Shank Sets the Standard at Missouri Southern

By David Boyce

As a freshman, Kimi Shank looked at the older distance runners and wondered if one day she could run like them.

After her performance in the MIAA Outdoor Track Championships, future runners will aspire to be like Shank.

Shank, a senior, helped the Missouri Southern women’s track team win its third straight MIAA outdoor title with stunning performances in the 10K on Saturday and the 5K on Sunday.

She entered the 10K with the top time in the MIAA and won with a time of 35:14.46, beating Truman sophomore Dani Dell’Orco by 3 seconds.

Dell’Orco had the best time in the 5K in the MIAA, but it was Shank who won, breaking a 24-year-old record with a time of 16:46.93. She again edged out Dell’Orco, who took second with a time of 16:51.43.

“Each year the MIAA gets harder and harder and anything can happen on any given day, but I’ve done it before and I really wanted to do it again,” Shank said. “Going into the 5K as the No. 2, I knew I had to give all I have.

“She (Dell’Orco) has been running amazing this year. I was nervous for conference, but it turned out good.”

It couldn’t get much better for Shank. Her time in the 5K eclipsed Darla Curp’s mark of 16:51.70 set in 1986. Curp was at the meet, which made the day even more special for Shank.

“She came up to me after the race was over and gave me a hug and told me, ‘good job.’ I thought that was really awesome of her,” Shank said.

Going into the MIAA Outdoor meet, Missouri Southern coach Patty Vavra knew she would get points from Shank.

“Her quality of performance week in and week out, to be that steady, is money in the bank,” Vavra said.

“Kimi Shank is money in the bank every time she races.”

But it takes much more than one or two outstanding athletes to win a team title. Even with Shank winning the 10K on Saturday, Missouri Southern ended the day in second place.

The Lions needed strong performances throughout Sunday to capture the team title. Vavra spent the night looking at events and figuring out where points were going to come from.

“This may have been the one (title) we stressed the most over,” Vavra said. “The conference is so competitive. The MIAA I think is the best conference in the nation. With the caliber of competition this year it was extremely exciting to win the conference championship, knowing we had to beat some of the best teams in the nation.

“We didn’t have the best first day on Saturday, and knew we were digging ourselves out of a bit of a hole. At the same time, I think the girls pulled together and committed themselves to giving the best effort.

“That was the reason for much of the success. They competed with so much heart and were interested in doing well for each other and the team. It all came together at the right moment Sunday. We had as good of performance as we could have had.”

Missouri Southern only won five individual events, but the Lions scored in 18 of the 21 events, and every point meant something as they finished with a team score of 151 points, beating out Central Missouri, which took second with 117.5 points.

In many ways, Missouri Southern’s track team was like a softball or baseball team winning the MIAA title.

Shank said her teammates cheering her in the 5K spurred her on to victory. The way the entire team was pulling for each other made the day memorable.

“It is just like a baseball team winning. We are all happy for each other. I heard them cheering every single lap in the 5K. They were on the track and really supportive. It makes you feel good to have a team that does that and they care about the other girls.”

Running two distance races in back-to-back days does take a physical toll.

“It’s pretty tough,” she said. “My calves were really sore on Monday. It has been a long time since I felt that way. But I’m really glad I did it. We won the team trophy. I got my two individual medals. It has given me a lot of confidence I can double at nationals.”

The NCAA Division II national outdoor meet will be May 27-29 in Charlotte, N.C. Shank has automatic qualifying times in the 5K and 10K.

“Nationals is a little further away than last year,” she said. “I will try to stay focused on running. There will be a break. I will try to keep the racing mentality. I will look forward to it. It will be my last race ever. That’s motivation.

“It has been very special. It’s the best year I’ve ever had. I’m already past what I thought I would ever do. It hasn’t sunk in yet. Whenever I was younger I would look at people like me now and say, ‘I want to be like them.’ I’m sure once the season is over it will sink in. But it feels great.”

To reach David Boyce, contributing writer for the MIAA, e-mail dboyce@themiaa.com.