Alicia Arnold Delivers On Final Day Of MAC Championships

Saturday, May 16

Muncie, Ind.

TBA

Bowling Green State University

MAC Outdoor Championships

May 16, 2015 | Women's Track and Field

By: by Jason Knavel, Assistant Athletic Director for Athletic Communications

Final MAC Championship Results (.pdf)

Muncie, Ind. – Alicia Arnold earned two silver medals and a bronze on the final day of the Mid-American Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships as the Bowling Green State University Falcons contended for their first top half finish at the meet since 1999.

Four teams were in position to earn a sixth place finish at the 12-team meet heading into the final event, the 1600 relay. Ultimately, BGSU placed eighth in the event to finish ninth in the final standings with 48 points – just five points behind Western Michigan in sixth place.

"As a whole, I feel pretty good about the way we responded today," BGSU Track & Field Coach Lou Snelling said. "Most of the team responded well, especially the group that is coming back next year."

For Arnold, it was a coming out party as she became arguably the second-fastest sprinter in BGSU history by placing second in the 200 and third in the 100. She also ran the second leg of the 400 relay that placed second in a time of 45.77 seconds – the second-fastest in school history. Arnold's time of 11.72 seconds in the 100 made her the first Falcon to ever run the event that quickly twice in her career, adding to the 11.69 she ran in the prelims Friday.

In the 200, Arnold entered the meet ranked sixth in the MAC and was fifth after the prelims when she ran a personal best time of 24.04 seconds. In the finals, she got out of the blocks slowly but recovered on the home stretch to pass more than half the field on the way to a time of 23.99 seconds and a second-place finish. Only Jeanette Pettigrew has run the event quicker in BGSU history.

"This was her best day of any MAC Championship ever," Snelling said. "We get her back next year and I just can't say enough good things about her. She was a workhorse and put in a lot of different races and events this weekend."

Early on a rainy day in Muncie, the 400 relay team showed the depth that is being developed within the program as Brittany Sinclair, Arnold, Kera Lamotte and Dorresha Green posted a time of 45.77 seconds and earned a silver medal. After setting a school record of 45.72 earlier this year, the consistency of the unit shone through to earn eight team points.

"That really set the tone for a good final day," Snelling said. "From where we were last year and the year before, that really says a lot. Again, most of that 4x100 team is coming back next year, so that's really exciting."

In fact, that tone was also set early by a pair of field competitors who weren't expected to compete for a spot on the podium. Junior Tiera Parker struggled with injuries and consistency for much of the outdoor season and entered the MAC Championships seeded No. 15 in the triple jump. But she earned a spot into the finals with a personal best jump of 38-6.75 and then climbed past two more finalists when she leaped 39-5.75. Parker earned a spot on the medal stand for the third consecutive year with a sixth place finish.

Redshirt sophomore Kori Reiser also had a surprising day in the discus. She was seeded No. 12 entering the day, but her second throw of 160-feet-9 earned a spot in finals and it held up for a fifth place finish. It also puts her into position to qualify for an NCAA Regional bid

"Both Kori and Tiera have been up-and-down," Snelling said. "This is Tiera's first meet in over a month. She really came up big for us today. Kori came in 12^th and really put it together. Both of those are student-athletes who we really need to put it together next year."

Redshirt junior Maria Meredith came up just shy of scoring in the 1500. She entered the meet as the No. 15 seed and earned the 12^th and final spot in finals Friday. On Saturday, Meredith ran a personal best by five seconds, posting a time of 4:35.76 to finish ninth.

Redshirt sophomore Taylor Rambo finished in the top eight in an individual event for the first time in her career, placing eighth in the 400 with a time of 55.56 seconds, which stands as the second-fastest time of her career behind the 55.23 she ran in the prelims.

True freshman Kyla Paster just missed a bid to finals in the triple jump, leaping a career-best 37-7.75 to finish 10^th. She entered the meet as the No. 16 seed.

For much of the team, the season comes to a close with the conclusion of the meet, however a handful of Falcons will earn bids to the NCAA Regional meet beginning May 28. Qualifiers will be announced Thursday for the meet, held at the University of North Florida in Jacksonville, Fla.

MAC Championships
Team Scores: Akron 142, Eastern Michigan 128.5, Kent State 124, N. Illinois 107,
Central Michigan 69, Western Michigan 53, Toledo 52, Buffalo 51.5,
Bowling Green 48, Miami 24, Ohio 11, Ball State 9