COLUMBIA, Mo. - Mizzou Track & Field is kicking off their 2015 campaign this weekend, traveling to Iowa City, Ia., for the Border Battle with Iowa and Illinois. A squad of 58 will don the black and gold for the two-day meet, starting Friday afternoon with the season's only discus competition and continuing into Saturday.
Meet Info
This is the first year for the Border Battle, hosted by the University of Iowa. The meet will be scored as a double-dual, with Missouri's score put against Iowa and Illinois separately. Events will start on Friday with a discus competition in the indoor football facility. An outdoor event, this will be the only discus competition of the indoor season. The meet will resume at noon on Saturday with the field events, followed by the start of the running events at 2 p.m. CT.
Pre-Season Top 25
For the first time since the preseason rankings began in 2008, the Tiger women broke into the top 25 release, as announced by the USTFCCCA (U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association). The women are one of eight SEC teams to make the top 25 list, coming in at No. 24.
Returning All-Americans
The Tigers have an exciting group of returners competing this weekend, highlighted by four returning All-Americans from the 2014 season. Topping this list are seniors Kearsten Peoples and Jill Rushin, who were the only Tigers to qualify for both the indoor and outdoor NCAA Championships last year. Peoples, who holds the Missouri School Records for four events (weight throw, indoor/outdoor shot put, and discus) came away with All-American awards in the indoor and outdoor shot put, and weight throw. Rushin joined her on the podium, earning All-American honors for the indoor and outdoor shot put.
Also closing the 2014 outdoor season with All-American honors was senior Morgan Whitson (high jump) and sophomore Kaitlyn Fischer (10,000m run), both of whom will see their first competition of 2015 in Iowa this weekend. Fischer, who closed her fall with First Team All-SEC and All-Midwest Region finishes, will step onto the track for the first time since her School Record performance in the 10,000m run (33:12.37). Whitson also holds a spot on the All-Time Top Ten lists, currently sitting at No. 6 for the indoor pentathlon, No. 9 for the outdoor high jump, No. 9 for the javelin, and No. 10 for the heptathlon.
Junior Markesh Woodson, who earned All-American honors in 2013 for the 60m dash and 100m dash, rounds out the group of All-Americans traveling to Iowa this weekend. Woodson tied his 60m dash Missouri School Record in 2014, running a 6.60, and broke the 200m dash record (21.13).
Tiger Debuts
Also highlighting the weekend's travel roster is an exciting group of 19 newcomers, 15 freshmen and four transfers, who will take to the indoor track for the first time in the black and gold. Included among this list is returning NCAA Cross Country Championships qualifier, Karissa Schweizer, who closed the fall with an All-Midwest Region honor and the SEC Freshman of the Year award. She will move down from the 5000m and 6000m races from the fall and take to the line for the 1000m run on Saturday.
Other freshman lacing up this weekend include Luke Darrough (pole vault), Sean Harrell (weight throw), Billy Leighton (3000m run), Jerrad Mason (60m dash and 600m run), Chris Mooneyham (mile run), Mark Sheridan (600m run), Kwadarrius Smith (60m dash), John Warren (long jump), Becca Batliner (mile run), Megan Cunningham (mile run), Kayla Friesen (3000m run), Shammai Ilis (triple jump), Keyoni Mbroh (long jump), and Madison Waymire (1000m run).
The Tigers also welcomed four transfers for the 2015 season: juniors Matt Gilmore (Penn State), Sandrae Farquharson (Doane College), Alyssa Felton (Georgia Southern), and sophomore LaQuisha Jackson (San Diego State). No strangers to success in collegiate track and field, this group of eciting newcomers brings with them ten All-American honors and 14 conference titles.
Events in Iowa City will start at 4:30 p.m. CT on Friday, and noon on Saturday. For the latest on your Tigers, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team on Twitter @MIZ_TrackField.
TIGERS LINE-UP: IN THE FIELD
High Jump, Men - Mitch Hatten, SR | Ser Whitaker, JR
High Jump, Women - Morgan Whitson, SR
Pole Vault, Men - Parker Brush, JR | Luke Darrough, FR
Pole Vault, Women - Alyssa Applebee, SO | Maggie Givens, JR
Long Jump, Men - Jonathan Ilori, JR | Thomas Taylor, SO | John Warren, FR
Long Jump, Women - Lynnsey Brim, SO | Alyssa Felton, JR | Keyoni Mbroh, FR
Triple Jump, Men - Thomas Taylor, SO
Triple Jump, Women - Shammai Ilis, FR
Shot Put, Men - Nick Sublett, JR
Weight Throw, Men - Ahren Bohanan, SO | Brian Duncan, SR | Sean Harrell, FR | Nick Sublett, JR
Weight Throw, Women - Camille Hackamack, SR
TIGERS LINE-UP: ON THE TRACK
60m Dash, Women - LaQuisha Jackson, SO
60m Dash, Men - Jonathan Ilori, JR | Jerrad Mason, FR | Kwadarrius Smith, FR | Ser Whitaker, JR | Markesh Woodson, JR
60m Hurdles, Women - Alyssa Felton, JR | Morgan Whitson, SR
200m Dash, Women - Alyssa Felton, JR
400m Dash, Women - Ayo Adewole, JR | Emma Vickers, SO | Sydney Wells, SO
600m Run, Women - Sandrae Farquharson, JR | LaQuisha Jackson, SO | Erika Lark, SO
600m Run, Men - Jerrad Mason, FR | Andy Schuckenbrock, SR | Mark Sheridan, FR | Drake Stuedemann, SR | Cain Winebrenner, SO
1000m Run, Women - Libby Luciani, SO | Karissa Schweizer, FR | Madison Waymire, FR
1000m Run, Men - Sam Dickerson, JR | Ben Goodman, SO
Mile Run, Women - Teylar Adelsberger, SO | Kaelyn Balch, SO | Becca Batliner, FR | Megan Cunningham, FR | Kaitlyn Fischer, SO | Sam Garrett, SO | Bailey Hession, SO | Liz Reida, JR | Courtney Wood, JR
Mile Run, Men - Marc Dubrick, SO | Sheldon Keence, SO | Chris Mooneyham, FR | Dan Roe, SO
3000m Run, Women - Courtney Brown, JR | Kayla Friesen, FR
3000m Run, Men - Jordan Cook, SO | Will Crocker, JR | Chandler Dye, JR | Billy Leighton, FR