Martina Salander was one of three Harvard All-Americans at the NCAA Championships (Harvard Athletic Communications).
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Freshman Martina Salander was the last Harvard student-athlete to complete her competition at the NCAA Indoor National Championships, but she joined teammates Adabelle Ekechukwu and Erika Veidis in garnering All-America accolades for her performance over the weekend. Salander earned first-team accolades with a fifth-place finish in the pentathlon, while Ekechukwu finished 12th in the weight throw and Veidis took 10th in the 800, good for second-team accolades.
"I am incredibly proud of the three student-athletes we had competing at the national championships," said director of Harvard track and field/cross country Jason Saretsky. "It was a great way to cap off what was an exceptional indoor season. I was really happy to see all three of them beat their seeding they had coming into the meet. With all of them back next year, we are looking forward to having even more Harvard representation at this meet in a year's time"
The three All-America finishes marks the first time since 1982 that the women's team has produced such a trio. In fact, it has only happened once before in team history when Darlene F. Beckford '83, Mary M. Herlihy '83 and Jenny A. Stricker '85-86 all earned All-America accolades in the mile. Salander is the first Harvard student athlete to earn the honor in a multi-event discipline and Ekechukwu is the first Harvard female thrower to attain All-America status. All three Harvard competitors finished three spots higher than their seeds entering the championships.
Salander's fifth-place total of 4,209 points shatters her previous best, which was also a school and Ivy League record. She attained her previous best total (4,094) at the Texas A&M Mondo Challenge Jan. 25, her first collegiate meet. Her top performance at the NCAA meet came in the shot put, where she launched her way into the Harvard top-10 with a winning throw of 14.23m (46' 8.25"). No one else in the competition even broke the 13-meter barrier, giving her a wide margin of victory and a big boost in points. Her performance in the long jump also ranks in the top five in school history, as she posted a mark of 5.85m (19' 2.5"), good for seventh on the day. Salander was the only freshman in the pentathlon field.
Ekechukwu and Veidis competed on Day 1 of the championships, with Ekechukwu leading off the meet in the women's weight throw. Coming off a season-best performance that saw her claim the Ivy League title in the event, the junior launched a throw of 19.84m (65' 1.25") on her first attempt, which stood as the 12th-best mark in the competition. Veidis was one of the final competitors to go on Day 1 and posted a time of 2:06.69, good for 10th overall and just two spots and .54 seconds off qualifying for the Saturday finals. The time represents the second-best lifetime mark for Veidis and she was the second-highest underclassman finisher in the race.
The Crimson now turns its attention to the outdoor season, which kicks off with a spring break trip to Houston for the Shirley Crowe Multi Meet and the Victor Lopez Classic.
