Pittsburg State jumped, vaulted and hurdled its way to a third straight women’s team championship Sunday afternoon in the MIAA Outdoor Track and Field Championship at the Russ Jewett Outdoor Track and Field Complex.
The Gorillas, who scored in all but one event on the final day, accumulated 208 points. Missouri Southern edged Northwest Missouri 123.5-123 for second place, and Central Missouri was fourth with 102.
Pittsburg State also captured the league’s “Triple Crown” for the third year in a row after also winning the cross country and indoor track and field championships earlier in the school year.
“The women did a phenomenal job,” coach Kyle Rutledge said. “The women did a much better job from start to finish, being dialed in on the earlier days. Most of the time the women are locked in … guys are just guys being guys.”
More than 60 percent of the Gorillas’ points came in five events.
A 1-2-3-4 finish in the triple jump produced 29 points. Lily Brown won the event at 41 feet, 3.75 inches, followed by teammates Alexa Binkley, Makayla Pavelka and Kinley Smith. And remember, PSU went 1-2-3-4-5 in the indoor championship two months ago.
“I have a pretty good triple jump coach, right?” Rutledge said with a grin. “Coach (Jesse) Miller does an outstanding job. It’s impressive what he’s done with the high jump, the triple, the long jump.”
The Gorilla long jumpers almost swept the top-5 spots, led by winner Blakelee Winn at 20-9. Jazmine Williamson placed second, and Paelka and Brooklyn Baker were fourth and fifth, respectively.
Bethany Umbarger won the high jump at 5-8.75, followed by Williamson in second and Kyra Heald in fourth.
PSU’s pole vaulters claimed five of the eight scoring places, led by champion Breanne Peters at 14-0.50. Older sister Belle Peters finished third, Cannon Booker fourth, Eva Williams fifth and Quincey Turner eighth.
And in the 100-meter hurdles, PSU finished 1-2-3 with Zyra Shivers (13.40), Kayvon Nubine and Winn.
The Gorillas’ Lorna Rae Pierce placed second in the 5,000, and the 4x400 relay of Nikole Cozart, Isabel Abdouch, Kinleigh Hall and Mikah Edwards was second.
Other third places went to Kiara Brown in ther 200, Edwards in the 400, Jakayla Morgan in the 400 hurdles, Brown in the heptathlon and the 4x100 relay of Abdouch, Brown, Cozort and Winn.
“We had several big PRs (personal records), and that’s what makes you championship worthy,” Rutledge said. “You’re always going to have your big dogs who do what they need to do. The ones who continue to plug away and have those big jolts of energy where we didn’t expect to have it or score points for the team where we weren’t supposed to have it, that’s what makes it enjoyable. That’s what makes this team so special.
“Being a balanced program, that’s why we continue to be successful,” Rutledge said. “You have to have balance. You have to have people buy in to what they’re doing and do their job at a high level. The biggest thing is to buy into each other as a team.”
