ST. LOUIS – The Missouri State track and field team was predicted to finish fourth at the Missouri Valley Conference Outdoor Championship, slated for May 14-16, as a pre-championship poll of the league's head coaches was revealed today.
 
The Bears received 68 points in the 10-team poll that featured Illinois State (100) as the unanimous frontrunner with all 10 first-place votes.  Host of this year's MVC championship meet, Southern Illinois (88) collected the second-most points followed by Indiana State (73).  Finishing behind the Bears were Northern Iowa (66), Loyola (50), Bradley (44), Drake (33), Evansville (17), and Valpo (15) to round out the list.
 
MSU has won the MVC outdoor championship three times with a string of titles from 2001-2003.
 
This will be Missouri State's first outdoor conference meet since 2019 after the 2020 outdoor season was canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.  At the 2019 competition, MSU finished fifth in the team standings and had three current Bears earn all-conference honors with Grace Breiten (3,000m steeplechase, 5,000m), Jamilah James (triple jump) and Chicago Bains (100m hurdles) reaching the podium in their respective events.
 
The Valley meet kicks off on May 14 and will culminate with a majority of the event finals and awards presentation on May 16.  Fan attendance at Lew Hartzog Track and Field Complex, the site of this year's championship, will be prohibited.