TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – The Sycamores managed to fight through the scorching heat at day three of the 2018 MVC Championships, as the women finished second and the men third overall.
 
The Northern Iowa men claimed the title on Sunday with 170 points, just edging out Illinois State who finished with 169 points. Indiana State finished third with 143 points. On the women's side, Illinois State claimed the crown with 191.5 points and Southern Illinois and Indiana State tied for second at 160 points.
 
"They did a tremendous job," head coach Angela Martin said. "I think we had so much growth as a team this year, especially from last year to now. They have become more family, they've worked and they're fighting for each other. If something didn't go great, somebody else stepped up and it was really hard. We thought we had a chance to win them both, but Illinois State, Northern Iowa on the guy's side, and Southern Illinois on the girl's side all had tremendous meets. We did too, but it just wasn't quite enough."
 
Senior Brittany Neeley ensured she would go out on top of both the 1500-meter run and 800-meter run on Sunday, as she claimed the MVC Outdoor championship in both events. In the 1500-meter run, Neeley took home the gold with a time of 4:27.50, overtaking her teammate Brooke Moore, by three seconds for the win. Moore finished with All-MVC honors for the event with a time of 4:30.56. Jessi Conley also scored in the event, placing fifth with a time of 4:34.54.
 
Neeley then followed up that performance with an even more dominant showing in the women's 800. She ran a new personal-best time of 2:06.77 and it is also the fifth-best time in ISU history, while defeating UNI distance standout Brette Correy. Imani Davis managed to climb the Indiana State top-10 as well, taking fourth with the eighth-best time in school history at 2:09.88.
 
The women's 5K featured a star studded lineup with Taylor Austin for the Sycamores and Lindsey Brewis and Emma Hatch from Loyola. Those three ladies were a part of the lead pack from start to finish, all within striking distance of each other. On the bell lap, Austin took the lead over Brewis, but Brewis managed to take it back heading into the last 200 meters. With only 100 meters to go, Austin shifted into a new gear and outlasted Brewis for the title, clocking a time of 17:12.22 for her first ever win over Brewis in an event longer than a 3K and an MVC championship.
 
Sprinting to his first MVC championship on Sunday was Tristan Parmley. The upset occurred in the 100-meter dash, where Illinois State's Anderson Devonish was the favorite to earn the title, but Parmley ran an incredible race that concluded with a time of 10.34 to Devonish's 10.37 for the MVC championship. Parmley's time moves him into 43rd in the NCAA East Regional. Jarel Shaw also picked up points for the Sycamores in the 100-meter dash, finishing in seventh at 10.76.
 
12 other Sycamores earned All-MVC honors on Sunday, with the women's 4X100-meter relay team starting the day off right on the track. The team, made up of Shana Cooper, DeAndra Greer, Oschtisha Jackson and Faith Lindsey, ended the race in third place after clocking a time of 45.49, which is ninth in school history.
 
A large amount of points was brought in by the Sycamore hurdlers, with Allana Ince leading the way. Ince earned All-MVC honors by finishing third with a lifetime-best and fourth-best time in ISU history of 13.76. Right behind her was Ayanna Morgan, claiming the fourth position with the fifth overall time in school history of 13.77. Caitlyn Redmon also tallied points for the Sycamores by placing sixth at 14.14.
 
Less than a second away from an MVC championship, Oschtisha Jackson still put on a phenominal performance in the 400-meter dash for the Sycamore women. She ended up walking away with second place, All-MVC honors and is now sixth all-time in school history with a time of 54 seconds flat. Jackson didn't stop there, as she also scored points in the women's 200-meter dash by finishing sixth with a time of 23.93, earning the seventh-best spot in Indiana State history.
 
The last of the All-MVC honors for the women came in the women's 4X400-meter relay, where Jackson, Davis, Ahmanah Woods and Neeley finished in the runner-up position with an impressive time of 3:39.27 to grab the third-best time in Sycamore history.
 
After winning the men's 10K title on Friday night, distance star Akis Medrano finished third in the men's 5K. Going head-to-head with the conference's best, Medrano rose to the occasion and ran a strong race through less than favorable track condition, crossing the line at 14:58.71, four seconds in front of fourth place.
 
Only one Sycamore earned All-MVC honors in the field today. The freshman, Dearis Herron, took home second place in the triple jump with a huge personal-best jump of 14.85 (48-08.75), falling only to Marcellus Fletcher of Southern Illinois. As a freshman, Herron has now earned All-MVC honors at both the indoor and outdoor championships.
 
Herron wasn't alone in the scoring for the men's triple jump. Senior jumper Gino Brown recorded a season-best jump of 14.44m (47-04.50) en route to a fourth place finish, and fellow freshman Myles Aldridge earned a sixth place finish at 13.97m (45-10.00).
 
Elsewhere in the field for the men, Grant Harris brought home some points by placing fifth in the men's discus throw with a career-best throw 48.59m (159-05). Riley Smith and Trey Kennedy also earned points for the Indiana State men, placing fourth and fifth in the pole vault with the same personal-best mark of 4.98m (16-04.00).
 
Two women scored points in the field for ISU. A familiar name this weekend, Erin Reese, claimed the fifth position in the women's discus throw with a toss of 47.05m (154-04) after scoring in the shot put on Saturday and winning the hammer throw on Sunday. Tasjia Thomas also scored in the field, taking sixth place in the triple jump with a jump of 11.77m (38-07.50).
 
On the track for the women, DeAndra Greer made an appearance in the sprints multiple time. Greer placed fifth in the 100-meter dash with the sixth-best time in school history of 11.58. Cooper also took home points in the 100-meter dash, finishing seventh at 11.87. Later in the 200-meter dash, Greer also took fifth at 23.78, which is the seventh-best time in Sycamore history.
 
Young talent continued to shine in both the men's and women' 400-meter hurdles. Emily Robertson finished seventh on the women's side, crossing the line at 1:01.95, tied for eighth overall in Indiana State history. The Barbados native, Stephen Griffith, took sixth on the men's side with a time of 53.10, less than a second away from fifth.
 
Continuing to make a difference, Avery Taylor managed to score points in the men's 110-meter hurdles, despite the absence of Daley Carter. Taylor ran a lifetime-best 14.50 in the event, taking fifth overall.
 
Toughness was the theme of the men's 1500-meter run. Quentin Pierce took a tumble on the second-to-last lap of the contest, but managed to fight his way back into scoring position, placing seventh in the end with a time of 3:55.08.
 
Both of the men's relay teams managed to score points on Sunday. The 4X100-meter relay team composed of Shaw, Parmley, Scott Schreiber and Jordan Moothery ended up finishing in fourth with a tie of 40.94, while the 4X400 relay team of Rhett Blake, CJ Anyaebunam, Charles Sykes and Griffith placed fifth at 3:12.48.
 
While the Sycamore's season has come to a close, a few individuals will wait to find out if they will be making the trip down to Tampa, Fla. for the NCAA East Preliminary round from May 24-26.
 
Final Men's Team Scores:
1. UNI – 170
2. Illinois State – 169
3. Indiana State – 143
4. Southern Illinois – 125
5. Drake – 74
6. Bradley – 57
7. Loyola – 53
8. Valparaiso – 22
9. Evansville - 4
 
Final Women's Team Scores:
1. Illinois State – 191.5
2. Indiana State – 160
2. Southern Illinois – 160
4. UNI – 113.5
5. Missouri State – 106
6. Loyola – 41
7. Drake – 23
8. Bradley – 17
9. Valparaiso – 5
10. Evansville – 0
 
Men's Day Three Champions:
Tristan Parmley – 100-Meter Dash
 
Women's Day Three Champions:
Taylor Austin – 5K
Brittany Neeley – 800-Meter Run, 1500-Meter Run
 
Men's Day Three All-MVC:
Dearis Herron – Triple Jump, second
Akis Medrano – 5K, third
 
Women's Day Three All-MVC:
Oschtisha Jackson – 400-Meter Dash, second
Jackson, Davis, Woods, Neeley – 4X400-Meter Relay, second
Brooke Moore – 1500-Meter Run, second
Cooper, Greer, Jackson, Lindsey – 4X100-Meter Relay, third
Allana Ince – 100-Meter Hurdles, third
 
Men's Day Three Scorers:
Gino Brown – Triple Jump, fourth
Tristan Parmley – 200-Meter Dash, fourth
Shaw, Parmley, Schreiber, Moothery – 4X100-Meter Relay, fourth
Riley Smith – Pole Vault, fourth
Blake, Anyaebunam, Sykes, Griffith – 4X400-Meter Relay, fifth
Grant Harris – Discus Throw, fifth
Trey Kennedy – Pole Vault, fifth
Avery Taylor – 110-Meter Hurdles, fifth
Myles Aldridge – Triple Jump, sixth
Stephen Griffith – 400-Meter Hurdles, sixth
Quentin Pierce – 1500-Meter Run, seventh
Jarel Shaw – 100-Meter Dash, seventh
 
Women's Day Three Scorers:
Imani Davis – 800-Meter Run, fourth
Ayanna Morgan – 100-Meter Hurdles, fourth
Jessi Conley – 1500-Meter Run, fifth
DeAndra Greer – 100-Meter Dash, fifth; 200-Meter Dash, fifth
Erin Reese – Discus Throw, fifth
Oschtisha Jackson – 200-Meter Dash, sixth
Caitlyn Redmon – 100-Meter Hurdles, sixth
Tasjia Thomas – Triple Jump, sixth
Shana Cooper – 100-Meter Dash, seventh
Emily Robertson – 400-Meter Hurdles, seventh
 
Men's Day Two Champions:
Jaime Murtagh – High Jump
Scott Schreiber – Long Jump
 
Women's Day Two Champions:
Taylor Austin – 3000-Meter Steeplechase
Cassaundra Roper – Shot Put
 
Men's Day Two Scorers:
Myles Aldridge – Long Jump, fifth
Michael Boger – Decathlon, sixth
Ryan Cash – 3000-Meter Steeplechase, fourth
Dearis Herron – Long Jump, sixth
Tyler Owen – High Jump, sixth
Josh Perry – Decathlon, sixth
Avery Taylor – High Jump, fifth
 
Women's Day Two Scorers:
Ayanna Morgan – Heptathlon, sixth
Caitlyn Redmon – Long Jump, fifth; High Jump, eighth
Erin Reese – Shot Put, fifth
 
Men's Day One MVC Champions:
Akis Medrano – 10K
Sam Overton – Javelin Throw
 
Women's Day One MVC Champions
Erin Reese – Hammer Throw
 
Men's Day One All-MVC:
Hunter Schuman – Hammer Throw, third
 
Women's Day One All-MVC:
Kim Jackson – Pole Vault, second
 
Men's Day One Scorers:
Cam Trout – 10K, fifth
 
Women's Day One Scorers:
Emily Brady – Pole Vault, sixth
Megan Doty – 10K, eighth
 
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.