DES MOINES, Iowa (May 15, 2022) – Senior Kathleen Simms used a dominant effort to secure her first career Missouri Valley Conference title as the Loyola University Chicago track & field teams closed out an action-packed weekend in Des Moines, Iowa this afternoon at the MVC Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
 
The Ramblers placed seventh in both the men's (28 points) and women's (59 points) team races.  Pre-championship favorite Indiana State claimed the men's team title, while Illinois State won the women's championship for a fourth consecutive league outdoor meet.
 
Simms couldn't have scripted a better finish to the weekend today in Iowa's state capital as she became just the second Rambler in program history to win The Valley's 5,000m run crown.  After battling Bradley's Nicola Jansen for much of the first 4,000m, the Louisville, Ky. native took control during the race's closing stages, bettering her previous 400m split over each of her final three laps as part of a showing that saw her outdistance Jocelyn Quiles of Indiana State, who placed second, by just over 10 seconds as she clocked an outdoor season-best 16:31.23.  Freshman Nora Wollen also put up a strong showing for the Maroon & Gold, checking in sixth at 16:56.88.
 
Senior Blake Buysse put points on the board for Loyola in the men's 5,000m run, registering a time of 14:22.07 to finish sixth.
 
Competing in the 1,500m run, the pairing of freshman Jason Clayton and senior Anneka Murrin secured All-MVC honors.  Clayton added another chapter to a terrific debut season in Rogers Park by using an inspiring final kick to earn a runner-up finish in 3:54.82.  On the women's side of the event, Murrin closed out a decorated Loyola career by landing third in 4:27.06.  Freshman Gabe Smit (3:59.33) and senior Claire Hengesbaugh (4:30.08) also scored in men's and women's races, each placing eighth.
 
Sophomore Jayla Johnson came within just one one-hundredth of a second of Valley title in the 100m hurdles final.  For the third time this outdoor season, Johnson shattered the school record in the event, surging through in 13.94 to secure second and an All-Valley nod.
 
The Ramblers were represented on both sides of the 400m hurdles finals, with junior Timothy Harris (56.82) and freshman Erin Connors (1:04.86) notching seventh-place finishes.
 
Both Harris and Connors were involved in relay action as well.  Harris got his day off to an early start in the 4x100m relay, joining forces with sophomore Jevan Terry, and freshmen Isaac Eubanks and Cameron Woods to take fifth with a time of 42.13.  Harris and Terry returned to the track again as part of the Maroon & Gold's 4x400m relay, as the pairing ran alongside Smit and fellow freshmen Jack Slaughter as part of an eighth-place finish in 3:24.02.  To close out the meet, Connors was joined by sophomores Fran Hendrickson and Madi McLain, and freshman Petra Cokaric in the women's 4x400m relay final, where the quartet produced an effort of 4:02.73 to place eighth.
 
Loyola will now await the results of several other conference meets being contested this weekend to see which of its athletes will qualify for the NCAA West Preliminary, May 25-28, in Fayetteville, Ark.