Lady Bison Indoor Track Season Preview

SHAWNEE – Oklahoma Baptist women's indoor track and field is set to begin another season this weekend, the first as full members of NCAA Division II.
 
The Lady Bison claimed national championships in indoor track and field the past two seasons while competing in the National Christian College Athletic Association. It is the most successful program on Bison Hill, having claimed an indoor championship in five consecutive seasons, dating back to 2013 when OBU was a member of the NAIA.
 
Dominance in women's track stretches all the way back to 2010. The Lady Bison were crowned indoor champions in seven of the last eight seasons and won an outdoor championship in 2012, making it eight straight calendar years that a women's track team at OBU has won a national championship.
 
Now that the team is competing at a different level, the standards are still that of a championship-caliber program but the expectations have been adjusted. A computer ranking from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association picked the Lady Bison to finish 60^th, based on past performances.
 
"Our goal would be to be inside the top 10 for the indoor championship," said head coach Ford Mastin. "We were not going to settle for that [ranking], we want to be top 10."
 
According to the USTFCCA list, McKae Mitchell has the ninth-fastest projected 200 meters time at 24.40. Kya Barnes was ranked 19^th in the 400 meters at 56.07, Kaylee Large Crowson is 21^st in the 5000 meters at 17:23.39 and Leah Molter is 21^st in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.68. Distance runner Sydney Lawrence is also expected to contribute in the 5000 meters.
 
"The women's team in cross country was the best team in our history. It won't be in indoor track, however, they could be maybe in the top five," said Mastin. "To do that, these five girls are going to be key."
 
Mastin and the coaching staff have worked on a path to score points at the national meet in select events.
 
"The strategy for this girl's group to be in the top-10 would be a mile relay placed in the top three, a distance medley maybe to make the national meet and score one point, and to score top eight in the distance medley relay," said Mastin. "And then those particular girls right there, we think can come up with enough points that we can be possibly over 20 points. If you're in that [range], you can be in the top-10."
 
Out of the athletes on the preseason list, none of them were seniors. However, senior Abby Hoover redshirted last season and was not eligible for the performance list. Mastin thinks that other upperclassmen will also have an impact on the team's success.
 
"Abby would be on that list if she had competed last season. Another girl that would be on a relay that qualifies, Breanna Hurlbut, is just a tremendous leader. She's a wonderful leader that we'll miss severely next year. But most of those people that are in that preseason ranking, all of them are either a sophomore or a junior," added Mastin.
 
Another sophomore, Tesa Potter, had a strong freshman year and continues to improve, according to Mastin.
 
"[Tesa] is just having an outstanding year and there's a chance she could qualify in the 800 or help the distance medley team make it," said Mastin.
 
The incoming class of freshmen will also have some athletes that could break out and compete for the team at the national championship.
 
"We added a decent freshmen class, there are four girls that we think will be a big impact," remarked Mastin.
 
Pittsburg State will host the 2018 NCAA Division II Indoor Track and Field National Championship in Pittsburg, Kansas, on March 9-10. OBU will open the season at the Boo Rogers Combined / Crimson & Gold Invitational, hosted by Pittsburg State, on Dec. 9. The Lady Bison will return to Pittsburg on Jan. 27 for the Pittsburg State Invitational and finally on Feb. 9-10 for the Gorilla Classic. The choice to run there often was a conscious decision by the coaching staff.
 
"It's not only intentional but there is always good competition there, it is a great facility. It's a 300-meter track which allows you to run faster and also it helps our budget, it's only three and a half hours away," explained Mastin.
 
Other indoor meets for the Lady Bison will include several Division I schools. OBU will compete at Wichita State, Nebraska and the University of Oklahoma.   
 
"The athletes will have to qualify individually for those meets, but I look for a large number to make that scratch list and get to compete against Big 10 and Big 12 athletes and be competitive on that level," said Mastin. "We try to knock off some people that don't think we can win and you always get good performances when that happens."
 
With all the changes this season, Mastin boiled down what he would like to see from his team to three tangible goals.
 
"The three goals would be to finish in the top-10, to have someone make All-America and to make it so we can need more than a car to get to the national meet. That would mean more than five girls qualifying," remarked Mastin. "I like their commitment, their consistency, their attentiveness to detail. Usually, when things like that happen, there's going to be the results that you want."