NCAA Finals Next For Chippewa Duo

MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – Just another meet?

If that's what works, then yes it is.

Central Michigan's Erin Howard (shot put) and Nadia Williams (long jump) will compete on Thursday in the NCAA Track & Field Championships at the University of Texas' Mike A. Myers Stadium in Austin.

"I think they're both very good at putting it into perspective," CMU Director of Track & Field/Cross Country Jenny Swieton said. "For them, it's like, 'This is another opportunity to throw far or jump far and I'm going to take advantage of this opportunity and let the outcome speak for itself.'

"I think that's part of the reason why they are both so successful, because they can both go into meets like that."

Both qualified for the Championships two weeks ago in the NCAA East Preliminary at North Florida. Howard placed 11^th in the shot put preliminary with a CMU program-record toss of 53 feet, 6 ¼ inches; Williams was 12^th in the long jump with a leap of 19-10 ¼.

The top eight finishers in each event in Austin earn First Team All-America honors; the next eight are named to the second team. Williams and Howard are vying to become the first CMU women to earn outdoors All-America honors since Suzy Bozin (high jump) and Maria Derezinski (heptathlon) in 2002.

Williams, a junior, finished in sixth place and earned All-America honors in March in the NCAA Indoors. She enters the outdoor championships with a season-best 21-feet, 5 ½-inch jump, which is the fifth best in the nation this season and a Chippewa record.

"The funny thing about Nadia is a meet's a meet to her," Swieton said. "She just goes in and takes care of business. She doesn't get too hyped up or too nervous in any situation and I think that's the part of the reason why she's so good. And I think that's part of the reason why indoor went so well. I do think the experience does help her a lot. She's just a really even-keel."

Howard, a sophomore, qualified for the East Preliminary as a redshirt freshman in 2018, and this year took the next step. She said the pragmatic work of practice and the weight room has helped her to improve.

Her steady demeanor, like that of Williams, helps when it comes to big meets, Swieton said.

"I just think of, 'OK, what's next?' I'm not thinking of celebrating, I'm just thinking of what I have to do to beat what I just did," Howard said. "Most of the time I'm not supposed to think about anything, I'm just supposed to trust my training and then sometimes I'm thinking too hard and I don't do that well. … You're just supposed to go, and trust your training."

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Erin Howard

Nadia Williams