MSSU Men, Women Sweep MIAA Indoor Crowns

It was a banner night on Saturday at the Leggett & Platt Athletic Center for the Missouri Southern State University track & field teams.

At home on the St. John’s Track, the Southern men’s and women’s indoor squads collected their first-ever Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association track & field titles of any kind. The women were 18-point winners in the meet, outdistancing second-place Pittsburg State by 18. The Southern men added a little more drama, winning by just one point, 112-111, over eight-time defending champion Central Missouri State.

The men’s finish was the closest since 1977, when Truman State and then-MIAA member Southeast Missouri State shared the indoor hardware. And this year’s men’s finish came right down to the last event, as Southern needed a fifth-place showing in the 4x400-meter relay to secure the slimmest victory. To get to that point, the Lions first brought home a 1-2-3 finish in the next-to-last event, the 3000-meter run.

The Southern men collected the championship despite not scoring a single point in any of the sprints. The 800-meter run was the closest event to a sprint in which the Lions scored. But to make up for that difference, the Lions accumulated 62 combined points in the mile (15 points), 3000 meters (25 points) and 5000 meters (22 points).

Senior Brian Lyons (Purdy, Mo.) swept the titles in the 3000 and 5000-meter events, shattering former teammate Simo Wannas’ building record in the 5K. Lyons, who scored 26 points in the meet, shared high-point male individual honors with Pittsburg State sprinter Jermaine Carpenter.

The Missouri Southern women had more balanced scoring; the team gathered just three first-place finishes in the meet, but failed to score in only the 600-yard run and 800-meter run. Senior Mary Still (Carthage, Mo.) generated 27.5 of the Lions points, finishing first in the 400-meter dash, third in the 60-meter hurdles and 200-meter dash, and fourth in the 60-meter dash. She was also part of Southern’s third-place 1600-meter relay squad and missed high-point individual accolades by just one point.

The Southern women had 14 all-conference performers. In addition to Still’s successful defense of the MIAA crown in the 400 meters, junior Ashley Caffey (Lebanon, Mo.) won the conference title in the 5000 meters and junior Danee Jones (Clayton, Mo.) repeated as league champ in the weight throw. Jones was the only Missouri Southern performer to break an MIAA record. She beat her own conference mark, set last year, in the weight throw with a toss of 58’-4.5”.

On the men’s side, the Lions had 11 All-MIAA performers. Junior Arley Smith (Pierce City, Mo.) defended his MIAA championship in the weight throw and sophomore Matt Campbell (Worthington, Ind.) picked up where former Lion Seth Isringhausen left off, claiming the title in the pole vault.

In all, 10 MIAA records were broken during the weekend’s festivities, including six in women’s action.


	Feb. 28, 2004 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE It’s a Southern Sweep! Men’s and women’s track & field squads sweep MIAA indoor crowns It was a banner night on Saturday at the Leggett & Platt Athletic Center for the Missouri Southern State University track & field teams. At home on the St. John’s Track, the Southern men’s and women’s indoor squads collected their first-ever Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association track & field titles of any kind. The women were 18-point winners in the meet, outdistancing second-place Pittsburg State by 18. The Southern men added a little more drama, winning by just one point, 112-111, over eight-time defending champion Central Missouri State. The men’s finish was the closest since 1977, when Truman State and then-MIAA member Southeast Missouri State shared the indoor hardware. And this year’s men’s finish came right down to the last event, as Southern needed a fifth-place showing in the 4x400-meter relay to secure the slimmest victory. To get to that point, the Lions first brought home a 1-2-3 finish in the next-to-last event, the 3000-meter run. The Southern men collected the championship despite not scoring a single point in any of the sprints. The 800-meter run was the closest event to a sprint in which the Lions scored. But to make up for that difference, the Lions accumulated 62 combined points in the mile (15 points), 3000 meters (25 points) and 5000 meters (22 points). Senior Brian Lyons (Purdy, Mo.) swept the titles in the 3000 and 5000-meter events, shattering former teammate Simo Wannas’ building record in the 5K. Lyons, who scored 26 points in the meet, shared high-point male individual honors with Pittsburg State sprinter Jermaine Carpenter. The Missouri Southern women had more balanced scoring; the team gathered just three first-place finishes in the meet, but failed to score in only the 600-yard run and 800-meter run. Senior Mary Still (Carthage, Mo.) generated 27.5 of the Lions points, finishing first in the 400-meter dash, third in the 60-meter hurdles and 200-meter dash, and fourth in the 60-meter dash. She was also part of Southern’s third-place 1600-meter relay squad and missed high-point individual accolades by just one point. The Southern women had 14 all-conference performers. In addition to Still’s successful defense of the MIAA crown in the 400 meters, junior Ashley Caffey (Lebanon, Mo.) won the conference title in the 5000 meters and junior Danee Jones (Clayton, Mo.) repeated as league champ in the weight throw. Jones was the only Missouri Southern performer to break an MIAA record. She beat her own conference mark, set last year, in the weight throw with a toss of 58’-4.5”. On the men’s side, the Lions had 11 All-MIAA performers. Junior Arley Smith (Pierce City, Mo.) defended his MIAA championship in the weight throw and sophomore Matt Campbell (Worthington, Ind.) picked up where former Lion Seth Isringhausen left off, claiming the title in the pole vault. In all, 10 MIAA records were broken during the weekend’s festivities, including six in women’s action.