Milligan College Buffaloes

Edwardsville, Ill. (May 23, 2009) --- Milligan College senior Wegene Degefa (Rochester, N.Y.) earned All-American honors Saturday at the NAIA Outdoor Track and Field National Championship, while the Buffs had four athletes place in the top 10 overall.

Degefa finished the marathon in 2:33:50 which earned him third place and tallied six points for the team total. Degefa’s time shattered the previous school record of 2:42.20 held by fellow senior Will Frye (Pulaski, Va.) which was set at the 2008 championship.

“I am incredibly proud of Wegene’s patience today,” commented Head Coach Chris Layne. “He executed his race plan perfectly and earned himself All-American honors in his last outdoor meet of his collegiate career.”

Frye was seeded 45^th heading into the men’s marathon, but his time of 2:50:09.01 earned him a spot in the top 25. Frye ended his collegiate career with four NAIA national championship appearances, two school records and was an academic All-American.

Racing in her final collegiate race, senior Jacklyn Talbert (Mt. Carmel, Tenn.) finished the women’s 1500 meters with a time of 4:40.02 which placed her eighth overall. Talbert’s eighth place finish earned the Buffs one point in the team totals. Earlier in the week, Talbert lowered her own school record with a time of 4:36.62 in the semi-final round.

“Jacklyn is one of those student-athlete’s that only comes along every so often,” added Layne. “She bounced back after having knee surgery and ran great this week. I couldn’t be happier with how she ended her collegiate career.

The Buffs final competitor for the 2009 championship, freshman All-American Austin Ellis (Charlottesville, Va.), finished ninth in the men’s 5000 meters final with a time of 15:17.16. Ellis' time of 15:02.14 from Friday's semi-final was also an outdoor personal best and school record.

“Austin just recorded the best freshman season of any Milligan track athlete to date,” said Layne. “He will be a force to reckon with over the next three years.”

Earlier in the week, Milligan sophomore Lili Zaldana (Bristol, Tenn.) finished ninth in the women’s 10,000 meters final with a time of 37:33.77. Zaldana’s time took down the previous school record of 37:34.25 set by Rebecca McDowell at last year’s championship.

Out of the seven Milligan runners competing in this year’s championship, the Buffs recorded four lifetime bests, broke four school records and had one All-American.

“This was without a doubt our best outdoor championship appearance since the inception of the program,” noted Layne. “I could not be happier with how our athletes competed.”

For official results of the 2009 Outdoor Track and Field National Championship, visit www.cfpitiming.com.