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SMSU TRACK AND FIELD: SMSU’s Rebecca Manteuffel ready to compete in the discus at NCAA Outdoor Championships

Photo courtesy of SMSU Athletic Communications SMSU’s Rebecca Manteuffel watches her throw in the discus event during a meet earlier this season. Manteuffel will be competing in the discus at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Championships in Charlotte, North Carolina today.

MARSHALL – A year ago, Rebecca Manteuffel never thought she would be even competing at the collegiate level. Now the Southwest Minnesota State University freshman is on a stage she never thought she would reach, as Manteuffel will be competing in the discus at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Championships at the Belk Complex in Charlotte, North Carolina.

“I was so excited,” Manteuffel said about realizing she would qualify for the National Championships. “In high school, I didn’t think I was going to be good enough to compete at the collegiate level. But it was in the third or fourth meet of the outdoor season this year where I just went out there and threw and was able to qualify. I’m still in shock and nervous all at the same time, but at the end of the day, everything worked out and I am extremely grateful for the talent that I’ve been blessed with.”

Manteuffel qualified for the championships during the MIAA vs. NSIC Showdown in Maryville, Missouri on April 5, winning the discus event with a school record throw of 48.13 meters. The throw placed her in 20th in the nation to reach the championships.

SMSU coach Dan Allen said going into the meet, they were looking at the qualifying marks from 2017 and knew she had a good chance of making it to the national stage.

“We looked at the marks from last year’s championships and took in the weather conditions and knew that 20th would put her right on the bubble, so she had a pretty good chance,” Allen said. “We were pumped and excited that she was able to set a PR and as a freshman, she has a lot of upside and is learning things on the fly but she’s already had a lot of big throws so far, so we’re excited to see what she’ll do at the championships.”

Manteuffel is also making history for the Mustangs, as she is the first female SMSU track and field athlete to qualify for the NCAA Championships in the history of the program. She’s knows it’s a great opportunity for her to be able to represent her teammates and the program in just her first year, and is excited to see what the future has in store.

“I can’t stop smiling, it’s just so wonderful,” Manteuffel said. “Just as a freshman the atmosphere is amazing and in the future I want to have this success with more of my teammates. I haven’t even competed yet and I already want to come back next year. Being able to make history like this is incredible; I just can’t explain it.”

The journey to finding where you want to spend the next few years after high school can sometimes be a long and difficult road. That wasn’t the case for Manteuffel, as the Cologne native and Mayer Lutheran High School graduate looked at both South Dakota State University and SMSU before deciding to join the Mustangs.

“SDSU was the first college visit but I never really talked to any of the coaches or anything. When I came to SMSU, I fell in love with the campus and met with Dan and Justin (Romero) and they both got me so excited about being a collegiate athlete,” Manteuffel said. “I visited with my mom and they showed us all of the facilities and they were telling me about Alex Weis (2017 SMSU graduate and track and field athlete) and all of his success as well as the rest of the team. They said if I put my mind to it and was dedicated to the sport, I could be like them, so that made me super excited and I just knew it was the place for me.”

Manteuffel said both Allen and Romero have had a huge impact on her throughout her first season at SMSU, and added they’re always willing to give the right push when she needs it.

“I have a pretty good relationship with both of them, especially with Romero since we spend more time at practice together. Both are very motivating and help me get after it and give me great advice. If I’m having a bad meet or have a bad throw, they tell me to shake it off,” Manteuffel said. “At one of the conference meets, I wasn’t doing as well as I wanted, and Dan came up to me an hour after I threw and gave me the motivation to push through. They’re awesome people and I couldn’t have asked for better coaches.”

On the other side, both Allen and Romero have seen a lot of growth and improvement from Manteuffel, and that she has become a great leader for them.

“Dan and I have seen a lot of growth from her. She was super quiet when she first came to campus but now she’s super comfortable and jokes around with everyone and is super fun to be around,” Romero said. “One thing about her is that no matter if she is doing really well or poorly, Rebecca is always happy. She has become a great leader for us and she’ll be someone that others will look up to in the program.”

Allen added Manteuffel has already shown a lot of maturity during her first year and has picked up on so many things, including on their trip so far.

“Just on this trip she’s picked up on certain things from the beginning. She communicates to us with anything, whether its shot put or discus or even life related,” Allen said. “She’s got a good head on her shoulders and it’s not too often that you are able to have a senior level talk as a freshman.”

Romero added they’ve done a lot of work to build her strength throughout the season and it has showed throughout each meet.

“We’ve built a lot on her strength and do a lot of cleans and snatches to work on her explosiveness. She showed it during the fall practices and you can tell she’s improved so much,” Romero said. “During the indoor season, she increased the weights and we got a glimpse of it in the shot put, so we’re really looking for the shot put and the discus to be that 1-2 punch for her.”

That hard work paid off for Manteuffel this season, who earned All-Region honors from the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association in the discus during the outdoor season this spring. Manteuffel said it’s an honor to be amongst a lot of great names on that list, especially coming out of a tough conference like the NSIC.

“It was awesome. I found out about it last week and there are so many great athletes and the NSIC is such a tough conference, so it’s definitely an honor,” Manteuffel said. “There’s a lot of great competition and a lot of people who are dedicated to the sport.”

Manteuffel will compete in the discus throw today at 3 p.m. CST. Romero said he wants Manteuffel to approach the Championships just as she would with any other meet.

“One thing that I’ve really stressed to her is to just keep the same routine. Whether it’s eating or pre-meet work, the ones who are keeping composed will succeed,” Romero said. “We try not to have super long practices but instead have really good practice, especially with an unfamiliar and rough ring to throw out of. She’s shown a lot of confidence and to know that right away is huge.”

Allen said he’s looking forward to watching her compete at a high level and no matter what the results show, it’s a great experience to learn from some of the other best athletes in the nation.

“Just seeing her compete,” Allen said. “Whether she does well or not, at the end of the day, there’s not super high expectations here for her, just going and experiencing competition like this at the highest level.”

Manteuffel said she’s just been soaking it all in and is learning a lot from people who are just as passionate about the sport as her.

“Just being here and watching all of these great athletes compete is amazing. I’m ready for the competition and I don’t think the nerves have really set in just yet, but I’m sure they will,” Manteuffel said. “Being around other people who are dedicated and passionate about this sport is awesome and the atmosphere is great. I’m at a loss for words just to recap how big this year has been. I’ve grown so much and I can’t wait to see what’s next.”

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