Greene's school record nets All-America status

Saturday, March 11

Birmingham, AL

Millersville University

NCAA Indoor Championships

Greene's school record nets All-America status

3/11/2017 4:53:00 PM | Women's Indoor Track and Field

Results

By: Ethan Hulsey, Director of Athletic Communications

Birmingham, Alabama - Millersville sophomore Sunflower Greene needed just one throw to etch her name in the Millersville record books and become the first thrower in program history to be an indoor All-American. Greene hit 48-0 feet in the shot put and placed seventh on the final day of the 2017 NCAA Division II Indoor Track and Field Championships.

Greene already owned the Millersville program record and topped it on her first attempt of the championships. The 48-0 mark was five inches better than the distance at which she qualified.

"It's a pretty big accomplishment," said Millersville throwing coach Brittany Hartman. "She is the first All-American thrower we've had. It's a great achievement for her."

After the school record in attempt No. 1, Greene hit 47-9 1/2 on the second, which ranks as the second-longest throw in school history. From there, Greene qualified for the finals and committed fouls on her final four throws, looking to go even longer.

"You want to hit a one at the beginning because with Sunflower, the less thinking and more doing is better," said Hartman. "That made the difference. She got that one good mark to secure a spot and she went after it with nothing to lose."

"I tried to get a good throw out right away because I was nervous," said Greene. "I had a good warm-up throw and that allowed me to relax. I wasn't surprised with the mark. I knew I could hit more than that."

The seventh-place finish was seven spots higher than her seed (14th). Chadron State's Mel Herl took the championship at 51-9.

"Coming in the plan was to go all out," said Sunfower. "I made it here as a sophomore which is good. I wanted to go out, have fun and compete. It feels great and I'm satisfied but I'm hungry for the outdoor (season)."

Greene became Millersville's first indoor All-American since Kiara Allen took eighth in the 60-meter dash in 2015 and the fourth all-time, also joining Elicia Anderson (2012) and Priscilla Jennings (2008 and 2009). Greene placed third at the PSAC Championships during the indoor season after taking third at the PSAC Outdoor Championships in 2016, winning the league's freshman of the year award.