For the third consecutive year, the track and field programs at Chadron State College have produced a national champion at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
Mel Herl, senior thrower from Eaton, Colorado, joins an exclusive, yet expanding, club of Eagle student-athletes to earn two NCAA individual titles. She cleared her own previous best by more than five feet, throwing 65.27 meters (214-1) to win the hammer throw competition, which is her first of three events in three days.
“Having a few nationals trips under my belt,” said Herl, “I’ve developed, as [teammate] Tessa [Gorsuch] would put it, “mature nerves” which allow the adrenaline rush to occur, but don’t allow it to inhibit a great performance. A true athlete knows when to step up. I never take an opportunity to compete for granted because there’s always something that will challenge you to throw further. Most of the season I had to compete with marks from other women, but at nationals I actually get to compete with them in person, so it brings a whole new element to the field. It’s a lot of fun, that’s for sure.”
By setting the new personal record, Herl becomes the No. 2 hammer throw performer in Division II history, and the mark is the ninth-best ever recorded in the division as well. Marks one through eight are all held by Heavin Warner, a former Central Missouri student-athlete who won the previous three NCAA titles.
The sequence which led to Herl’s conquest of the hammer was eerily reminiscent of that which earned her a shot put title at the indoor meet.
Just like she did in March, Herl stormed out to an early lead. She threw well in the first round, but then she began breaking new barriers in the second. She hit a mark of 62.68 meters (205-8) with her opening throw, which was her fourth best of the season.
Herl’s closest competitor in the national performance lists, who competes across the state of Nebraska, at Wayne State College, challenged her for the lead immediately. Michaela Dendinger, who entered the competition No. 2, put forth her second-best effort of the season going 62.82 (206-1) to pass Herl by five inches.
“I’ve become close with most of the girls competing today,” said Herl, “so going into the prelims it was a great atmosphere to start the competition. Energy was building the entire time, especially when I knew Michaela was hot on my heels and that I had a lot of work to do.”
Just as she had done in Birmingham in March, when challenged by Jasmine Smith of Pittsburg State, Herl responded in a big way. She skied the hammer 64.06 meters (210-2) for a new personal best and retook the lead heading into finals. Her new best mark remained untouched throughout the final three rounds, just as it did before, and Herl came out for the final attempt knowing her lead was safe.
With nothing on the line, Herl launched another spectacular missile that went nearly four feet further than the winning mark she already set, finishing over 65 meters for the first time in her career.
The new personal best ranks 15th among all American women, at any level, and stands within the range of marks that have been accepted into the USATF Outdoor Championships in recent years.
Herl remains dedicated to training after college, but is momentarily focused on living in the present and “taking on every last second” of the collegiate experience.
In the first flight of the hammer throw, junior Ashlyn Hanson hit a mark of 53.62 meters (175-11) on her second throw to place 13th in the hammer throw competition.
In Thursday’s other final result, two-time indoor national champion long jumper Stachia Reuwsaat leapt 6.24 meters (20-5 ¾) to place fifth in the long jump. She landed her only scoring jump on the first attempt, and fouled the remaining five times. The All-America finish became the seventh of her career.
Reuwsaat added an eighth career All-America feather to her cap later on Thursday, surpassing Jacqueline Wells as the most decorated CSC track and field athlete on the national stage. The senior from Black Hawk, South Dakota ran a blazing time of 11.53 seconds in the 100 meter preliminary, which was the second-fastest time in the field. She will run among the top eight sprinters in the fastest race in Division II, when the event finals take place on Saturday.
Two other preliminary races included CSC student-athletes.
Chadron State’s 4×100 relay team finished 12th of 14 teams with a preliminary time of 46.25 seconds. They were unable to secure a spot in Saturday’s final, which is reserved for the top eight squads.
Alejandro Garcia became the first male distance runner to earn track and field All-America honors, by punching his ticket into Saturday’s final race as one of the top 12 in the 1,500 meter run. Garcia’s time of 3:51.10 was seventh-best both in his heat and overall. He was only .06 of a second from the school record set by Joe Schulz in 2011. A top-eight finish Saturday would earn Garcia First Team All-America honors. Under rules adopted prior to the 2015-16 season, 9th through 12th would earn Second Team.
On Friday, both the women’s and men’s discus will feature Eagle throwers. Herl competes in the women’s event at noon MT, while Cory Martens makes his first nationals bid at 3 p.m. MT. At 4:40 p.m., Tessa Gorsuch competes in the 100 meter hurdles preliminary.