Track and Field Bears Send 14 to MVC Indoor Championships

Meet Schedule (PDF) 

SPRINGFIELD – The Missouri State track and field team will wrap up its indoor season this weekend at the Missouri Valley Conference Championships at Gately Park in Chicago on Sunday and Monday. 
 

Keeping Track of the Bears  

• Missouri State is coming off the Arkansas Qualifier where the team competed against stout competition from across the country. At the meet, several Bears saw season and lifetime bests including: 

• Charity Obazughanmwen’s 24.89 200-meter time landed the sophomore sprinter in 10th place. 

• Ashley Rolewicz’s 800-meter mark of 2:15.24 was down from her former PR of 2:16.70. 

• In the 400-meter, Meghan Halstead and Victory Ifah clocked personal bests of 59.27 and 59.32 to finish in 26th and 28th place, respectively. 

• MSU will send 14 athletes to compete at the championships this year. The competitors will appear in a total of 10 individual events. The Bears will also have relay teams competing in both the distance medley relay and the 4×400-meter relay. 

• DaeLin Switzer will be back in action for the Bears competing in the 60-meter hurdles and high jump over the weekend. In her debut season as a Bear in 2022, Switzer earned a silver medal in the high jump, leaping to a height of 1.72 meters. 

• After finishing third in the one mile run at last years’ championships, Eda Dar will compete in the event this year as well.  

• Calandra Henry will look to build on her strong start to the season after recording six top-three finishes so far this season in the 60-meter and 200-meter. The senior sprinter will compete in both sprints for the Bears at the championships for the second-straight year. 

• MSU was picked to finish eighth out of the 12 teams competing with 63 points in the pre-championship poll which was released on Wednesday. Illinois State was picked as the favorite to win the indoor championships with 142 points, while Indiana State (127) and Murray State (112) rounded out the top three. 

• This is the second-straight year the indoor championships will be held in Gately Park in the Windy City. This year UIC and Valparaiso are sharing the hosting duties.  

• The championships are a two-day event and will kick off on Sunday at 9:30 a.m. Action will continue Monday at 9:30 a.m., as well.  

• Track and field members were recognized for their academic achievements several weeks ago, as 33 athletes made the MSU Athletic Director’s Honor Roll for their efforts during the fall semester. 

• Madison Meredith led the Bears at the championships last season, finishing first in the 60-meter (7.23 seconds) to qualify for nationals. The sprinter also finished third in the 200-meter with a time of 24.07. 

• Last year the Bears earned a team finish of sixth place out of the eight conference teams competing at the indoor finale.  

• The Bears’ outdoor schedule kicks off on March 31 at the Bearcat Invitational.  

• Head coach Jordan Fife is in his fifth year as head coach and ninth overall with the program after a four-year stint as an assistant. Fife also took over the head coaching duties of the cross country team in 2014.  

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