IRVINE, Calif. -- April 29, 2017 -- After Chadron State College long jumper
Stachia Reuwsaat took over the lead in the NCAA Division II long jump Friday night at the University of California Irvine Meet by going 21 feet, 8 ¼ inches, the Eagles'
Mel Herl posted best DII mark in the shot put at that meet Saturday afternoon.
Herl, who already owns the DII longest hammer throw this season, shoved the shot 52-8 ¼ while winning the event by more than seven feet Saturday. The mark also is a Chadron State record, giving Herl the school records in all five throwing events that she enters.
The old outdoor shot put record of 52-1 was set by Jacqueline Wells in 2005.
Herl's best outdoor shot put mark prior to Saturday was 50-2 in early April at Northern Colorado.
Her other school records outdoors are 187-2 in the discus and 206-3 in the hammer throw, both of which were set at a meet in Kearney this month. Her CSC indoor records are 71-6 ½ in the weight throw and 51-9 in the shot put. The indoor marks were set at this year's Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Championships and NCAA National Championships, respectively.
Prior to Saturday, Herl ranked third nationally in the shot put. The lead belonged to Michaela Dendinger of Wayne State at 51-7 ¼. Norma Cunigan of West Texas A&M was second at 51-7 ¼.
On Friday at the Irvine Meet, Herl was the runner-up in the hammer throw with a mark of 202-2, the second best throw of her career.
Prior to her record-setting performance Friday, Reuwsaat's previous best long jump, either indoors or outdoors, was 21-2½, at the NCAA DII National Championships a year ago, when she placed second, just a quarter of an inch shy of first place.
Reuwsaat's previous best this season was 20-11 ½ at the University of Colorado on April 8. That jump ranked third in NCAA II this spring, but she's now at the top of the chart. The lead had belonged to Rellie Kaputin, a senior at West Texas State A&M.
Reuwsaat already is a five-time All-American in the long jump. Besides the silver medal she won at last year's Outdoor Championships, she has been the gold medalist at the National Indoor Championships each of the past two years with marks of 20-4 ½ and 20-2 ½, respectively.
She also placed third in the 60 meters at this year's National Indoor Championships, giving her another All-American citation.
