KEARNEY, Neb. -- April 15, 2017 -- Chadron State College throwers continued to excel Saturday while competing at the University of Nebraska-Kearney Invitational Track and Field Meet.

Senior Mel Herl improved on her school records in both the hammer throw and discus while moving up even higher on the national charts and sophomore Cory Martens added five feet to his CSC record in the hammer.

Martens won both the hammer throw and the discus and now No. 3 on Chadron State's all-time discus list.

Several other Eagles also had career bests in the throws.  CSC head coach Brad Gamble said the winds at Kearney were the best the Eagles have had this spring.

 "We had good winds, but we also have really good throwers," the coach noted.

Herl sailed the discus 187 feet, 2 inches to lengthen her school record in the discus by 13 feet and win the event by nearly 22 feet. 

The Eaton, Colo., native sent the hammer 206-3, adding seven feet to her school record.  Although marks from all the meets this weekend across the nation may not have been posted on the national website, as of 7 p.m. (MDT) Saturday, Herl ranked first in NCAA Division II in the hammer, second in the discus and third in the shot put. 

She placed second in the hammer throw at the Kearney meet.  First place went to former Wayne State All-American Carly Fehringer with a mark of 218-09.  Fehringer concluded her college eligibility in 2014 by placing third in the hammer at the NCAA II meet at 198-11. The previous year, she was second at 197-2.

Third in the hammer at Kearney on Saturday was current Wayne State junior Michaela Dendinger with a mark of 203-1. She began this week as the DII leader at 204-04, but Herl's toss was 23 inches farther.

Martens had career bests in all three of the throws he entered Saturday.  He won both the hammer (194-2) and the discus (174-2) and was second in the shot (53-9 ¼). He leads the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference in both the hammer and the discus and ranks fourth in the shot.

His previous bests were 189- ¾ in the hammer, 170-0 in the discus and 52-9 ½ in the shot.

The only CSC discus throwers to previously surpass 170 feet were Doug Lytle at 175-5 in 1998 and Bennie Francis at 174-5 in 1967.

The Eagles' Blake Jacobs also had personal bests in the shot put (52-9 ½) and hammer (178-6) Saturday. He placed fourth in both events.  Jesse Bleidt was fifth in the discus (159-7) with a personal best by four feet.

The Eagles depth in the throws surfaced when Frantzlee LaCrete placed seventh in the javelin and eighth in both the discus and hammer.   David Aldridge was seventh in the shot.

In the women's competition, CSC's Ashlyn Hanson was sixth in both the hammer and javelin and freshman Ashton Hallsted was eighth in the hammer at 166-9, more than five feet farther than her previous best.

With most of Chadron State's distance runners in California this weekend, Phil Duncan of Chadron headed east and placed second among 15 entries in the 5000 meters at Kearney.

Nearly all the Eagles will compete at Colorado Mines this coming weekend.

CSC's results at Kearney follow:    

                Women's Events
                Shot put—2, Mel Herl, 49-3.
                Discus—1, Mel Herl, 187-2 (school record).
                Hammer throw—2, Mel Herl, 206-3 (school record); 6, Ashlyn Hanson, 180-10; 8, Ashton Hallsted, 166-9.
                Javelin—6, Ashlyn Hanson, 113-11.

                Men's Events
                5000—2, Phil Duncan, 16:16.20.
                Shot put—2, Cory Martens, 53-9 ¼; 4, Blake Jacobs, 52-9 ½; 7, David Aldridge, 49-2 ½.
                Discus—1, Cory Martens, 174-2; 5, Jesse Bleidt, 159-7; 8, Frantzlee LaCrete, 148-9.
                Hammer—1, Cory Martens, 194-2 (school record); 4, Blake Jacobs, 178-6; 8, Frantzlee LaCrete, 159-2.
                Javelin—7, Frantzlee LaCrete, 102-11.