Karissa Schweizer wins sixth national championship in her final college race

Going into a potetional sixth national championship, Mizzou’s Karissa Schweizer said she wanted to leave it all out on the track in her final collegiate race.

She did just that.

Schweizer captured her sixth national title with a time of 15:41.58 in the women’s outdoor 5,000 meter final.

“It’s amazing. It still doesn’t feel real,” Schweizer said following defending her title.

No other Mizzou athlete has ever won as many national championships as Schweizer in their career.

With 10 laps to go, Schweizer pulled ahead from 10th place to just inside the top five. With five laps to go, Schweizer remained in a tightly contested top-five and waited for her chance.

Then, with just three laps to go, Schweizer jumped ahead inside the top three before blowing away the competition in the final lap.

“I knew this was my last collegiate race, and I wanted to leave it all on the track,” Schweizer said.

She also ends her Mizzou career with six school records and one college record. Schweizer was also a 10-time All-American during her time at Mizzou.

Schweizer’s eight career SEC championship victories ranks second in Mizzou history behind Sabrina Dornhoefer’s nine conference titles.

The Mizzou women’s track team finished 11th with 20 points. It is the best finish in program history.

Mizzou’s Gabi Jacobs also finished 5th in women’s discus and became an All-American for the second time of her career.