Missouri State freshman Leander Ernest has been named this week's Missouri Valley Conference Female Track Athlete of the Week, the league office announced Tuesday.

Ernest scored three first-place finishes in the Bears’ outdoor season opener in Carbondale, Ill., Saturday. She anchored the 4x100 and 4x400-meter relays that placed first in times of 46.53 and 3:43.96, respectively. The freshman sprinted a regional qualifying time of 54.48 to win the 400-meter dash by over three seconds. Her closest competitor, Lyn Cox of Illinois State, finished in 57.51.

The Bears will be back on the track Friday-Saturday, March 30-31, in Columbia, Mo., for the Missouri Relays.