Jan. 21, 2006
LAWRENCE, Kan.--The Missouri Tiger track and field team competed against Kansas and Kansas State in the teams' 17th annual triangular Friday afternoon and evening in Lawrence, Kan. In the combined score total, the Tigers were third with 212½ points, Kansas State (265) won their eighth-consecutive triangular, having won the "jug" every year since 1999. Mizzou had some spirited performances by their distance core, as the Tiger women swept all titles in those events. The Tiger youth provided much excitement in the men's distance and women's throwing events.
For the second-straight year, Missouri swept the triangular's women's events from 800 to 3000 meters. In the women's 800-meter run, sophomore Trisa Nickoley (Tecumseh, Kan.) won in 2:11.22, to pick up her second-straight triangular title in the event. Senior Ashley Patten (Clarkston, Mich.) blew by the field in the 1000-meter run, winning in over eight seconds with a 2:50.55 clocking. Freshman Amanda Potrykus (Evergreen, Colo.) had a back-stretch surge to grab second-place points for the Tigers.
Senior Kristen Hansen (Milford, Iowa) won the women's mile in 4:56.89 and completed an impressive double, placing second in the women's 3000 meters just two hours later. Hansen would be the Tiger women's leading scorer, grabbing 12 points on the day for Mizzou. Senior Valerie Lauver (Allen, Texas) won the 3000 in 10:00.65 and was part of a Tiger 1-2-3 sweep in the event with junior Kate Greer taking bronze. Mizzou also had five of the top six finishers with Carolyn Rauen and Emily Ramsey having good performances.
To cap the women's distance dominance, Kasey Kimball, Patten, Nicole Johnson, and Nickoley won the 4x800-meter relay by 31 seconds, stomping KU and KSU with a 9:16.94 clocking.
On the men's side it was an impressive day for Columbia local Tim Cornell (Hickman HS). The freshman led the Mizzou men with 8¾ points on the day by winning the 1000-meter run in 2:30.50 and being a part of the Tiger's winning 4x800 relay. In the 1000 meter, Cornell was in third entering the backstretch, but with a surge, he was able to pass K-State's Matt Morton and Kansas' Adrian Ludwig, holding the lead and winning by 1½ seconds.
In the men's 3000 it was another freshman, Garett Jeffries (Clarkston Valley, Mo.), who gave the Tigers a great effort, placing second in the event and nearly picking off the winner after a 8:27.07 clocking. Senior Josh Davis set a new personal best in the event with a third-place showing, timing 8:30.36.
Another Tiger champion came from the women's shot put. Again, a freshman stole the show as Krishna Lee (Kansas City, Mo.) added 18 inches to her personal best in the event, winning with a final toss of 48 feet, 4 inches (14.73m). Impressively, Lee has already pushed to fourth all-time in Mizzou history in the event.
Freshman Kendra Richardson (Boonville, Mo.) finished the day with a third-place finish in women's shot and a fourth-place finish in the weight throw. Richardson moved to third all-time at Mizzou with her 58-10 (17.93m) mark with the weight. Sophomore Elisha Hunt (Linn, Mo.) was the top Tiger with the weight, placing second, adding two feet to her PR, with a 60-5 (18.41m) throw.
Next weekend, the Missouri track and field goes back to the Sunflower State for the two-day Wildcat Invitational, held in Manhattan, Kan., next Friday and Saturday.