The Panther Track and Field Athletes hosted the 2015 Missouri Valley Conference Championships this weekend in the UNI-Dome. The nine-school conference spent both Saturday and Sunday competing in 25 different events from pole vault to the mile run.
Although they finished sixth place in the men’s competition and fourth in the women’s, the Panthers gained momentum in a number of individual events this weekend.
Saturday morning opened with the seven-event men’s heptathlon and continued through Sunday. Freshman Panther Jayvon Matthews moved up through the rankings and set his personal record in five of the seven events. Four of the five PR’s took place in the 60 meter dash at 7.15 seconds, long jump with a 6.77 meter leap, shot put with a 12.89 meter throw, high jump height of 1.89 meters, and a 4.10 meter pole vault record.
Going into the final event, Matthews was first, but ended in a close second as Hunter Veith pulled ahead in the 1000 meter run by less than four seconds. Matthews was proud of his result, saying the second place “puts me higher up in ranks and gives me more confidence as a freshman, knowing that I will do better in my next years.”
Alex Wilson, UNI senior with four broken school records this season, continued to impress the Panthers with another victory in the women’s mile this weekend. Although she didn’t score a personal record, she finished in 4 minutes, 48.35 seconds, which was more than six seconds quicker than the second place competitor.
In the women’s 800 meter race, Panthers took both gold and silver. The recipient of the “MVC Elite 8” Sophomore Brette Correy took first place with a time of 2:9.49 and Amber Clock finished less than a second after her teammate with 2:10.1 for second place in the MVC Championships.
Remaining undefeated in the 60 meter dash was the Panther named Most Valuable Athlete last year at the MVC. Sophomore Brandon Carnes took first place with a time of 6.69 seconds, lowering his personal record from the 6.72 before this weekend.
Looking ahead, the Panthers will travel to the NCAA Indoor National Championships in Fayetteville, Arkansas the weekend of March 13, giving them two weeks to prepare for the end of the indoor season.
Head coach Dan Steele commented on the individual standings of the upcoming championships, referencing hurdler Sebastian Barth, “Barth is ranked second (nationally) right now, but he also has an injury to overcome. If he can overcome it, he’ll finish top three.”
