Missouri State University

The Missouri State men's and women's track and field teams completed Sunday's conclusion of the 2006 State Farm/MVC Outdoor Championships, with the women placing second and the men fifth. Senior Tracy Partain swept the women's Valley individual awards as she was the highest point scorer and named Most Valuable Athlete, Most Outstanding Track Athlete and Most Outstanding Field Athlete for her most impressive performance at the meet.

At Sunday's conclusion of the championship meet, Partain continued her outstanding performance by winning the 100m hurdles in a personal best time of 13.38. Partain also added a second-place finish in the 400m hurdles, with a finals time of 1:00.72.

Danielle Norville took home the championship in the 200m dash and qualified for the NCAA Regional Championship in the event with a time of 23.88. Norville also scored points for the Bears by finishing third in the 100m dash in 11.77.

MSU's Tanya Cyrus was another champion in Sunday's final day of competition. Cyrus won the 400m dash with a time of 54.85. She also finished fifth in the 200m dash with a finals time of 24.50.

In the women's 5,000m run, Casey DeWitt had the top finish for the Bears by placing third in a time of 17:24.72. Carrie Vestal finished sixth in the race in 17:42.04 and Ashley Sanders was eighth in 17:52.46.

Other top finishers for the Bears' women's team included Clarissa Codrington in the 800m run and 1,500m run. She placed sixth in the 800m with a time of 2:16.15 and third in the 1,500m in 4:38.17. Michelle Simpson finished fifth in the 400m hurdles in 1:03.98 and Alexandria Oembler was sixth in the 100m hurdles with a time of 14.77. Jayne Kristmann earned seventh place in the pole vault competition, clearing 10-06.00.

In relay events, MSU's Partain, Carter, Norville and Cyrus combined for a season best time of 46.33 in the 4x100m relay to earn second place and the Bears' 4x400m relay team placed fourth in 3:49.57.

Wichita State was the women's 2006 MVC outdoor champion for the third consecutive year, with 169 points. Missouri State finished second with 137 points, followed by Illinois State (112), Southern Illinois (80), Northern Iowa (67), Indiana State (60), Drake (25), and Bradley (1).

On the men's side of the meet, Fabian Florant took his second-straight title in the triple jump with a season best jump of 51-04.25. Ryan Taylor finished second in the event with a career best mark of 50-06.75.

MSU's Kenroy Dixon was a gold medal winner in the 100m dash with a finals time of 10.54. Teammate Orlando Slider finished fourth in the event in 10.74. Dixon also added a fifth-place finish in the 200m dash with a time of 21.86.

Kevin Born and Michael Breshears had a two-three finish in 5,000m run for the Bears. Born finished second in 14:49.27 and Breshears, third, in 14:51.51. Josphat Bitok added a ninth-place finish in the event with a time of 15:19.68.

In the 400m hurdles, Kareem Samuel placed fourth in 53.81 and Mike Wahlig was seventh in 56.45. Jonathan Rono finished fifth in the 1,500m run with a time of 3:54.31 and Justin Alberts finished sixth in the finals of the 400m dash in 47.95.

Indiana State took home the men's 2006 MVC outdoor championship with 167 points. This is Indiana State's first win in five years. Hosts Wichita State placed second in the meet with 104 points, followed by Southern Illinois (98), Northern Iowa (98), Missouri State (90), Illinois State (55), and Drake (39).

Ten Missouri State Bears' track and field student-athletes have qualified for the NCAA Regional Outdoor Championships. Tracy Partain has hit the NCAA Championship automatic qualifying mark in the heptathlon with her MVC championship score of 5,756. Partain will compete at the regional meet in both the 100m and 400m hurdles. Tanya Cyrus will compete in the 400m dash, Danielle Norville in the 100m and 200m dash, Casey DeWitt in the 3,000m steeplechase and Kim Carter will compete in the long jump. Representing the MSU men will be Kareem Samuel in the 400m hurdles, Fabian Florant in the triple jump, Kenroy Dixon in the 100m dash, Michael Breshears in the 3,000m steeplechase and Ryan Taylor will compete in the long jump and triple jump events.

The 2006 Regional Championship meets will be held in Knoxville, Tenn., on Friday through Saturday, May 26-27.