NORMAL, Ill. -- Junior Mary Goldkamp (Florissant, Mo./McCluer North) won the women's 1,500 meters and senior Katie Nowak (Avon, Lake, Ohio/Avon Lake) set a school outdoor record in the 800 meters to wrap up competition at the 2010 State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championship.
Goldkamp ran a time of 4:27.67 to win the 1,500 meters, edging Wichita State's Tonya Nero who crossed the line at 4:28.70. The individual title was the first for a Bradley competitor at the MVC Outdoor Championship since Mary Ellen Hill-Shupbach won the 10,000 meters in 2000 and also marked the first Bradley title in the 1,500 meters. The Braves had five other competitors in the field and three individuals set season-bests led by senior Shannon Seyller (Harvard, Ill./Harvard) who finished 15th at 4:48.04.
While Goldkamp also scored in the 800 meter finals, Nowak was the headliner in the event as she set a new school record. Northern Iowa's Holli Hosch won the title with an MVC Outdoor Championship record of 2:09.08 to beat out Nowak, who broke Goldkamp's school record of 2:11.33. Nowak narrowly missed the 800 title, finishing less than one second behind Hosch in a time of 2:10.04. Goldkamp was seventh in the 800 at 2:18.29.
Freshman Nicole Benson (Peoria, Ill./Limestone) finished 13th in the 5,000 meters (17:54.59), while senior Amanda Switzer (Machesney Park, Ill./Harlem H.S.) ended her career on a high note, clocking a career-best time of 18:17.33 to finish 20th.
The Braves also scored one point in the 4x400 relay, finishing eighth with a season-best time of 4:00.12
