Karissa Heffernan Wins 1,500; Red Devils Make History at SLIAC Outdoor Championships

GREENVILLE, Ill. – The Eureka cross country and distance team concluded its most productive year in program history with a slew of impressive feats at the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Outdoor Championships this weekend.

The women's team placed fifth overall with 31 points – the team's best finish and highest point total in program history – collected three all-conference honors, saw six runners score and recorded five personal records.

On the men's side, Eureka tied for sixth place with 16 points. The team had one all-conference performance, saw five runners score, recorded five personal records, and received the SLIAC Sportsmanship award.

"Coach Ian (Cummings), Coach Zach (Sancken), and I are really at a loss for words after the championship, and this year as a whole," EC coach Chris Robinson said. "This group trains year-round, and competes in the fall, winter, and spring seasons. It is a long, and at times grueling year. For them to come out and put up as many PRs when it counts is a testament to how hard they work."

Among other accomplishments, Karissa Heffernan (Metamora, Ill./Metamora/Lewis) became the Red Devils' second-ever individual conference champion with a first-place in the 1,500-meter run, winning by over seven seconds with a time of 5:07.12.

The sophomore star later placed sixth in the 800 in 2:34.55 and, at the end of the day, led the lead leg of the Red Devils' 4x400 relay team. Heffernan, Jaden Randall (Secor, Ill./Roanoke-Benson), Alyssa Bryant (Peoria, Ill./Richwoods) and Rachel Fisher (Metamora, Ill./Metamora) combined for a PR performance and a third-place finish, cutting over 15 seconds off their previous best with a time of 4:39.67.

It was the team's third and final all-conference performance, following Fisher's conference runner-up finish in the 800. The freshman battled Oliva Mansfield of Greenville to the finish, coming in second with a PR of 2:23.12, an improvement of over three seconds. She returned to anchor the 4x4 team, turning in a blazing 1:01.83 split to seal the third-place finish.

Randall, another freshman, continued the scoring for the Red Devils with a fifth-place finish in the 400m with a PR-setting time of 1:05.43, dropping over four seconds off her best. She and Heffernan combined to run a 2:20 opening 800 in the 4x400 to put the team in a strong position.

Earlier in the day, Bryant fell just short of her personal-best in the 400 with an eighth-place finish in 1:19.27. She then turned around and ran her fastest 400 ever in the 4x4, turning in a 1:17.61 split.

Sarah Kimbro (Peoria, Ill./Metamora) once again took on the daunting 3,000 steeplechase for the Red Devils and placed fourth overall with a PR of 14:49.63, cutting 29 seconds off her previous best to improve on her school record. Since picking up the event for the first time last season, she has cut 1:41 off her time and dramatically improved her form.

Odessa Grove (Lewistown, Ill./Lewistown) and Kimbro also competed with Heffernan in the 1,500, and they came in 11th in 7:07.13 and 12th in 7:11.73, respectively. Grove, who was limited to just three meets this winter and spring due to scheduling conflicts and health issues, still managed to post a PR and cut 31 seconds off her best time.

Tony DeLira (Chicago, Ill./Alcott/Lincoln) got the meet off to an emphatic start on Friday evening, taking all-conference honors in the 10,000 with a third-place finish. He set a new school record with a time of 35:16, besting the previous mark set by Cory Shoopman in 2013.

He followed that with a sixth-place finish in the 5,000 on Saturday morning, with a time of 16:56.36, while teammate Bailey Webster (East Peoria, Ill./East Peoria) placed fourth in a personal-best 16:39.36, cutting over 10 seconds off his previous best.

Webster showed his versatility as a runner by returning to the track to run the third leg of the 4x4, turning in a 58-second split.

Khalil Alleyne (Diego Martin, Trinidad / Fatima College/Lincoln) continued his strong debut track season. He took 11th in the 400 in 54.62, just .11 off his PR. The soccer star returned to anchor the 4x4 team, running a split of 57.81.

Brayton Strawkas (Buffalo, Ill./Tri-City) joined his soccer teammate Alleyne in the 400 and ran the lead leg of the 4x4 relay. He took 13th overall in the 400 in a persona-best 1:04.41, and he combined with Jose Amador (Kempton, Ill./Tri-Point) to open the 4x4 in 2:07.58.

Hayden Skaggs (Mansfield, Texas/Mansfield) followed, turning in a PR of 1:07.66, taking 15th overall and cutting nearly a second off his previous best.

Amador, a freshman, opened a busy day with a sixth-place finish in the 1,500 with a PR time of 4:29.09. an improvement of over eight seconds.

Amador, like Kimbro on the women's side last season, picked up the steeplechase for the first time in his running career this year. After making amazing strides this spring, = he placed fourth in a personal-best 11:26.14 on Saturday, cutting 14 seconds off his previous best. He then came back with only a 30-minute recovery time and ran the second leg of the 4x4.

The Red Devils came in eighth in the 4x4 with a time of 4:03.70, officially bringing a landmark season to an end.

This academic year, the Eureka cross country and distance team broke or set 14 school records, had four individual champions, and brought home 10 all-conference performances between the XC, Indoor, and Outdoor seasons.

"Each of them are selfless student-athletes who encourage and support each other," Robinson said. 'It's the only way you succeed in our sport. We are proud of all of them. We are going to take a couple weeks off, and then get back to work. The SLIAC took notice of us this year, and we are determined to make sure they don't forget who we are."