The Grand View men's track & field team enters the 2010 season as the reigning Midwest Collegiate Conference indoor and outdoor champions and with a strong group of returning athletes and quality newcomers they will look to defend their conference titles this season.

Head coach Jerry Monner returns an excellent group of sprinters including 2009 indoor national qualifier in the 60m dash, Titus Bland, along with national qualifying 4x100m relay teammates Lawrence Furlow, Jarvis Henderson, and Phil Cooper. Last season the Vikings 4x100m relay team won the Drake Relays Iowa College Division and competed at the NAIA National Championships. Returning senior Brian Dewey along with newcomers Tariq White and Justin Myers will add quality depth to this already strong event area for the Vikings.

Grand View University head track and field coach Jerry Monner has announced the hiring of Miradieu Joseph as an assistant coach for the men's and women's track and field programs. He will be in charge of coaching the sprints and hurdles for the Vikings during the 2009-10 school year.

Head Coach Jerry Monner said "We are very excited to have Miradieu joining our coaching staff. He has a winning mentality and he's full of enthusiasm." Monner added "I think he's the perfect fit for our program as we continue to build off the success we've had the past few seasons."

Tariq White (North H.S./Des Moines, Iowa) has signed an athletic letter of intent to compete for the Grand View men's track & field program during the 2009-10 academic year. White is a three-time class 4A state qualifier in track & field for North High School. This spring he qualified for the state championships in the 400m dash and helped lead the Polar Bear's distance medley relay team to a 9^th place finish.

"Tariq will be an outstanding addition to our program next season. He's a very experienced 400m runner that has the ability to run 100m to 800m and give you a solid performance at each distance. We'll utilize him in many open and relay events," said Head Track & Field Coach Jerry Monner.

The Viking men's and women's track and field teams were well represented over the weekend at the NAIA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in St. Louis, Missouri.

Freshman standout Obsie Birru's (Des Moines, Iowa) sixth place finish in the women's 10,000m Run (36:58.62) highlighted the meet for Grand View. With the top six finish, Birru earned All-American status.

Birru also competed in the 5,000m Run and placed 15th with a time 18:26.89.

Follow the Vikings as they compete in the NAIA Outdoor Track & Field Championships May 21-23 in St. Louis, Missouri. Click here for schedule of events and results.