Darius Walker, who finished runner-up to teammate Brent Vogel in the decathlon at the MIAA Championships last year, will be competing this weekend. (Photo by CHASE SMITH).

WARRENSBURG, Mo.-- UCM track and field is gearing up for the MIAA Indoor Championships this weekend at Missouri Southern State University in Joplin. The sixth-ranked Mules are defending conference champions and will be looking to capture the title for the second consecutive season.

The women’s team is ranked seventh nationally and feels it can win a title, too.

“They are really hungry,” co-head coach Kip Janvrin said. “We’re going to ask a lot of things out of some our girls to give ourselves a chance to win.”

The teams will carry a little momentum into the meet after performing well at the UCM Classic, as several athletes has good showings.

The younger athletes on the team have had some success, too, and have come on strong at times. The veteran athletes need to step up and perform well as expected, if they want that conference title.

“What I was most pleased with was that almost every athlete had their season-best performances,” he said. “Their marks were getting better. Jumps were better, so the progress that we talked about throughout the season was definitely happening, and that’s what you want to see going into the conference meet.”

Like all other sports in the ever-tough MIAA, track and field has its share of outstanding athletes, so the Mules and Jens will face some stiff competition.

Lincoln University is the defending conference champion in women’s competition, and Janvrin knows that if the Jens want a shot at the MIAA title, the women will have to compete better than the Lady Blue Tigers.

Kayla Muyskens, who earned three All-American honors at the NCAA Outdoor Championships last year, will be competing this weekend. (Photo by CHASE SMITH)

On the men’s side, there are a number of teams that have some good athletes. Missouri Southern, Emporia State, Pitt State and Lincoln are all teams that could sneak up on the Mules if they don’t perform well.

Injuries have been hurting the teams late in the season, as Brent Vogal may be limited because of a hamstring injury. A ligament injury and a heel injury will more than likely sideline two others indefinitely.

Senior Shawn Boss competes in the heptathlon and has done average in his events. Even though Boss hasn’t hit his provisional marks, he still is able to compete.

Fellow senior Lindsey Lettow likes what the Jens have done as a team.

“We have more depth this season,” Lettow said. “We have people that can score points in a lot of different ways.”

Individually, Lettow knows she has many titles to defend and says she is up for the challenge.

“Our focus is to go out and compete at a high level individually, and if we do that, then hopefully the conference championship and things like that will take care of itself.” Janvrin said of both teams winning a conference championship.