FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 15, 2008

Lions add three more All-Americans totaling four at NCAA Division II Championships

Final Results

Mankato, Minn. -- The Missouri Southern track and field team came away with three more All-Americans today in Jessica Selby-Tallman, Jacob Williams and Russell Ellis at the 2008 NCAA Division II Indoor Track and Field Championships at Minnesota State University. The Southern men finished ninth in the team standings, while the women were 19th.

Selby-Tallman came into the shot put with the number one distance in division II this year at 51 feet, nine inches, the winning distance at the 2008 MIAA Indoor Championships just two weeks ago.

She opened up her flight with a distance of 15.40 meters. That distance would serve as the top mark in the event until her last throw of 15.48 put her on top heading into the final throw of the event. As happened last year when Selby-Tallman was edged out in the final toss by Bemidji State's Sheena Devine, Devine did just that again this year, topping Selby-Tallman's mark of 15.48m with a heave of 15.91m in her final attempt.

Selby-Tallman finishes as the runner up for the second-straight year, but earns her fourth-straight All-American award in the event. She placed fourth as a freshman, seventh as a sophomore and second the last two seasons.

Williams also finished as the runner up in his event, placing second to Grand Valley State's Bryant Wilson in the pole vault. Williams jumped to a height of 16 feet, ten and three quarter inches, missing just once on the day, before failing to connect on the eventual winning height of 17 feet, two and three quarter inches. Williams earns his second All-American honor as the senior finished fourth last year.

Ellis finished sixth in the pole vault for the second year in a row as he vaulted to a height of 16 feet, two and three quarter inches. He picks up his second All-American honor.

Kimi Shank finished 11th in the 5k with a time of 17:31.21. This year's cross country national champion Winrose Karunde of Abilene Christian won the event with a time of 17:02.93.

Yesterday in day one of the meet, senior thrower Jessica Self and sophomore high jumper Corey Reynolds, both from Neosho, Mo., picked up All-American honors.

Self finished eighth in the weight throw with a distance of 56 feet, one half an inch. Reynolds, ranked fourth nationally coming into the event, finished second in the high jump with a leap of six feet, ten and a quarter inches, trailing the eventual national champion by just 1.25 inches.

Pole vaulter Erica Culver hit her opening height of 11 feet, seven and three quarter inches, but failed to connect on the next height.

The Lions will now prepare for the outdoor season that gets underway next weekend. The men will head to Pittsburg State on Saturday, while the women head to Florida State for the Snowbird Invitational to take place on Friday and Saturday.