April 7, 1999
Columbia, Mo. - The Missouri Tiger track and field team will host the third annual Tom Botts Invitational at the Audrey J. Walton Track Soccer Stadium on Saturday, April 10 begining at 9 am. Michigan State, Mississippi, and Illinois State will visit Columiba, for the outdoor meet. The meet will be the first home event of the 1999 outdoor season for MU, and will be the Tigers first action since their trip to California two weeks ago where they participated in the Fresno State Invitational (Mar. 20), Cal-Poly-SLO Invitational (Mar. 21), and Stanford Invitational (Mar. 27-28). The meet is also part of the United States Collegiate Series, a new type of meet created this year by the United States Track and Field Coaches Association for a more fan-friendly event with top-notch collegiate track programs.
TOM BOTTS BUST DEDICATED IN CHAMPIONS PLAZA
This year's Tom Botts Invitational features a special ceremony to honor the late Tom Botts, as a bust of the former Missouri track coach will be dediated at 12 noon on Saturday. Botts, who passed away earlier this year, will always be remembered for the 31 years he gave the the Unviersity of Missouri and its track program as a competitor, coach, fan and teacher.
The bust will be unveiled in the Champions Plaza on the west side of the stadium near the ticket window begining at 12 noon.
MISSOURI ALL-AMERICANS START STRONG AS OUTDOOR SEASON BEGINS
Tiger track all-Americans Darin File (javelin), Derrick Peterson (800m) and Ashley Wysong (800m) started the outdoor season with strong performances during MU's California tour.
File, a senior and two-time all-American, opened the season with a 225-11 throw at the Fresno State Invitational, passing the provisional standard set for the event. Indoor 800m national champion Derrick Peterson picked up where he left off during the indoor schedule as he won the Stanford Invitational 800m running a 1:48.47 time, also a provisional qualifying time. Indoor all-American Ashley Wysong ran a strong race in her first outdoor start at the Stanford Invitational. Wysong finished second overall with a 2:09.70 time, the third best time run by a Big 12 athlete in the event this year.
Sophomore Justa Dahl also ran a provisional qualifying time in the women's 10,000m run. Dahl finished the race in 34.58.55 nearly a full minute under the qualifying standard.
SHANKS, MILLER EACH GRAB SCHOOL RECORDS
MU's first week of outdoor action saw two school records fall as well. Juninor Lindsey Miller bested her own school mark in the women's triple jump with a 40-4 mark at the Cal-Poly Invitational March 21. Miller's previous best, also a school record, was 40-3 1/4. On the infield, sophomore Micah Shanks set a school record in the hammer throw at Stanford with a 177-9 throw, bettering the previous Mizzou best of 159-1 held by Missouri senior Judd Price.