Lincoln, Neb. - Wichita State was as advertised, dominating the women's field while Indiana State claimed the men's title at the 2006 State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Cross Country Championship at Pioneers Park in Lincoln, Neb., on Saturday. 2005 women's runner-up Ashley Anklam of Drake moved up the podium to claim the 5k individual title in 17:36, four seconds ahead of the field and SIU's Mohamed Mohamed finished nine seconds in front for the men's championship in the 8k.
Anklam’s second race win of the season makes her the first Drake women’s runner to win the MVC title since 2000 while claiming her third all-conference honor in her senior campaign. With the win, Anklam is named 2006 Women’s Cross Country Athlete of the Year.
Wichita State placed four runners in the top-seven finishers, claiming second, fourth, sixth and seventh-place finishes en route to 38 points and easily outdistancing runners-up Southern Illinois by 42 points.
Chelsie Baldwin was the top finisher for the Shockers in 17:40, claiming runner-up honors. Sarah Becker and Mica Land repeated as all-conference runners with Kimber Lemon completing the WSU quartet in the top-seven runners.
In a tight battle for second, Southern Illinois clipped Missouri State at the line, 80-83.
SIU received an all-MVC run from Sarah Rinker, who finished in 10th-place for her second-consecutive all-conference honor. The Salukis put four runners in the top-20.
Kristin Wolkey’s fifth-place run led MSU to a third-place finish.
UNI landed a pair of runners in the top-10 as Traci Hawley and Caedryn Schrunk ran into third and eighth-place, respectively. The Panthers finished in fourth-place with 90 points.
Indiana State’s Laura Engle turned in a repeat all-MVC run, finishing in ninth as the Sycamores (121 points) came in fifth over the 5k.
Bradley (156), led by Sarah Westrick, was sixth. Kathleen Thompson paced Illinois State’s (160) seventh-place showing and Drake (187) took home seventh behind Anklam’s championship run.
Creighton (201) and Evansville (289) round out the team finishers.
In a competitive men’s race, Indiana State’s depth won out as the Sycamores put all five scoring runners in the top-20, including three top-10 finishes while scoring 50 points to top runners-up Drake by 13.
Two-time MVC Runner of the Week Mohamed Mohamed outclassed the field, pulling away for a nine-second win to earn his second all-conference honor in as many season and earning 2006 MVC Men’s Cross Country Athlete of the Year honors.
It was pre-race favorite Indiana State taking the team championship behind top-10 runs from two seniors and a freshman.
Sean Bowman turned in another all-conference run in 25:09 and fellow senior Justin Kunz was just three seconds behind as they finished in third and fourth-place to pace the ISU effort.
Scott Keeney, running in his first MVC Championship, covered the 8k course in 25:22 to finish with all-conference honors and an eighth-place finish.
The Drake Bulldogs tallied 63 points and finish as runners-up behind all-MVC runs from seventh-place finisher Nick Cooper and ninth-place Skyler Nesheim.
Mohamed was joined by Kevin Doran in the top-10 as the Salukis claimed third-place with 71 points.
Wichita State (121) and UNI (137) each had an all-conference runner as they completed the 8k in fourth and fifth, respectively.
Girts Azis repeated a top-10 finish from last season for the Shockers, finishing 2006 in sixth place.
UNI freshman Dorian Ulrey began his MVC Championship career with a second-place finish in 25:07.
Bradley’s Chris George paced the Braves (151) to a sixth-place team effort with his 12th-place run.
Evansville (161), Illinois State (168) and Creighton (213) round out the men’s finishers.
Nick Waninger, a three-time MVC Runner of the Week, earned his third all-MVC honor with a fifth-place finish.
The 2006 MVC Cross Country Coaches of the Year are Marc Burns of Wichita State (women's) and John McNichols of Indiana State (men's).
| 2006 State Farm MVC Women's Team Results |
Points |
| 1. Wichita State |
38 |
| 2. Southern Illinois |
80 |
| 3. Missouri State |
83 |
| 4. UNI |
90 |
| 5. Indiana State |
121 |
| 6. Bradley |
156 |
| 7. Illinois State |
160 |
| 8. Drake |
187 |
| 9. Creighton |
201 |
| 10. Evansville |
289 |
| 2006 State Farm MVC Men's Team Results |
Points |
| 1. Indiana State |
50 |
| 2. Drake |
63 |
| 3. Southern Illinois |
71 |
| 4. Wichita State |
121 |
| 5. UNI |
137 |
| 6. Bradley |
151 |
| 7. Evansville |
161 |
| 8. Illinois State |
168 |
| 9. Creighton |
213 |
2006 Missouri Valley Conference Specialty Awards:
Male Athlete of the Year: Mohamed Mohamed, Southern Illinois
Female Athlete of the Year: Ashley Anklam, Drake
Men's Coach of the Year: John McNichols, Indiana State
Women's Coach of the Year: Marc Burns, Wichita State
| 2006 State Farm MVC Championship Women's Results |
Time |
| 1. Ashley Anklam, Drake* |
17:36 |
| 2. Chelsie Baldwin, Wichita State |
17:40 |
| 3. Traci Hawley, UNI |
17:51 |
| 4. Sarah Becker, Wichita State* |
17:58 |
| 5. Kristin Wolkey, Missouri State* |
18:03 |
| 6. Mica Land, Wichita State* |
18:05 |
| 7. Kimber Lemon, Wichita State |
18:10 |
| 8. Caedryn Schrunk, UNI* |
18:13 |
| 9. Laura Engle, Indiana State* |
18:14 |
| 10. Sarah Rinker, Southern Illinois* |
18:21 |
* 2005 All-MVC Runner
| 2006 State Farm MVC Men's Championship Results |
Time |
| 1. Mohamed Mohamed, Southern Illinois* |
24:56 |
| 2. Dorian Ulrey, UNI |
25:07 |
| 3. Sean Bowman, Indiana State* |
25:09 |
| 4. Justin Kunz, Indiana State |
25:12 |
| 5. Nick Waninger, Evansville* |
25:15 |
| 6. Girts Azis, Wichita State* |
25:19 |
| 7. Nick Cooper, Drake |
25:21 |
| 8. Scott Keeney, Indiana State |
25:22 |
| 9. Skyler Nesheim, Drake |
25:25 |
| 10. Kevin Doran, Southern Illinois |
25:33 |
* 2005 All-MVC Runner