FRESNO, Calif. -- It took Vivian Chukwuemeka less than an hour into a 3-day meet to place the final jewel on her crown as the greatest thrower in NAIA track & field history.

Already the owner of 4 NAIA records and 13 event championships, Chukwuemeka snared the final record and the one title that has eluded her throughout her collegiate career. On just her second throw at the NAIA Outdoor Track & Field Championship Meet at Fresno Pacific University, Chukwuemeka broke the NAIA hammer throw record with a heave of over 191’. Four throws later, she broke that record again along with her school record and the stadium record to clinch the hammer title with a monster toss of 196’ 10”, breaking the former NAIA standard by nearly 15 feet.

"The record wasn't a goal," said Chukwuemeka, who owns the NAIA record in the discus, shot put (indoor and outdoor), weight throw and now the hammer. "It wasn't even on my mind. I just wanted to win because I've never won this event before. Once I got the record, I thought I could do it again and again. I really pushed myself on the last 2 throws because I wanted to go over 200 feet and maybe that's why I fouled on both of them."

Chukwuemeka’s effort was only the tip of the iceberg for Azusa Pacific. She led a parade of Cougars who swept the top 3 finishes and garnered 4 All-America honors as well, all in the hammer.

Defending NAIA champion Barbara Sugar was second at 176’ 9 while fellow senior Kristi Young was third with a personal-record throw of 172’ 0”, the third best toss in school history. Sophomore Ruth Wilhelm completed the Cougar domination by finishing sixth, good enough for All-America recognition, with a personal-best throw of 160’ 5”.

“I’m really happy with the results for all of us,” said Chukwuemeka, who now owns 14 NAIA titles, 8 on the outdoor circuit. “We’ve come a long way and have worked hard together for so many years.”

The Cougars collected 27 points in the hammer throw alone and as a result grabbed the first-day lead toward the team title. Lindenwood (Mo.) is second with 14 points and pre-meet favorite Missouri Baptist is third with 12 points.

In other event finals, Chukwuemeka and Wilhelm did not advance to the finals of the javelin, and Renee Eckley did not make the 9-athlete cut in the long jump.

Meanwhile sophomore Capree Bell is on her way toward an All-American effort in the heptathlon. After the one day, Bell has tallied 2,865 points and currently sits in third place, just over 400 points behind leader Nadina Marsh of Missouri Baptist. Bell set a personal-record in the shot put, going 36’ 9”.

Azusa Pacific lost the services of 4-time All-American Morgan Altizer who aggravated a hamstring injury during Wednesday’s practice and thus was scratched from the meet in the heptathlon and pole vault.

“We’re a little ahead of the game,” said Cougar women’s coach Mike Barnett. Obviously, the hammer was a great thing, and it helps offset the loss of Morgan. We got everyone through in the preliminaries, but we still have a lot to do. The discus will be very important to us.”

In the men’s competition, junior James Ferguson put the Cougars on the board with a fourth-place finish in the hammer throw, good enough for 5 points. Ferguson threw the 16-pound ball of steel 187’ 6” to become the 20th Cougar to earn All-American recognition in the hammer. Doane’s Will Moman won the event at 206’ 7” to become the first athlete since former Cougar great Doug Barnett in 1981 and 1982 to capture back-to-back NAIA hammer crowns.

In other men’s event finals on Thursday, Mark Grubbs and Matt Michaels did not advance to the finals of the javelin throw.

In preliminary race action, Tim Ramirez (1500), Danny Reid (800), Kevin Lindsey (800), Matt Sparks (110 and 400 hurdles), David Pichler (110 hurdles), and Matt Parish (400), Peter Sherman (steeplechase) and the 4x800-meter relay all advanced to the next round in their respective races during Thursday’s competition.

“We had a good first day,” said Cougar men’s coach Kevin Reid. “We advanced everything through the prelims, and set everyone up pretty much as we planned. The next couple of days there are going to be some important head-to-head battles between us, Lindenwood, Dickinson and Virginia Intermont. If we win some of those battles it will bode well for us when it comes down to Saturday afternoon.”

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