We continue our college profile series with an NAIA team located in the suburbs of St. Louis, Missouri Baptist University.
Missouri Baptist University
Level: NAIA
Conference: American MidWest
Public or Private: Private
Setting: Suburban Town & Country, MO
The Program
Program Size: 35 Women, 41 Men
Popular Majors:Health & Sport Sciences Division: Health Sciences, Exercise Science, Sports Management
Business Division: Accounting, Business Administration, Computer Science, Information Systems, Management and Marketing
What type of student-athlete does your program recruit?
Womens Program: We recruit student-athletes, in other words, the reason they are here is to earn a degree. Our women’s teams carry over a 3.0 GPA so they are serious students but just as serious about track and cross country.
Mens Program: Local & International student-athletes who want to attend a Liberal Arts University and earn a degree in an environment where academic excellence is emphasized and a Christian perspective is maintained
What are some recent accomplishments of the program or individuals in the program?
The women’s team won both the NAIA Indoor and Outdoor National Championships in 2006 with 8 individual champions that year. This year with 3 women going to Outdoor Nationals, we finished 11th of 79 teams who scored. In 2013, we had 1 National champion and a total of 6 All American honors between the 3 women.
How can the student-athletes contact you to find out more information about your program?
Tish Hanna/Head Women’s Track and Cross Country-hannap@mobap.edu or on my cell:314.808.2728
Mark Sissom, Men’s Head Coach Cross-Country/Track & Field
One College Park Drive | Saint Louis, Mo 63141
Phone Office: 314-485-8418 | Phone Cell: 314-495-6824 | Email: sissomm@mobap.edu
What other information about your college and/or program would be beneficial to student-athletes and parents who are in the process of searching for a college?
Womens Program: Missouri Baptist University women’s track & cross country offers performance based scholarships at all levels of performance. I am actively seeking to increase all areas of our program but especially the distance side. I have worked with USA Track & Field for over 25 years and I am a Level II certified Coach in sprints, hurdles, endurance and jumps. I have served on 5 International USA teams since 2007. I am also a USATF Master level and an IAAF level 2 official.
The women’s program works with our exercise science department here at MBU to do functional testing, VO2 Max as well as blood lactate testing. We have a brand new student recreation center that opened in November of 2011.
Mens Program: 98% of our students at MBU receive some form of financial aid, with student-athletes earning some assistance through athletic scholarships. Additionally, the entire MUB athletic staff is committed to enriching the lives of all student-athletes, not only in sports, but spiritually and academically as well, by subscribing to the five NAIA Character Initiatives: Respect, Responsibility, Integrity, Servant Leadership, and Sportsmanship.
2013 Signees -
Natalia Alfonzo: Venezuela-Distance
Ioulia Barakou: Greece-Distance
Maria Dugo: Parkway North-Throws
Aliyah Reams: Chicago, IL-Sprints