-time state champion, including two in the 300-meter hurdles, two in the 100-meter dash and two in the 200. In both her sophomore and junior seasons, Metcalf posted the fastest 300-meter hurdle time in the state of Oklahoma, running 43.68 as a sophomore and 44.49 seconds as a junior. She holds school records in the 100 (12.17), 200 (25.42) and 300-meter hurdles (43.68) and has helped the Huskies of coach Chris Tanner to three straight top-five finishes at the state meet.

Metcalf is also a three-year starter at shortstop on the softball diamond. As a junior, she batted .421 with 26 steals and has also lettered in both basketball and cheerleading at PHS.

She is the daughter of Paddy and Kelly Metcalf.

Jessica Self, 5-8, Throws, Neosho, Mo. (Neosho HS)

A standout in softball and basketball as well as track for the Wildcats, Jessica is having a solid senior season in track & field. Thus far, she has three first-place finishes and one fourth in the shot put with a top throw of 37 feet, 6 inches, and has one first and three second-place showings in the discus. Her best throw in the discus this season has been 117-4 after topping out at 120 feet last year.

A pitcher, Self has been a three-time all-Southwest Conference and all-district selection in softball and earned all-regional and second-team all-state honors last fall. The daughter of Charles and Rhonda Self, she has helped the Wildcats of Beth Alms win two sectional titles and four regional crowns.

The four join Rachel Minard (Webb City, Mo.), Kelly O’Toole (Joplin, Mo.) and Alison Walker (West Plains, Mo.) as the newest additions to the MSSU women’s track & field/cross country team.

Vavra led Missouri Southern to its first ever MIAA track & field championship, indoors or outdoors, at the February MIAA Indoor Championships at MSSU’s Leggett & Platt Athletic Center. Her cross country Lions finished as runners-up in the conference and South Central Regional and made their first ever team appearance at the NCAA Division II Championships this past fall.


	April 14, 2004 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Women’s track & field signs four Head coach Patty Vavra announced today that four high school freshmen have signed with the Missouri Southern State University women’s track & field program. Abbey Adams (Carthage, Mo.), Amanda Littlefield (Stella, Mo.), Whitney Metcalf (Pawhuska, Okla.) and Jessica Self (Neosho, Mo.) have announced their intentions to participate in women’s track & field with the Lions. “Overall, I feel we have added some outstanding local talent in Adams, Littlefield and Self,” Vavra said. “Each should make an immediate impact for us next year. And Whitney Metcalf is a multi-time state champion and has posted outstanding times in the sprints and 300m hurdles. She could make an immediate impact in the MIAA as well. “All of these additions have been multi-sport participants, so I think when they can come in and just concentrate on track & field we could see some big improvements.” Here is a rundown of the four newest additions for the MSSU track & field program: Abbey Adams, 5-6, Distance, Carthage, Mo. (College Heights Christian) A four-sport letter winner for the Cougars, Adams is expected to bolster the distance corps and will also participate in cross country for the first time. She has posted some impressive performances for the Cougars of Dan Lewis. Adams was second at the state Class 1 meet in the 3200-meter run as a sophomore with a 12:15.74 clocking and placed third in the 1600 meters in 5:39.90. As a junior in 2003, she was third at state in the 3200 with a school record time of 12:13.79 and ran on the winning 4x800-meter relay team that finished with time of 9:56.29. She also holds the school 1600-meter run record (5:35.06) and ran on record-setting relay teams in the 4x800 and 4x400. Adams, the daughter of Randall and Holly Adams, also lettered four years in basketball, three years in volleyball and one year in soccer. Several of Adams’ cousins have participated in college athletics, including Jacob Osborne, a former soccer player at Missouri Southern. Two others have been swimmers at the NCAA Division I level. Amanda Littlefield, 5-10, Throws, Stella, Mo. (McDonald County HS) A three-sport athlete for the Mustangs, Littlefield holds McDonald County High School records in the shot put (36 feet, 1 inch) and discus (122 feet, 5 inches). She placed 10th in both events in state competition in 2003. Littlefield, who plans to study secondary education, participated in high school track under coach Bruce Stancell. Littlefield, the daughter of Tim and Mary Littlefield, also started at middle blocker in volleyball and at center in basketball for teams coached by Sue Buttram. She was a three-year starter and letterwinner in both sports. Whitney Metcalf, 5-9, Sprints/Hurdles, Pawhuska, Okla. (Pawhuska HS) Metcalf will join the Lions on the heels of a highly successful high school career in track & field. She entered her senior track season as a six-time state champion, including two in the 300-meter hurdles, two in the 100-meter dash and two in the 200. In both her sophomore and junior seasons, Metcalf posted the fastest 300-meter hurdle time in the state of Oklahoma, running 43.68 as a sophomore and 44.49 seconds as a junior. She holds school records in the 100 (12.17), 200 (25.42) and 300-meter hurdles (43.68) and has helped the Huskies of coach Chris Tanner to three straight top-five finishes at the state meet. Metcalf is also a three-year starter at shortstop on the softball diamond. As a junior, she batted .421 with 26 steals and has also lettered in both basketball and cheerleading at PHS. She is the daughter of Paddy and Kelly Metcalf. Jessica Self, 5-8, Throws, Neosho, Mo. (Neosho HS) A standout in softball and basketball as well as track for the Wildcats, Jessica is having a solid senior season in track & field. Thus far, she has three first-place finishes and one fourth in the shot put with a top throw of 37 feet, 6 inches, and has one first and three second-place showings in the discus. Her best throw in the discus this season has been 117-4 after topping out at 120 feet last year. A pitcher, Self has been a three-time all-Southwest Conference and all-district selection in softball and earned all-regional and second-team all-state honors last fall. The daughter of Charles and Rhonda Self, she has helped the Wildcats of Beth Alms win two sectional titles and four regional crowns. The four join Rachel Minard (Webb City, Mo.), Kelly O’Toole (Joplin, Mo.) and Alison Walker (West Plains, Mo.) as the newest additions to the MSSU women’s track & field/cross country team. Vavra led Missouri Southern to its first ever MIAA track & field championship, indoors or outdoors, at the February MIAA Indoor Championships at MSSU’s Leggett & Platt Athletic Center. Her cross country Lions finished as runners-up in the conference and South Central Regional and made their first ever team appearance at the NCAA Division II Championships this past fall.