Coming out of the Bill Williams Invitational and MIAA decathlon this past weekend, the Lions track and field team has nine athletes ranked nationally in 10 events.

This year’s Bill Williams Invitational was held at Pittsburg State University due to the renovation of the track and football field at Hughes Stadium.

Not many athletes from Southern attended the meet, unless they needed to polish up their performances for the MIAA conference championship.

Chris Turner and Seth Isringhausen both improved their vaulting height by clearing the bar at 16-3. Kyle Rutledge also was able to clear at 16 3/4.

Jamie Tallman improved his provisional mark in the hammer by tossing a distance of 176.

“It was a good meet, it’s always a good meet when you can go to a meet and relax and not have to drive so far because travel is always hard on the athletes,” Rutledge said.

In the past week, the team has moved practices over to Thomas Jefferson Day School due to the construction at the stadium as well. Head coach Tom Rutledge is grateful to Thomas Jefferson for letting the team practice at its facilities.

On April 27, Turner and B.J. Blocker traveled to Northwest Missouri State University for the MIAA decathlon.

Blocker only has had one decathlon before this at the Kansas relays, and Turner was experiencing his first.

Going into the decathlon, Rutledge was hoping for the two to score one or two points, but instead they placed third and fourth and scored 10 points.

The only two athletes to beat them were All-Americans in the event. Turner scored 6,096 points, and Blocker had 6,063.

“The decathlon is always a different event in track and field,” Blocker said. “Everyone who participates has fun. I really enjoyed it.”

Blocker helped Turner in the hurdling event, and Turner helped Blocker out in the pole vault.

Rutledge thinks the two did well in the area of their strengths and improved in their weaknesses and attitudes.

“The main reason we had success is that our two decathletes worked as a team,” Rutledge said.

“They didn’t work against each other, the chemistry was good, they left their egos at the door, and the results show it.

“They sacrificed individuality in an individual event.”

Rutledge was impressed on their performances and hopes the rest of the team can do the same at the MIAA conference championship.

“If we can go into the conference track meet with the same attitude, relaxed, focused and just good team effort, we’ll come out very, very good,” Rutledge said.

The team is competing in the conference championships on Friday and Saturday at Truman State in Kirksville.

Rutledge thinks this is will be a balanced meet with the caliber of teams that will be attending. He also thinks Truman and its coaching staff put on a good meet and that his athletes will benefit because of it.

“I’m looking forward to it; we’re having fun,” Rutledge said, “and when you have fun, you do well.”