EMPORIA, Kan. – The MIAA is one of if not the best track and field conference in NCAA Division II and this weekend's MIAA Outdoor Championships on Emporia State's Golden Oval of Witten Track at Welch Stadium did nothing to detract from that reputation.
During the course of the three day championship event there were a total of 250 NCAA Division II Provisional Qualifying marks, of which 125 moved up on the Division II list for the national meet. Welch Stadium/Witten Track has hosted three national championship meets and there were four facility records broken to go with five meet records.
The biggest mark of the meet may have been belonged to Louis Rollins of Pittsburg State. He ran 13.43 on Saturday in the prelims of the men's 110m hurdles in to rank #1 in NCAA Division II this season, #2 all-time in NCAA Division II history, #5 among all collegiate athletes this season and #16 in the world at the present time. He broke the MIAA meet record of 13.81 set by Pittsburg State's James McCarty in 1997 and the Welch Stadium record of 13.66 set by Lincoln's Decosma Wright at the 2006 NCAA Championships. The only person faster than him in NCAA Division II history is Bryan Amos of Abilene Christian who ran 13.37 on May 12, 1994. He won the event on Sunday with a time of 13.50 which would have also broken the meet and stadium records.
Lincoln's Kelly-Ann Beckford set meet and stadium records in the women's 800m. Her time of 2:06.41 broke the MIAA Championships record of 2:07.43 set in 2015 by Lincoln's Jhevere Hall and the Welch Stadium record of 2:08.15 set by Western Colorado's Elva Dryer at the 1995 NCAA Championships. She is currently ranked #3 in Division II.
Beckford also had a part in breaking the stadium record in the women's 4x400m relay. She joined Chrissani May, Maria Diamond and Shantae George to run 3:38.77 to break the Blue Tigers own Welch Stadium record of 3:40.55 set in 2003.
The oldest record to fall over the weekend came in the men's 3000m steeplechase. Reece Smith of Northwest Missouri ran 8:42.50 to break the 38 year old meet record of 8:44.34 set by Southeast Missouri's Mike Vanata in 1984. It was the third oldest MIAA record on the books entering the weekend. He is currently ranked #3 in Division II.
Missouri Western is one of the newest track & field programs in the MIAA but the Griffons Madison Nash broke one of the oldest stadium records for the women. She won the 10,000m in 35:22.29 to surpass Tumaini Urio of Western Colorado's time of 35:48.14 set at the 1995 NCAA Championships. She is currently ranked #25 in NCAA Division II.
Lincoln's Reuben Nichols moved to #1 in Division II this season with a meet record of 46.15 in the men's 400m. He broke the previous record of 46.27 set by Faedian Royes, also of Lincoln, in 2017.
Troy White of Lincoln broke the MIAA record in the 400m hurdles with a time of 50.79 that bettered Sean Bergstedt of Truman's record of 50.82 set in 2007. White is currently ranked #3 in Division II.
The MIAA and Lone Star Conference are the only two NCAA Division II conferences with at least one provisional qualifying mark in every event for both the men and women. The MIAA has at least two provisionals in 41 of 42 combined events between the men and women and is the only league to have multiple provisional qualifiers in every men's event.
The MIAA has a total of 264 provisional qualifying marks this season, 132 for the men and 132 for the women. Every school but Rogers State has multiple provisional qualifiers with at least three on each team.
Five athletes with the top mark in NCAA Division II are from the MIAA at this time. In addition eight MIAA athletes are ranked second in the nation. The league has at least one person ranked in the top 16 nationally in every men's event and in 18 of 21 women's events. As a conference the MIAA has seven of the top 16 marks in the nation in the women's javelin and six of the top 16 in the women's 100m hurdles, the men's 110m hurdles, the men's javelin and the women's heptathlon. Ten of the 12 schools that sponsor track and field have at least one mark in the top 16 nationally.
A total of 15 events have at least eight provisional qualifiers from the MIAA led by the men's javelin with 14 provisional marks on the season. Seven events have at least ten provisional qualifiers - the men's and women's 100m, the women's 100m hurdles and pole vault, the men's long jump, discus and javelin.
Athletes from across the MIAA will have one last weekend to improve their standings with last chance meets this weekend.
This was the sixth time in the last 25 years Emporia State has played host to the MIAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Welch Stadium and Zola Witten Track have hosted more MIAA Outdoor Championships than any other venue in the league over the last 25 years. Emporia State is set to host the 2024 and 2026 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships as well. It will be the fourth and fifth time that Welch Stadium has played host to the national championships the most of any venue since the NCAA began holding women's championships in 1982.
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Curtsey of Don Weast, Emporia State Associate Athletic Director/Media Relations