COLORADO SPRINGS -- March 20, 2017 -- Chadron State College senior Mel Herl was named the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference women's outdoor Field Athlete of the Week for the first week of outdoor track and field competition.

Herl went solo to the University of Colorado Jerry Quiller Classic, where she racked up three wins in three events against throwers from the University of Colorado, Northern State, South Dakota Mines, to start the season off right. On Friday, Herl threw the hammer a provisional 58.58 meters (192-2) to break the CSC record and take the top spot in the event on the national performance lists. The shot put and the discus were on Saturday, and Herl also set qualifying marks in those two events. She threw a provisional 15.10 meters (49-6.5) to get on the board in the shot put, placing her second in the nation and first among NCAA-eligible student-athletes in the early days of the season. She also went 50.60 meters (166-0) in the discus to land an automatic NCAA mark with the second-best throw in Division II.

Throwers and distance runners for both the men and women will get their first taste of action this week at the Black Hills State Yellow Jacket Spring Open on Saturday.