ABILENE – A quick flip through Abilene Christian's track and field record books shows a majority of the Wildcat throwing records have been set since the arrival of associate head coach
Jerrod Cook in 2006.
Cook's proteges own six of eight outdoor school records plus three indoor marks heading into this week's Southland Conference Indoor Championships.
Dig a little deeper and the books show his student-athletes occupying 49.5 percent of ACU's top-10 all-time performer lists, including 80 percent of both the women's hammer and weight throw.
Take another look at the names and recall where they're from.
Many are from the Lone Star State and the small schools that dot the West Texas landscape:
McKennon Cecil (Eastland), Andrew Hudson (Bushland), Shalania Lakey (Hamlin),
Taylor Posey (Rotan) and
Jacob Mechler (Andrews) just to name a few.
They've also come from across the pond.
Javelin record holder Linda Brivule hailed from Latvia, while Baptiste Kerjean came all the way from St. Brieuc, France to set the school's record in the hammer throw. In more recent years, however, the Wildcats have benefited from the German duo of
Kai Schmidt and
Annina Brandenburg.
"It's all part of God's greater plan," said Cook about his ability to recruit the globe. "I don't have ultimate control on who all comes here. Kai (Schmidt) contacted me same as Baptiste (Kerjean), and fortunately I had an 'in' with Annina because of Kai. Those are things that God brings together that I have no control over. It's a blessing.
"Once they get here, the big part is communication," he continued. "If Annina is struggling as we're going over something in training, I'll stop and ask, 'what do you think about this?' and maybe tweak some things. It comes back to trust. I have to earn the trust of the student-athletes in order to have a great relationship, which is what we have here. I love what I do. I love who I work with, and to be able to share my passion with the student-athletes is amazing."
Schmidt, a four-time Southland champion, was part of a large contingent of ACU throwers who helped the Wildcats steadily climb the conference championships standings from 2015-19. His remarkable graduating class also included Southland medalists and scorers Cecil, Joshua Hunter,
Morgan Knight,
Reagan Mabery,
Kayla Melgar, Posey,
Ryan Simmons and
Lonnie Smith.
This lot totaled 69 points at last year's league indoor meet, and a whopping 129 points outdoors, where Melgar was voted Southland Athlete of the Year. Melgar went on to place eighth in the shot put at NCAA West Prelims to qualify for the NCAA Championships.
Accompanying Melgar to Austin was then-sophomore Brandenburg, who made her way to the Texas State Capitol by placing sixth in the discus west prelims. She went on to earn Second Team All-America honors in this event thanks to a 15th-place mark of 176-6 (53.79m), and then returned to her homeland only a few days later to compete at the German and European U23 Championships.
"I went home to Germany on a Tuesday, and left that Thursday for German U23 nationals and won. That was really amazing, and I probably did so well because I didn't have to think so much. I was like, 'I'm going do this, I know what I'm doing, and I'll trust in my training.' It all worked out really well, and because I won there, I got to go to the U23 European Championships. That also was an exciting meet.
"I talked to Coach Cook over break, exchanging videos, and by having Kai and his dad who is also my coach (Uwe Schmidt) there in person, they definitely me keep and maintain the quality of my throws. So, I actually got third place at the European Championships and that was an amazing experience."
Following the recent great exodus of Wildcat throwers, Brandenburg has been catapulted into the Captain's Chair all while delivering record-breaking performances this indoor season in the shot put. Her first effort of the winter at Texas A&M, reached 52 feet-3.75 inches (53.79m) to break Marlene Lewis' 32-year old school record and rank her 37th in the nation. She also won the shot-put title last Friday at Texas Tech, for her eighth career victory.
"She's amazing, and even that's an understatement," said Cook. "From year one to now, her development and commitment to training has gotten stronger. She's extremely coachable. She's dedicated to getting better every day, and that's something you can't coach. That desire. She has that, and I couldn't be prouder of her, and the thing is there's so much more for her. She's breaking through continuously."
Brandenburg's shot-put conference ranking is No. 1 heading into the Sunday/Monday Southland Conference Indoor Championships, which will mark her third appearance. She placed fourth in this event in 2017 (14.44m / 47-4.50) and was sixth last season with a top mark of 14.65m (48-0.75). She is one of three Southland performers to eclipse 15 meters (50 feet) in the shot put this winter along with Ashley Davis of Southeastern Louisiana and McNeese's Alanna Arvie.
What's been most beneficial to Brandenburg as she navigates conference and national competitions is being comfortable with mistakes.
"I think you have to acknowledge the bad days and learn from that," she said, "rather than just forgetting and moving on with the next and good days. That's definitely what I have to focus on every day, even the little steps that I can make in technique, in class, in the weight room, or even outside sports or academics.
"That's something Coach Cook is really good at," she continued, "caring for the student-athlete rather than just the distance, especially in competition. That's something that's helped me develop here under Coach Cook. I can feel comfortable here and open up, take the opportunities I'm given to succeed in different areas here at ACU."
The 2020 Southland Conference Indoor Track and Field Championship kicks off Sunday at the Birmingham CrossPlex in Birmingham, Ala. Day one events will begin at 8:30 a.m. CT with the 60-meter hurdles portion of the pentathlon event and conclude at 7 p.m. with the men's distance medley relay.
Sam Houston State has captured the men's team title in each of the past four years and will look to secure the top spot once again.
Stephen F. Austin aims to defend the women's team title after overpowered the competition in 2019 with 141 points and six gold medals.
The Wildcats placed third there last year on the men's side with 77 points, and the women finished fifth with 65 points.
In addition to Brandenburg, ACU also is counting on big points from fellow throwers
Thomas Wilson III,
Tyler Richardson and
Jacob Mechler. Richardson, a redshirt freshman, is tops in the Southland shot put with a league-leading distance of 16.87m (55-04.25), while true freshman Mechler (18.65m / 61-02.25) and Wilson (18.07m / 59-03.50) are Nos. 2 and 3 in the weight throw.
Elsewhere on the women's side junior
Briahna Gerlach is a threat to medal in both the mile (4:55.27) and 3K (9:53.10), while
Irene Rono is a top-five harrier in the 5K (18:50.35).
The women also can make a splash in the jumps. ACU has three of its pole vaulters ranked among the top five in the Southland led by senior Makenzie West and freshman
Camille Ward who both attained a height of 3.65m (11-11.75). First-year Wildcat
Kenna Calliham is right behind them at 3.57m / 11-08.50.
Junior
Megan Kirby is a title contender in both the 60m hurdles (8.72) and pentathlon (3,594), and sophomore
Zoe Spinn is a rising performer in the high jump. Her best mark of 1.76m (5-09.25) is the third best in the Southland this season.
Another newcomer ready to reach the podium is redshirt freshman and triple jumper
Ella Anttila. She registered a leap of 12.18m (39-11.50) at the Texas Tech Invitational in late January.
The 60m dash portion of the heptathlon is slated to begin Sunday morning at 8:50 a.m., immediately following the conclusion of the pentathlon's 60m hurdles. The Southland Championships will then continue on a rolling schedule throughout Sunday's competition.
Monday's action opens at 9 a.m. with the heptathlon's 60m hurdles and pole vault events. Finals portions of the field events will follow, beginning at 10 a.m. with the women's shot put. Day two running events open up with the women's 60m hurdles at 11 a.m. and conclude with the men's 4x400m relay at 2:40 p.m.
ACU's quartet of Avery and
Jared Williams,
Ryan Linton and
Blaze Brownlow swept this event at the Southland's 2019 championships, clocking an indoor time of 3:13.23 and outdoor mark of 3:09.22.
On Valentine's Day of this year they recorded one of the fastest 1600m relay times in school history of 3:10.08, but it ranks second in the league to Southeastern Louisiana, which has a 3:07.67
The 2020 Southland Indoor Track and Field Championships will be streamed on the Southland Digital Network, which can be found on the Championship Central page.
For athletes that achieve qualifying marks or have done so throughout the indoor season, the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships will be hosted at the Albuquerque Convention Center in Albuquerque, N.M., March 14-15.
