May 14, 2005

FORT COLLINS, Colo. - Christine Spence and Halima Decree were a part of 57 of UNLV women's track 66 points as the Rebels finished fifth at the 2005 Mountain West Conference Outdoor Championships.

Spence placed in four individual events, DeCree won the 100 meters and took second in the 200 meters and both ran legs on UNLV's relay teams during Saturday's final day of competition at Jack Christiansen Stadium on the campus of Colorado State.

Defending champion BYU win the meet easily with 218 points, Colorado State was second with 171 points, followed by Wyoming (92.50), San Diego State (88), UNLV, New Mexico (64.50), Air Force (59) and Utah (52). On the men's side BYU also claimed the championship with 280 points while Air Force was second with 168.

DeCree, who set the MWC Outdoor Championships meet record in the 100 meters yesterday in qualifying, won the event with a time of 11.48 and then followed that by clocking a 23.51 in the 200 meters for a second-place finish. DeCree earned the Rebels 18 team points in those two events.

Spence was just as productive for the Rebels, placing third in both the 100 meter hurdles (13.61) and 400 meter hurdles (1:00.56). Earlier in the meet she took second in the high jump and fifth in the heptathlon to total 24 team points for UNLV.

The two stars ran legs on UNLV's champion 4x100 meter relay team, which won the event with a time of 45.73 and they also ran on the 4x400 relay team that finished fourth with a time of 3:45.66.

Miesha McClendon and Michele Suszek were the only other Rebels who scored points at the meet. McClendon took fourth in the 100 meter hurdles with a time of 13.65 and also added a seventh place finish in the 100 meters with a time of 12.19. Suszek took seventh in the steeplechase yesterday with a time of 11:29.39.

All four point scorers for the Rebels and the 4x100 relay team have qualified for the NCAA West Regional which is May 27-28 at the University of Oregon in Eugene, Ore.