Feb. 2, 2000
MU Prepares for Meyo Invitational
The Missouri track and field teams head for South Bend, Ind., this weekend to participate in the Meyo Invitational, hosted by the University of Notre Dame. Other teams participating in the invite are Michigan, Tulane, Wake Forest, the women from Iowa and the men from Alabama, Miami, Fla. and Rice.
A Very Brief History of the Meyo Invitational
This is the 10th annual running of the Meyo Invitational. What makes the event so unique is the Meyo Track itself, which is 352-yards long. It is the nation's largest indoor track on the collegiate level and along with the Haggar Fitness Complex is housed in the University of Notre Dame's Loftus Sports Center.
A Look Back
The 2000 MU-KSU-KU Triangular was held in Lawrence, Kan., with K-State claiming the team title with 259 total points. KU finished in second with 223 points while MU placed third with 212 points. Five Missouri athletes claimed first-place finishes. Juniors Sunny Gilbert and Michelle Moran took the titles on the women's side, taking first in the 1,000m and the high jump, respectively. Gilbert beat her previous best of 2:53.51 at the Missouri Invite with a run of 2:51.43. For the men, it was seniors Ryan Pirtle and William Hopson and sophomore Timothy Dunne finishing on top. Pirtle was first in the 3,000m with a time of 8:24.39 while Hopson placed first in the long jump with a distance of 23-8 1/4 and Dunne took first in the 800m with a time of 1:53.77.
Second-place finishers at the Triangular were fifth-year senior Anna Gullingsrud, seniors Derrick Peterson and Kent Shelton, juniors Phil Councilor, Ochuko Ekpere, Blair Hansard, and Adam MacDowell, and freshman Kerry Hils.
3,000m Strong Event for Tigers
Both the men and women had strong consecutive finishes in the 3,000m run at the MU/KSU/KU Triangular. For the men, Ryan Pirtle took first with a time of 8:24.39, followed by Adam MacDowell with a time of 8:29.47. Junior Nick Smith and senior Mike Larson, placed third and fourth respectively, while senior Greg Speicher finished in sixth for the Tigers. For the women's event, Anna Gullingsrud placed second with a time of 9:53.19, followed by sophomore Ann Marie Brooks with a time of 10:04.25. Sophomore Kim Moore and junior Justa Dahl placed fourth and fifth respectively.
Shanks Breaks Record Yet Again
Junior Micah Shanks was at it again at the MU/KSU/KU Triangular. It all started on Jan. 21, when he became the first Tiger in school history to ever throw over 60 feet in weight throw. After a record-setting heave of 60 feet, 2 inches at the Tiger Invite, the Yale, Ill., native threw a distance of 61-1 1/4 at the Triangular. He finished just behind K-State's Tamel Sisney who threw for a distance of 64-4. Shanks originally broke Missouri's school record on Jan. 16, 1999, with a 51-3 hurl at the Missouri Invitational. That means he has broken the record by nearly 10 feet in the last year.