SPRINGFIELD - The Missouri State track and field team will compete at the 2017 Missouri Valley Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championship on Friday-Sunday (May 12-14) at Cessna Stadium in Wichita, Kansas. Each day will have select times aired via the Valley on ESPN3.
Friday's events will begin with the heptathlon at 11 a.m., while the hammer throw competition will start at noon and the 1,500-meter run prelims are set to go at 6 p.m. On Saturday, the heptathlon will wrap up starting at 11:30 a.m., shot put will start field events at 3 p.m. and the 100-meter hurdles will kick off at 5 p.m. The festivities will wrap up on Sunday as the triple jump competition begin at 11:30 a.m. while the 4x100-meter relay finals are set to start track events at 1 p.m.
Keeping Track of the Bears:
- Missouri State was predicted to finish sixth (36 points) on a vote by the league coaches the MVC announced on Monday (May 8). MVC story.
- The Bears have 26 student-athletes set to compete in 19 events for the Maroon and White over the three-day meet.
- Leading the way, senior Holly Pattie-Belleli is set to compete in five different events, three individual, including both the 100-meter and 400-meter hurdles, and both relay events. Pattie-Belleli took second in the 100-meter hurdles (13.36) at last year's league championship.
- Junior Marissa Kurtimah, reigning 100-meter and 200-meter dash MVC outdoor champion, looks to extend her dominance over the league in the two individual events.
- Along with Kurtimah and Pattie-Belleli, three other Bears return from the 2016 squad that reached the podium in the 2016 MVC Outdoor Championship. Asha Cave teamed with Kurtimah and Pattie-Belleli and former Bear Shavonne Husbands to grab gold in the 4x100-meter relay with a time of 45.19. Pattie-Belleli and Husbands worked with Kadisha Francois and Shani Adams to take silver in the 4x400-meter relay in 3:43.48.
- Missouri State looks to improve and add to their current list of NCAA West Regional qualifiers. Kurtimah (100-meter dash), Pattie-Belleli (100-meter hurdles), Adams (400-meter hurdles) and Melanie Raterman (hammer throw and javelin).
- During the season, three Bears collected MVC Weekly Track and Field honors. Pattie-Belleli and Raterman opened the season with honors on March 21, while Kurtimah tallied her third honors of the year and first of the outdoor season on April 18.
- Director of track and field and cross country, Ronald Boyce, is in his 21st season at the helm in 2016-17. In his time at MSU, his indoor and outdoor track and field teams have claimed nine Missouri Valley Conference Championships and have been Valley runners-up six times.
