Lauren Magneson Schnelli
Lauren Magneson Schnelli, a 2012 graduate from Bryant High School and a three-year letterman for the Lady Hornets track team, has earned All-American status in the high jump at the 2015 NCAA Division II track and field championships.
Schnelli finished third at the championship meet in Allendale, Mich., on Friday, May 22, competing at Chico State of Chico, Calif.
“It is awesome to see an athlete that you coached in high school excel at the college level especially on such a huge stage,” commented Bryant coach Danny Westbrook.
Here’s an excerpt from a post on Schnelli’s accomplishment, written by Chico State sports information director Luke Reid:
ALLENDALE, Mich. – Lauren Schnelli forgot her spikes for the first meet of the season. She borrowed someone else’s shoes, turned her ankle, and missed three weeks of training right off the bat.
“What a disastrous start,” Chico State head women’s track and field coach Robert Nooney said. “We joked about that tonight.”
A season finale like Schnelli’s experienced on Friday had her laughing all the way to the podium at the NCAA Division II Track and Field Championships on the campus of Grand Valley State University.
The junior transfer from Butte College finished third in the nation, earning All-America honors in the high jump with a personal-best leap of 1.73 meters (5-feet-8). That is the second highest clearance in school history and the best finish by a Wildcat at the National Championships in the high jump.
Entering the competition, Schnelli’s season-best mark was tied for 11th in the field. But the California Collegiate Athletic Association champion rose to the occasion.
“She was so focused at the conference meet. Probably the most focused athlete we had. She showed she’s a gamer winning that thing, even though she wasn’t the favorite,” Nooney said. “I told her that if she brought that same attitude to nationals she’d be an All-American. Did we think third place? Honestly, no. But she really owned the competition. She was the biggest presence out there, dancing around and loose and having fun with it, but staying in the zone.”
A strong crosswind and action on the track that could have easily been a distraction did not affect Schnelli.
“She beat a lot of people that on paper she shouldn’t have,” Nooney said. “There was a lot going on, but she blocked out that external noise and just focused. She handled a lot of that stuff better than the others.”
