Wisconsin Badgers
Big Ten Outdoor Championships
Card crowned Big Ten shot put champion
May 17, 2015 | Women's Track & Field
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May 17, 2015
EAST LANSING, Michigan -- After breaking the school record on Saturday in the discus at the Big Ten outdoor meet, but settling for a runner-up finish, Wisconsin women's track and field junior Kelsey Card was motivated on Sunday in the shot put.
Card threw a meet record of 57 feet, 11 1/4 inches, to win her third Big Ten title of the season at the 2015 Big Ten Outdoor Track & Field Championships after securing both the shot put and weight throw crowns at this year's Big Ten indoor meet.
"I think yesterday's runner-up finish motivated me," Card said. "It gave me some fire to go out there and do the best I could.
"A win is great. I will always take a win. I was hoping for a little farther distance, but it didn't come together today. I am still happy with my overall mark and had a consistent performance today."
Card, the Big Ten record holder in the event with a monster mark of 58-3 3/4 at the 2014 USA Outdoor Championships, entered the weekend with a conference-leading mark of 58-2.
"I think this weekend was a good weekend," Card said. "I still have some technical things to work on heading into regionals. Overall, it was a good feeling to throw that well and know you still have things you can improve on."
"We knew that Kelsey was going to bounce back," UW Director of Track & Field and Cross Country Mick Byrne said. "She has that great ability and that great confidence in herself. All good athletes have that. We knew that she was going to be able to put yesterday aside and just move on and concentrate on her performance this afternoon. She came out with the win and the Big Ten meet record.
"It's just a testimony to her great character, fighting all the time."
Card became the first Badger to win the outdoor shot put since Karen Nitsch won the event in 1983 with a heave of 50-4 1/4.
Senior Angela Boushea was 15th in the shot put with a throw of 47-1 3/4.
Molly Hanson, the third-place finisher in the 1500 meters at last year's conference meet, took sixth in 4 minutes, 21.50 seconds to earn three points for the Cardinal and White. Hanson was among the leaders off the get go, settling into fifth halfway through the race, but Michigan State's Sara Kroll passed Hanson heading into the bell lap to finish fifth. MSU's Leah O'Connor won in 4:14.19.
Senior Grace Heglund-Lohman claimed three points in the 400 hurdles with a sixth-place showing, crossing the line in 1:01.59.
"It was great to not only see Grace score in her last Big Ten outdoor meet, but improve on her finish at last year's meet," Byrne said.
Wisconsin's 4x400 relay team of Brenna Detra, Deanna Latham, Ebony McClendon and Heglund-Lohman clocked in at 3:44.03 to finish 11th.
After a podium finish in the heptathlon yesterday, sophomore Georgia Ellenwood tied for 13th in the high jump with a clearance of 5-6.
Overall, Wisconsin finished ninth as a team with 46 points, while Michigan State won the Big Ten crown on their home track with 128 points.
"It's about getting out there and competing," Byrne said. "We had good performances this weekend, but we still have a lot of work to do. We'll get after it. We're not happy the scores, but it is what it is for right now and we've just got to be better."
