Track and Field Champs
In addition to Sarah Becker, seven other WSU women track and field athletes won conference championships at the May 14 Missouri Valley Conference meet in Cedar Falls, Iowa.
Desiraye Osburn, pictured at left, set a school, meet and stadium record by running a 4:24.22 in the 1,500. She also placed second in the 800.
“Her mind sets her apart from other competitors,” says Randy Hasenbank, Shocker assistant track coach. “I see it every day in training sessions when she’s able to handle more work than most athletes can.”
Osburn went on to top off one of the best track seasons in school history by earning All-American honors in the 5,000m run at the 2005 NCAA outdoor championships this June in Sacramento, Calif. She is the first woman’s distance runner to capture All-American status.
Other conference champs are Brooke Demo (pole vault); Lindsay Eck (100 hurdles); Linda Feldberga (800); Iveta Grunte (high jump); Jelena Petrovic (long jump); and Inese Petruna (400).
“It’s been an absolutely wonderful season,” reports head coach Steve Rainbolt, who was named MVC Coach of the Year, a day after the regional. “It may be the finest women’s team ever at Wichita State.”
Pelfrey Drafted Ninth Overall
Wichita State junior pitcher Mike Pelfrey, pictured at left, was drafted ninth overall by the New York Mets during the first day of the 2005 First-Year Player Draft.
Pelfrey, who went 12-3 this season with a 1.93 ERA and 143 strikeouts, becomes the first Shocker player taken in the first round since Ben Christensen in 1999 and the 10th Shocker overall.
Other first-round Shockers are Joe Carter, 1981; Bryan Oelkers, 1982; Erik Sonberg, 1983; Russ Morman, 1983; Tyler Green, 1991; Darren Dreifort, 1993; Mike Drumright, 1995; Braden Looper, 1996; and Christensen.
Also on day one, WSU senior catcher Joe Muich was drafted in the 12th round by the New York Yankees, while Shocker signee Aaron Shafer was chosen by the Cleveland Indians.
On day two, two more Shocker recruits were drafted: Tony Pechek and Anthony Capra, both by the Detroit Tigers.
Championship Strokes
Wichita State’s crew team won the points trophy at the Great Plain Championships April 30 and May 1 at Lake Shawnee in Topeka, Kan.
This was the first Great Plain championship for the university, with the team claiming first place in 12 of the 24 races.
WSU Claims All-Sports Trophy
For the second-straight season, Wichita State has captured the Missouri Valley Conference All-sports Trophy. The Shockers claimed two Valley championships in 2004-05: volleyball and women’s outdoor track and field. Notably, Wichita State had second-place finishes in men’s basketball, women’s indoor track and field, men’s golf, men’s tennis, softball, baseball and men’s outdoor track and field.
The All-Sports Trophy is based on a school’s average finish in each of the MVC-sponsored championships. Teams are awarded one point for first, two for second and so on. The total accumulated points are divided by the number of sports in which a particular school competes. The trophy marks the 12th MVC all-sports championship for Wichita State, which is the most of any Valley school.
