June 14, 2003
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Hepthatlete Jordan Willmann earned her first All-America honor Saturday on the final day of the NCAA Championships at Sacramento State's A.G. Spanos Sports Complex.
Willmann was in 13th place after the javelin with a total of 4,475 points entering the final of the seven events, the 800-meter run. The Llano, Texas-native ran her second-fastest time of the season, a 2:12.71, to improve to a fifth-place finish and earn her first All-America honor with a total score of 5,400 points.
"It's a dream come true," Willmann said. "All year long I hoped and prayed that I would make it to nationals. When that happened, I thought I had a shot at placing. When I heard that I got fifth I was thinking 'somebody pinch me'. It's a good feeling. I worked hard. Track has been my No. 1 focus this year, and it's worth it. This is what I worked for."
"We are very, very proud of her," head coach Clyde Hart said. "She was 13th going into the final event. She knew how many seconds she needed to make up some points and she went out and did it."
Willmann began the day in eighth place with a total of 3,206 points after four events. She moved up to seventh after recording her second-best leap of the season in the long jump with a distance of 18-7. On her final javelin throw, Willmann had a season-best distance of 106-3, but she fell to 13th place. Entering the final event, she was 52 points out of the eighth place position needed to add points toward the team total and earn All-America honors.
"I was in 13th place and I knew I had a chance at eighth if I had a good 800. When I saw my time I was praying that it was good enough for eighth," Willmann added.
The school-recordholder in both the heptathlon and pentathlon recorded the second-best 800 time to propel herself into the Top 8.
On Friday, Willmann cleared a career-best height of 5-8 ? in the high jump. She also clocked a time of 14.47 in the 100-meter hurdles and a 25.94 in the 200. She recorded a shot put distance of 35-8 ?.
The women's team finished the meet with nine points, their highest total since accumulating 13 points to tie for 21st in 2001. Three women earnd All-America honors this season as Debbie Thornhill took eighth in the 10,000 and April Holliness finished fifth in the long jump.
The final event of the 2003 NCAA Track and Field Championships will feature the men's 4x400 relay team running for its 23rd-consecutive All-America honor. The race is scheduled for 9:40 p.m. (PST) tonight.
