St. Louis hosts 2011 USATF Annual Meeting and Hall of Fame Induction

St. Lous will play host to two big USA Track and Field in the next three months as the USATF Annual Meeting begins today in the ‘Lou. In February St. Louis will host the USATF Cross Country Championships for the first of two consecutive years. The cross country races are the national championships and will determine the world championship junior and senior teams.

Besides meetings of coaches, officials, and administors of the sport, there is also an exhibitior expo, Hall of Fame Banquet and Induction, and the Market Street Mile, a series of age-group related races.

This is the third time the Show Me State will host the annual meeting in its 32 years. St. Louis also hosted in 1994 and Kansas City hosted in 2002.

Several Hall of Fame Inductees come from just across the Missouri Border. Craig Virgin, the legendary distance runner, is from just across the St. Louis border in Lebanon Illinois. Maurice Greene, one of the top American sprinters of all-time is from Kansas City, Kansas, and Bob Timmons was the long time University of Kansas Coach. Also Jackie Joyner Kersee is schedule to be in attendance. The East St. Louis native is one of the greatest female athletes of all-time as standout heptathlete and long jumper. We’ll try to catch up with them and hear about what they’re doing and about their careers.

 Annual Meeting page: http://www.usatf.org/events/2011/AnnualMeeting/index.asp

Special Events and Highlights: http://www.usatf.org/events/2011/AnnualMeeting/highlights.asp

If you’re interested in running the Market Street Mile here's info:

http://www.onestoprace.com/search/event.aspx?event=8b4dbda1-f8e6-49eb-8330-e6fbd96ae090.aspx

RACE MORNING SCHEDULE:

6:30 - Packet Pickup Opens

7:20 - Open Women & Men Wheelchair

7:30 - Open Women & Men 70+

7:33 - Open Women & Men 60-69

7:36 - Open Women & Men 50-59

7:39 - Open Women & Men 40-49

7:42 - Open Women & Men 30-39

7:45 - Open Women & Men 20-29

7:48 - Girls & Boys 13-19

7:51 - Girls & Boys 12 & Under (may be accompanied by a registered or unregistered adult)

8:10ish - Elite Women (introductions started immediately after the youth races are finishes)

8:20ish - Elite Men (introductions started immediately after the elite women's race finishes)

8:30ish - Awards Ceremony

Also exhibitors will be there selling stuff and USATF will be there trying to clear out there warehouse of inventory from its store, including clothing etc. : http://www.usatf.org/events/2011/AnnualMeeting/highlights.asp

Foot Locker Shocker!!! Mello qualifies! Long & Kauppila just miss.

Hickman High School junior Nicole Mello had the best race of her career Saturday placing seventh in the Girls Seeded race at the Foot Locker Cross Country Midwest Regional and qualifying for the 40 girl field of the 33rd Foot Locker National Championships. The seventh place finish comes as a surprise from the Kewpie from Columbia.

Missouri All-Time Kinney Foot Locker High School Cross Country Nationals Finalists

Missouri All-Time Kinney Foot Locker High School Cross Country Nationals Finalists

© Missouri Track Fanatic

The Championships were known as the Kinney Cross Country Championships from 1979 – 1992 and the Foot Locker Cross Country Championships from 1993 – present.

The Foot Locker website says that from 1979 – 1980 five qualifiers from five regions =25 made it to Nationals. The website’s results seem to suggest something different. The 1979 results only list the top ten while the 1980 results show 32 finishers in each race. From 1981 – 2003 there were 38 National qualifiers, normally 8 from each of four regions. But in 1981 it appears there were 9 Midwest girls and only 7 Northeast girls. Also in 1981 there were 9 South region boys while there was one unknown non-finisher. In 1982 there were just 6 Northeast boys while there were 10 boys from the South. Things seemed to even out in 1983, with 8 qualifiers from each region. In 2004 the field was expanded to 40 National qualifiers, 10 from each region. For a long time now there have been four regions: Northeast, South, Midwest, and West.

2011 Footlocker Cross Country Midwest Regionals

2011 Footlocker Cross Country Midwest Regionals

Saturday is the Footlocker Cross Country Midwest Regional Meet in Kenosha Wisconsin. This is the 33rd year for the national high school cross country championship that is made up of four regional meets where the top 10 finishers in the boys and girls seeded races qualify for the National Finals in San Diego December 10. The meet's original title sponsor was Kinney Shoes and eventually became Footlocker. 

Six Missourians set for 2011 NCAA DI Cross Country Nationals

Six Missourians are set for 2011 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships 

at Terre Haute Indiana's LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course.

Redshirt junior Eric Fernandez makes his third appearance for the Arkansas Razorbacks. Although this is the first time in many years the Hogs didn't qualify as a team. The 15th ranked Hogs finished 3rd at regionals but didn't receive an at-large berth. Fernandez was runner-up at the South Central Regional and will look to earn his first All-American honor. Freshman Jessica Jackson will look to help the Lady Razorbacks seek a top 10 finish. The Ladybacks are ranked 14th going into the meet and Jackson won the conference rookie of the week honor atleast three times this season.

Tulsa's Sam Masters steps in for teammate Danny Thater for Tulsa Monday. The Hickman grad sat out regionals  but is scheduled to run the 10k championship race today in place of Thater who ran at regionals. Tulsa is ranked 21st. Northern Arizona freshman Caleb Hoover will look to help the 13th ranked Lumberjacks to a top 10 finish. Hoover joins a small list of Missouri men to run at the DI National Meet as a freshman.

UMKC's Cosmas Ayabei will experience his first national meet and be in search of a top 40 finish for All-American honors. The Kenyan native earned an automatic bid last week with his 7th place finish at regionals.

Florida State freshman Collen Quigley is looking to help the Seminoles to their first National Title. After runner-up finishes the last two years, the Noles have reloaded and are ranked #1 but should face a fierce battle with two-time defending champ Villanova, Georgetown, Washington, and Oregon.

Sadly Emily Sisson won't be making an appearance in Terre Haute. The Providence sophomore who transferred from Wisconsin is on a loaded Friars team that was ranked in the top 5 most of the season. Injuries and illness cost Providence a chance at a national title though. Sisson was kept out of Regionals while recovering from illness and the Friars didn't cruise to a qualifying spot like expected. Another of their top runners who also was an All-American last year had a tough race before getting word this week she's got a stress fracture.

It's always an exciting day at Nationals, a lot of action and a lot on the line in just an hour and a half.

Tegenkamp, Sialo & Volkert earn All-American Honors at 2011 DII XC Nationals

2011 NCAA DII Cross Country National Championships Missouri Review

Tegenkamp, Sialo and Volkert earn All-American Honors at DII National Championships

Three of the four Missourians competing at the NCAA Division II Cross Country National Championships Saturday earned All-American Honors with their top 40 finishes.

Marlee Tegenkamp, the Missouri Southern junior from Lee’s Summit joined her brother Matt in the Tegenkamp All-American Club with her 30^th place finish. She battled the cold and snow in Spokane Washington to cover the 6k course in 22:08. Neely Speence, a Shippensburg senior who’s coached by her father Steve- a 1992 US Olympic Marathoner and 1991 World Champs Marathon bronze medalists, captured another national title crusing to 14 second victory in 20:53. Saturday’s performance improves upon Tegenkamp’s 46^th place finish last year and her 68^th place finish in 2009 when she was the fifth runner helping the Missouri Southern Lady Lions to a third place team trophy.

Wash U women claim NCAA DIII National Title! Men take 3rd!!

Congratulations to Coach Jeff Stiles and the Washington University (St. Louis) Bears and Lady Bears! The Lady Bears claimed their first NCAA Division III Cross Country National Championship Saturday in Winneconne Wisconsin. The 2nd ranked ladies cruised to a victory scoring 70 points. Top ranked Middlebury was 2nd with 111 points while 3rd ranked Williams was third with 153. Washington was lead by sr Erica Jackey who took 4th in 21:04, 12 seconds behind winner Chiara Del Piccolo of Williams. The Bears put three more in the top 23 and their fifth at 40th.  They had just a 44 second spread 1-5.

The Wash U men earned their first national team trophy with a third place finish. The rankings rang true 1-3 on the men side as North Central (Coach Stiles alma mater) claimed another national title scoring 110 points. Haverford scored 172 for second and the Bears were third with 206. Washington senior Michael Burnstein led the bears with a 10th place finish covering the 8k course in 24:25.

2011 NAIA Cross Country Nationals

The 56th Annual Men’s and 32nd Annual Women’s event will take place at the Fort Vancouver National Historic Site in Vancouver, Wash., on Nov. 19. 

The men’s 8K championship race will start at 10:30 a.m. PST, 

followed by the women’s 5K run at 11:45 a.m.

Women's Championships inf: http://naia.cstv.com/sports/w-xc/spec-rel/082211aaa.html

Men's Championships info:http://naia.cstv.com/sports/m-xc/spec-rel/082211aab.html

Host info: http://www.cascadeconference.org/index.aspx?tab=crosscountry&path=championships

Missouri Qualifiers or Missouri School conferences Qualifiers:

2011 NCAA DII Cross Country Nationals

Saturday November 19, 2011

Plates Ferry Park

Spokane, Washington

Hosted by The Great Northwest Athletic Conference and the Spokane Regional Sports Commission

Women’s 6k 1 p.m. CST

Men’s 10k    2 p.m. CST

http://www.ncaa.com/championships/cross-country-women/d2

Missouri and MIAA Qualifiers 

Women’s Qualifying Teams -24

Individuals - 19

South Central Automatic Qualifier

Marlee Tegenkamp      Jr Missouri Southern   Lee’s Summit High School

Men’s Qualifying Teams -24

Individuals -19

Dalton Moberly           Sr Central Missouri     Kearney High School

Laban Sialo                 Sr Central Missouri     Eldoret Kenya

Adam Volkert             Jr Pittsburg State         Lee’ Summit High School

Florida Southern Eric Larson

Coached by former Fort Osage and Central Missouri runner Jamie Moreno

Moreno coached at Warrensburg High School and Central Missouri before starting the program at Williams Woods University in Fulton. He’s in his fourth season as Head Coach at Florida Southern

Missouri Southern's Marlee Tegenkamp is looking for her first All-American Honors and join her brother Matt to share those accolades in the family. Her brothers Matt and Marc also ran at Lee's Summit High School before college careers at Wisconsin and Missouri State. Marlee's sister-in-law adds to the family running background, Ashley Sanders-Tegenkamp enjoyed a standout career at Clinton and Missouri State. 

This appears to be the first time in many years that a Missouri team isn't sending a mens or womens to the DII National Meet. 

Marlee Tegenkamp is looking to earn her first All-American honors. Two years ago she helped the Missouri Southern Lady Lions earn a third place team trophy.

2011 NCAA DIII Cross Country Nationals: WashU Bears look for title and trophy

In his 11th year at Washington University in St. Louis Coach Jeff Stiles has the Lady Bears on the verge of their first national championship and the Bears on the verge of their first ever national top four trophy.

The Lady Bears race is at 11am CST while the men follow.
Watch live online:http://www.ncaa.com/championship/liveplayer/player?gameId=213383

Women win Regionals, Men runner-up:
http://bearsports.wustl.edu/Sports/Content/Pages/cross11-12-11.aspx
Women's Midwest Regional Results:http://www.augustana.edu/athletics/wxcountry/stats/2011ncaamidwestregionalresultswomen.htm
Men's Midwest Regional Results: http://www.augustana.edu/athletics/mxcountry/stats/2011ncaamidwestregionalresults.htm
10 Bears All Region, Stiles Women's Region Coach of Year:http://bearsports.wustl.edu/Sports/Content/Pages/cross11-15-11.aspx

Interview with Coach Jeff Stiles before 2011 NCAA Division III Cross Country Nationals

Cross Country Videos: Race action and Interviews

It's been a busy month with little time to actually publish meet coverage. I'm working to catch up, but in the mean time don't miss out on race and interview videos at my youtube channel: http://www.youtube.com/motrackfanatic

Recent Meets:
Missouri High School Class 4 District 2 at Parkway Central in Chesterfield October 22
Missouri High School Class 3 District 2 & 3 at Jefferson Barracks in St. Louis October 29
Missouri High School State Cross Country Championships at Oak Hills in Jefferson City November 5

NCAA DI Cross Country Midwest Regional at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb November 12
Nike Cross Country Midwest Regional at Lavern Gibson XC Course in Terre Haute, Indiana November 13