PITTSBURG, Kan. – Highlighted by multiple top-three finishes, the Missouri State track and field team turned out competitive performances while completing its second outing to Pittsburg State University here Saturday. 

"We loaded up the athletes again and got a lot of good work in," said head coach Jordan Fife. "It was another productive meet that will hopefully lead to a lot of breakthroughs when we lighten up their events over the next few weeks."

Edna Dar was one of the Bears to secure a top-three finish, as the senior distance runner finished second in the mile among a competitive field of 44 athletes. Her time of 4:58.43 was a season best, as well as just seven seconds shy of a lifetime best for the Toronto, Ontario, native.  

Also competing in the mile, Ashley Rolewicz narrowly missed the top 10, finishing 11th while racing a 5:07.41, a time two seconds off her lifetime best ran last weekend. Margo Nea also turned out a top-25 performance, racing a time of 5:18.86 to finish in 22nd place. 

Dar and Rolewicz also represented the Bears in the 800-meter run, finishing seventh and eighth with respective times of 2:17.64 and 2:17.82.   

Racing in the 60-meter dash, Calandra Henry continued her strong start to the season, earning a lifetime best of 7.49 seconds in finals of the event while finishing third. Her time in the preliminary heat was also a personal best, clocking in at 7.50. Also, in the 60-meter preliminaries, Nakaja Weaver finished with a time of 8.15 seconds. 

Competing for the Bears in the 400-meter dash, Tamera Rode also earned a top-three placing, finishing in third with a time of 56.41. Also, in the 400-meter, Charity Obazughanmwen finished with a lifetime best of 58.96, ending the race in 18th while Victory Ifah was close behind in 21st place (59.39). Meghan Halstead, Whitney Farrington and Manuela Ngo Tonye Nyemeck ended the race for the Bears in 25th (59.77), 26th (1:00.01) and 36th (1:01.62) place, respectively. 

In the 60-meter hurdles, DaeLin Switzer led the charge for the Bears, finishing with a time of 9.19 seconds. The mark was a lifetime best, earning her 14th place out of the competitive field. Also representing MSU in the hurdles were Kate Anderson and Rachel Lacey. The duo finished in succession in 27th (9.49) and 28th (9.57) out of the field of 46.  

Switzer also competed in the high jump invitation for the Bears, finishing fifth with a height of 1.60 meters. Elsewhere in the jumps, Brooke Jenkins finished in seventh place with a distance of 5.57 meters while Weaver ended the day in 20th place (5.12m). 

Competing in the 3,000-meter run, Margo Nea collected a lifetime best, finishing the race in 17th place with a time of 10:41.15. Mihane Nambara finished 10 spots behind her with a time of 11:04.35. 

To end the invitational, the Bears' 4x400-meter relay team of Obazughanmwen, Henry, Dar and Rhode raced a time of 3:53.16, good for a third-place finish. MSU's second relay team made up of Ifah, Farrington, Ngo Tonye Nyemeck and Halstead finished 12th out of the 24-team field, clocking a team time of 3:59.72. 

The Bears will resume their season next weekend at the Washburn Open & Multi on Friday and Saturday (Feb. 3-4) in Topeka, Kan. 

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