ST. LOUIS - The Indiana State Men's and Women's Track and Field teams have both been tabbed to finish second this indoor season by coaches in the Missouri Valley Conference Indoor Preseason Poll, the Valley announced Tuesday.  
 
The Illinois State men and women have both been picked to win the league after sweeping the indoor championships last season. On the women's side, the Sycamores trail the Redbirds by seven votes while picking up one first place vote to Illinois State's five. The men also picked up one first place vote to go along with 89 points, 10 behind Illinois State.
 
2018-19 will be a year of new faces for the Trees as 44 athletes on the team have never competed in a track and field meet for Indiana State (23 men, 21 women). Despite the youth, both the men and women bring back key returners from a year ago who hope to push them to the top of the Valley.
 
With 23 athletes who are new to Sycamore track and field, youth will play a major role in the success of the season for the men. However, the ISU men do return three All-MVC performers from a year ago. In the field, sophomore Dearis Herron earned All-MVC honors in the triple jump at the indoor championships last season, taking third overall. He then followed that performance with a Valley runner-up finish in the triple jump at the outdoor championships.
 
Also in the field, Sam Overton will look to lead the throwers after placing eighth in the weight throw at indoors a year ago and winning the MVC title in the javelin at the outdoor meet with the third-best mark in school history of 58.76m (192-09).
 
Fresh off of his NCAA Championship appearance in cross country, senior Akis Medrano will look to lead the charge on the track. At the indoor championships in 2018, Medrano was the MVC runner-up in the 5K, but he really caught fire outdoor when he was the Valley champion in the 10K and All-MVC in the 5K.
 
Depth will play a key role for the blue and white on the women's side as the team returns 15 All-Valley honorees from a year ago between the indoor and outdoor seasons. Among those returners is Erin Reese, who was honored as both the Indoor and Outdoor Field Athlete of the Year in the conference in 2018. Reese claimed the indoor crown in the weight throw with the second-best toss in school history of 21.06m (69-01.25). During the outdoor season, the redshirt senior won the hammer throw championship with a school-record throw of 65.16m (213-09).
 
Fellow senior Cassuandra Roper will form a dynamic duo with Reese in the throws, as she also earned All-MVC honors last season. The Indianapolis, Ind.-native was the Missouri Valley runner-up in the shot put last indoor season and was the Valley champion in the shot put during the outdoor season.
 
In addition to strong returners in the field, the women also return three of the top-10 hurdlers in the conference. Last season Ayanna Morgan, Allana Ince and Caitlyn Redmon placed fourth, fifth and sixth in the 60-meter hurdles, respectively. Morgan also ran the top time in Sycamore history last season, clocking an impressive time of 8.39. Ince and Redmon both appear on the top-10 list as well.
 
Redshirt senior Brooke Moore will look to be the leader in the distance events after finishing fourth in the mile last season at the indoor championships and the MVC runner-up in the 1500-meter run at the outdoor championships.
 
Indiana State will open their season on Saturday, Dec. 3, with the Indiana State Early Bird in the first indoor meet at the new Indoor Track and Field Facility.
 
Men's MVC Preseason Poll
1. Illinois State - 75 (5)
2. Indiana State - 68 (1)
3. Northern Iowa - 67 (3)
4. Southern Illinois - 58
5. Bradley - 40
6. Drake - 39
7. Loyola - 31
8. Valparaiso - 18
9. Evansville - 9
 
Women's MVC Preseason Poll
1. Illinois State - 99 (9)
2. Indiana State - 89 (1)
3. Northern Iowa - 76
4. Southern Illinois - 74
5. Missouri State - 61
6. Loyola - 48
7. Drake - 37
8. Bradley - 36
9. Valparaiso - 18
10. Evansville - 12
 
For the latest information on the Sycamore Track & Field teams, make sure to check out GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media including Facebook and Twitter.