KEVIN JENISON
GoSycamores.com
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. ? Indiana State University finished third in the race for the 2008-2009 John Coughlan MVC Track & Cross Country Championship Cup, which was won by Southern Illinois, but the Sycamores remain one of the dominant schools in the Missouri Valley Conference. The results were released at the Missouri Valley Conference cross country, track & field coaches summer meeting.
The Coughlan Cup is an “all-sports trophy” for Missouri Valley Conference cross country and track & field teams with points awarded based on a team's finish in men and women's cross country, indoor track and field, and outdoor track and field championship meets.
The cup was named by Steve Rainbolt of Wichita State in honor of John Coughlan, long time Illinois State coach who is the only coach in MVC history to have won all six championships in his career as a head coach.
Southern Illinois won the 2008-2009 cup after securing championships in men's cross country, women's indoor track & field, and women's outdoor track & field. The Salukis were second in men's outdoor track & field, third in men's indoor track & field, and fourth in women's cross country.
Indiana State finished third with second place finishes in men's cross country and men's indoor track & field. The Sycamores were third in both the men's and women's outdoor track & field championships, fourth in the indoor women's track & field championship, and sixth in women's cross country.
Indiana State has won six Coughlan Cups over the past 17 years, the most of any Missouri Valley Conference school. Wichita State, Northern Iowa and Southern Illinois have three each with Illinois State winning two.
Over the past 17 years, the Sycamores have been the dominant school of the six championships in the Missouri Valley with an average place finish of 3.08 and a 17-year point total of 314.5. Northern Iowa is second with 363.5 points and an average finish of 3.56. The Indiana State men have an average finish of 2.85 during that time period with a total of 145.5 points, second best in the conference. The Sycamore women have an average finish of 3.31 and 169 points, also second best in the conference.
Over the past five years, however, Indiana State is third with 102.5 points and an average finish of 3.42. The Sycamore men have an average finish of 2.23 and 33.5 points, best in the conference, while the ISU women have an average finish of 4.60 and 69 points, sixth best in the conference.
