More History for Pease as Track and Field Notches 47 Percent Point Improvement at OVC Championships

Day 2 Story
Day 1 Story
 
MOREHEAD, Ky. – Morehead State's history-making 2025-26 track and field season continued on Saturday in the final day of the Ohio Valley Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships at the Coleman Sports Complex in Little Rock, Ark., with the Eagle teams combining to tally 56 points over the three-day meet.
 
MSU scored in 14 events, had 15 athletes contribute points and notched its highest scoring total since 2006. In addition, the team broke another school record on Saturday (its third of the meet) and finished the week with 15 total "pr's".
 
Both Eagle teams placed ninth, although the women dropped a spot after sitting eighth in each of the first two days. The men tallied 20 points and the women had 36.
 
"Last year, (we scored) 38 points between men and women (and) this year (we had) 56," said MSU head coach Clay Dixon. "(We) scored in everything from relays, jumps, sprints and distance. … People are noticing Morehead State."
 
Yet, the most impressive feat of them all … freshman Kalynn Pease was named both the league's Female Track Athlete of the Year and Female Field Athlete of the Year, the first time the same individual collected both honors in an outdoor season in the award's 21-year history. Only Tennessee State's Amber Hughes can match the achievement, winning both awards in the indoor campaigns of both 2016 and 2017.
 
Pease became the fourth Eagle in school history to be named Athlete of the Year, joining Hall of Famer Bobby Jones in 1975, Jeff Washington in 1978 and Amy Beatty in 1999.
 
"When I was working on her nominations, I really didn't have to try hard," said Dixon. "She has so many accolades and facts that said she was the best this season, and it was great to see the other coaches agree."
 
"It's definitely a huge honor, and I'm incredibly grateful to be recognized this way," Pease said of the unprecedented achievement. "To be named both OVC Track Athlete of the Year and Field Athlete of the Year, and to be the first woman in OVC outdoor history to earn both in the same season, is really special and something I never take for granted. I'm thankful to God for blessing me with the abilities and opportunities He has, and I truly couldn't do any of this without my coaches, teammates, family and everyone who supports me every step of the way."
 
In spite of her awards, it was not a banner weekend for Pease, at least by her standards. On Saturday, she set a "pr" in the 100-meter dash but finished sixth in 11.63, one-hundredth of a second off the school record. She also ran the second leg of the 4x100-meter relay that placed seventh in 46.84. On Thursday, she withdrew from the 200-meter dash due to nagging leg issues. Then on Friday, despite being the overall top seed by over a foot and a half, finished second in the long jump in 6.19m/20'03.75".
 
"This week may not have gone exactly how I planned, but I just tried to play the cards I was dealt. I was dealing with a little bit of a rough patch and some small injuries going into OVC, so I'm proud that I was still able to go out there, compete, and give everything I had for my team," she added. "Even though every performance isn't perfect, I'm proud of the season I've had and excited to keep building from here as I go into regionals."
 
In addition to Pease, two other individuals really stood out for their performances on Saturday. Freshman Sam Afari competed in four events on the final day and earned a medal in each. Freshman Kennedi Alford also was in four races, picking up medals in three.
 
Afari and his 4x400-meter relay teammates that included freshmen Kyle Stepteau, Jayce Stewart and Kyler Witt broke a 46-year-old school record by nine-hundredths of a second. With Afari running the leadoff leg, the group crossed the line in 3:15.71 to place third. The foursome entered the meet seeded fifth was a top time of 3:18.80. Last year, MSU's entry finished seventh in 3:25.84.
 
"(The) guys topped off the day with that podium finish for the relay," Dixon said. "That was a personal goal to get a relay team a medal. Four medals for one race."
 
Tennessee State won the title, edging Southeast Missouri by seven-thousandths of a second (3:11.601 to 3:11.608).
 
Afari started his day by running the second leg of the fifth-place 4x100-meter relay. Sophomore Mark Whitener, freshman Luke Kelly and Stepteau joined him to cover the distance in 41.27, 17-hundredths of a second off their "pr". The team was seeded fifth. Last year's quartet finished seventh in 42.90.
 
Individually, Afari claimed sixth in the 200-meter dash in 21.40 and seventh in the 400-meter dash in 48.17, in both cases narrowly missing his "pr".

"It was a solid meet overall. I just wish I was a bit healthier, so I could've competed at 100 percent, but I'm still proud of how everything went," he said. "I'm also glad I was able to put up some pretty good points for Morehead State and help the team out. My favorite and most rewarding performance was definitely the 4x4. Being able to break the school record and run such an amazing time with the boys in the program was a special moment I'll always remember."
 
"Sam was a workhorse this week," Dixon said. "(It's) not easy doing all that, especially in a single day."
 
Like Afari, Alford started her afternoon in the 4x100m relay. Sophomore Brooklyn Boyce, Pease, s
"Sam was a workhorse this week," Dixon said. "(It's) not easy doing all that, especially in a single day."
 
Like Afari, Alford started her afternoon in the 4x100m relay. Sophomore Brooklyn Boyce, Pease, sophomore Maryah Counts and Alford crossed the line in 46.84 to take seventh. With a different lineup, the top Eagle foursome was ranked fifth. Last year's group MSU placed eighth in 49.43.
 
Alford then returned to place third in the 200m in 24.05 and fifth in the 100m in 11.62. The latter mark tied her Friday prelim time, as well as her "pr" and the school record. The 200m time also was a "pr" and moved her into second all-time at MSU.
 
"Kennedi had a phenomenal race to get a medal in the 200m," said Dixon.
 
Four others added points to MSU's total on Saturday. Graduate student Aidan Massey was a pleasant surprise in the 5,000-meter run, taking fifth in 15:12.80. He entered the meet with the 18th-fastest time.
 
Senior Kaylyn Holman placed sixth in the 1,500-meter run in 4:41.12. Counts was seventh in the 400m in 57.80 and sophomore Weston Blair was eighth in the 800-meter run in 1:55.37.
 
"Massey and Blair were nice bonuses in the distance events. (I'm) always glad to get someone to finals in the 800m and Massey was able to 'Balboni' bounce back to form," Dixon said. "Kaylyn ran a good race in the 1500m. She did things all correctly. She should be proud of her effort."
 
The Eagles also had 10 other individuals in action on Saturday, as well as another relay.
 
Freshman Josh Arnett finished ninth in the 1,500-meter run finals, despite entering the meet with the 25th-fastest time. He covered the distance in 3:59.02. Arnett also ran the first 5,000m race of his collegiate career and placed 20th in 16:47.86.
 
In her final collegiate meet, redshirt junior Christiana Brittian finished 11th in the 1,500m in 4:52.11. She also was 20th in the 5,000m in 19:40.50. She was seeded 16th in the latter race and tied for 28th in the event in 2025.
 
Likewise, junior Ginger Hayden, who graduated last week, placed 17th in the triple jump in her final meet as an Eagle. She leaped 11.38m/37'04.00", one and a quarter inches short of her "pr", which also is the school record. Last year, she finished 12th in a then-school record 11.10m/36'05.00".
 
Junior Erin Pease javelin placed 11th in the javelin with a top toss of 30.20m/99'01.00".
 
Four others ran in the 5,000m. Sophomore Meredith Campbell led the women by placing 13th in 18:53.68. It was just off her 2025 performance when she finished 12th in 18:23.30. She was seeded 12th.
 
Running in their final collegiate race, Holman was 17th in 19:18.86 and Taylor was 24th in 21:13.17. It was Holman's first 5K on the track. Taylor finished 20th last spring in 19:07.33.
 
Junior Aidan Whitsell placed 21st in the men's competition, crossing the line in 16:51.42. Last year, he was 23rd in 16:48.04. Sophomore AJ Hawkins was also expected to race but was a late scratch.
 
The Eagles had mixed success in their relays. The second-ranked women's 4x400m, which had a late lineup change, placed 10th with Miles, Alford, Boyce and Counts making up the foursome. They finished in 4:00.09.
 
"We had (re-entered) KP (Kalynn Pease) in the 4x1 but had to take her out of the 4x4," Dixon said. "(The) women gave it their all but ran out of gas. Our weakness is depth. We'll come back stronger and with more depth next year."
 
Eastern Illinois made a final-day surge to usurp 2025 champion Southeast Missouri and capture the men's title with 204 points. The Redhawks, who led after each of the first two days, tallied 186.50 points. Little Rock was third with 101.50 points. Tennessee State was fourth with 92 points, with Southern Indiana in fifth with 88 points. Western Illinois and UT Martin tied for sixth with 47 points. SIU Edwardsville was eighth with 32 points and MSU rounded out the field with 20 points.
 
Three-time defending champion Southeast Missouri was able to pull away from Eastern Illinois on Saturday to win the women's competition with 164 points. The Panthers were second with 127.50 points, followed by Tennessee Tech with 113 points, Little Rock with 99 points, Southern Indiana with 63 points, SIU Edwardsville with 62.50 points, Western Illinois with 62 points, Lindenwood with 39 points, Morehead State with 36 points, Tennessee State with 27 points and UT Martin with 18 points.
 
"People were talking about us. They know Morehead is doing things and making big moves," Dixon said. "We'll come back bigger, older and stronger next year. The team is hungry for points."
 
At the conclusion of the meet, the conference announced its postseason awards. The winners were:
 
OVC Female Track Athlete of the Year: Kalynn Pease, Morehead State
OVC Female Field Athlete of the Year: Kalynn Pease, Morehead State
OVC Female Freshman of the Year: Alyssa Repke, Southeast Missouri
OVC Women's Coach of the Year: Eric Crumpecker, Southeast Missouri
OVC Co-Female Athlete of the Championship: Anna Thomason, Southeast Missouri & Andreese Ortiz, Southeast Missouri
 
OVC Male Track Athlete of the Year: Jeremiah Patton, Little Rock
OVC Male Field Athlete of the Year: Zavier Winton, Southeast Missouri
OVC Male Freshman of the Year: Zavier Winton, Southeast Missouri
OVC Men's Coach of the Year: James Gildon, Eastern Illinois
OVC Male Athlete of the Championship: Zavier Winton, Southeast Missouri
 
The OVC Championships is not the final meet of the season for the Blue and Gold. Kalynn Pease is expected to qualify in the long jump for the NCAA East Regional meet at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, Ky., that will take place between Wednesday, May 27 and Saturday, May 30. If Pease finishes in the top 12 at the regional, she will advance on to the NCAA Championships, which will run from Wednesday, June 10 through Saturday, June 13 at the University of Oregon in Eugene, Ore.