CHARLOTTE, NC – Following a National Championship performance on Thursday by senior Michaela Dendinger in the hammer throw, she was joined by two teammates in the shot put and another in the discus on Saturday.
From the final day of the 2018 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Charlotte, North Carolina, four members of the Wayne State College women’s team were in competition.
Dendinger added another All-American honor Saturday morning with a fifth-place finish in the shot put. It’s her third All-American finish in the shot put during the outdoor season after winning the national title in the event last season and placing seventh as a sophomore in 2015.
The graduate of Hartington Public HS (Coleridge), recorded a top mark of 50′ 8 ¾” in prelims to finish fifth and advance to the finals. She then fouled on all three attempts in the finals and remained in fifth place to collect another All-American finish, her ninth as a Wildcat.
Two other Wildcats competed Saturday afternoon in the shot put as sophomore Tia Jones placed 17th overall and freshman Jadin Wagner 21st out of 24 competitors in the event.
Jones, a graduate of Elkhorn HS, posted a top mark of 45′ 9 ¼” on her final attempt in prelims to finish 17th. Her other throws were 41′ 7 ¼” and 44′ 3 ½”.
Wagner, a freshman from Lawton, Iowa (Lawton-Bronson HS), came in 21st overall with a top mark of 44’7 ½”, which came on her first attempt. Other marks for Wagner were 43′ 9 ¾” and 44′ 7″ on her final throw.
Dendinger and senior Kacie O’Connor also competed in the discus late Saturday afternoon but neither athlete was able to advance to the finals.
Dendinger came in 10th overall with a top mark of 150′ 7″, coming on her second throw in prelims. She also fouled and had a final prelim mark of 150′ 5″.
O’Connor took 16th overall out of 24 competitors with a top throw of 145′ 5″ coming on her second attempt in prelims. Other throws were 145′ 3″ and a foul on her final attempt.
