Post by Coyote Fan on May 24, 2012 19:47:23 GMT -6
I wanted to help congradulate Emma on the great career she had at USD. IMO she deserves to go down as one of the all time USD greats when it comes to athletes. Her origin was just outside walking distance from USD. She was also one of my favorites when it comes to accomplishments. She may not have been watched as much as Amber Hegge or Tom Compton but deserves just as much for accolades. Emma was a national champion and I love national championships. Here is a story from the P&D
www.yankton.net/articles/2012/05/24/sports/doc4fbda5a648da0926418655.txt
Fifteen miles is all that separated the University of South Dakota track program from arguably one of its all-time greats.
Fifteen miles and some luck, to be exact.
When it comes to the impact Gayville native Emma Ladwig has had on the USD women’s program in her five years, it’s almost as much of a case as what-almost-was.
“You knew she was pretty talented, but there weren’t a lot of people knocking on her door,” women’s head coach Lucky Huber said this week. “If we had to rewind five years, she would probably be at a big-time school.
“I had a Big Ten (Conference) coach tell me they’ve revamped their recruiting because they didn’t get her,” he added. “There are a lot of places kicking themselves, because she’s had success against their best runners.”
Instead, Ladwig — formerly Erickson — has developed into one of the country’s top mid-distance runners.
Owner of two Division II national titles and 10 individual conference titles in the 800-meter run, Ladwig will compete with 12 of her teammates at the NCAA West Preliminaries, which begin today (Thursday) and continue through Saturday in Austin, Texas.
Even with such a big meet looming, the 23-year-old Ladwig opened up about her career in Vermillion — specifically what she recalls before stepping on campus.
“Honestly, I wouldn’t have expected any big schools to look at me,” she said Tuesday night from Texas. “I was thinking mostly D2 and D3 schools. But I’ve always been a USD fan; that’s what I grew up around.”
After earning the Class B Outstanding Athlete award at the 2007 state high school track meet, Ladwig came to USD in the fall of 2007 and had an immediate impact.
Not only did she win three North Central Conference outdoor titles, she claimed Division II national titles in the 800 at both the indoor and outdoor meets.
In short order, she proved her recruitment was a smart idea, Huber said.
“To be a national champ, that’s at a whole other level,” he said. “She had a great mentor right away in Steph Gebhart, a small-town girl herself from Elkton. She really helped another small-school kid, and now you see Emma working with the younger kids.
“That’s a special thing.”
As a sophomore, she was part of four first-place victories at the Great West Conference Indoor Championships in Vermillion, setting the stage for an illustrious Division I career.
“Never in my wildest dreams did I think about Division I; it just wasn’t something I thought about yet,” she said. “I came in as a freshman and thought, ‘I can’t look that far ahead,’” she said. “I just wanted us to get All-American in the relay and see what happens from there.”
Over the next two years, Ladwig was first in six more Great West Conference events, and last year, qualified for the NCAA West Preliminaries — where she finished 32nd.
And two weeks ago at the Summit League Outdoor Championships in Fargo, N.D., Ladwig used her typical “sit and kick” style to win the 800. That victory marked the third different conference she has ruled the 800.
“That’s a function of the dysfunctional transition,” Huber said. “It’s been neat to see her rise up to that level. I mean, just think about it. She’s a girl from Gayville, a really small town. She came to a Division II school and jumped right in to the North Central. She proved herself right away, then did the same in the Great West, and now in the Summit League.
“The transition has been good for her; Emma’s made it perfectly,” he added. “That’s the kind of the model we hoped USD followed.”
Notoriously nervous before her races, Ladwig said even with all her success and her accolades, that trait has never changed from her freshman year.
“One of our freshmen, Kristie Mullen, asked me if the nerves get any better, so I showed her my fingernails,” Ladwig said. “I had pretty much chewed them all away.
“All I had to say was, ‘Does that answer your question?’”
In what could be her final collegiate race, Ladwig will compete in the first round of the women’s 800 tonight at 8:35 p.m. (central) at the West Preliminaries.
She is seeded 27th in the event with a qualifying time of 2:07.7, and would need to finish in the top 12 to advance to the NCAA National Championships, to be held June 6-9 in Des Moines, Iowa.
“I was looking at my heat sheet, and I was thinking, ‘Oh, they’re good, and that one’s good,’” she said. “They’re all really good. I just want to represent well. I’m fine with whatever outcome happens.”
The Coyotes will have 12 other athletes competing in Texas, eight women and five men.
Other women’s athletes include Bethany Buell and Emily Grove (pole vault), Alexa Duling (100 hurdles, 400 hurdles), Analisa Huschle (long jump), Jasmine Mosley (shot put, discus), Kate Wellensiek (javelin) and Kenna Wolter (triple jump).
On the men’s side, Kyle Ballew (pole vault), Kyle McKelvey (shot put), Jeff Mettler (steeplechase), Casey Shade (800) and Cody Snyder (discus) will look to advance to the national meet.
“To think back and say we’re now at the national meet, it’s huge,” Ladwig said. “Regardless of what happens, I’m happy with what I’ve done.”
Ladwig, who begins physical therapy school at USD in late July, is also nearing completion of a Master’s degree in Kinesiology.
As part of her thesis work, she worked with the USD women’s basketball players and studied their body composition. Ladwig used a BOD POD, a lima bean shaped machine that uses air displacement to measure such things as body mass and resting metabolism rate.
In other words, complex stuff.
“It’s probably not what the average person thinks of with a college athlete,” Huber joked. “She likes to do things that most wouldn’t even consider.”
www.yankton.net/articles/2012/05/24/sports/doc4fbda5a648da0926418655.txt
Fifteen miles is all that separated the University of South Dakota track program from arguably one of its all-time greats.
Fifteen miles and some luck, to be exact.
When it comes to the impact Gayville native Emma Ladwig has had on the USD women’s program in her five years, it’s almost as much of a case as what-almost-was.
“You knew she was pretty talented, but there weren’t a lot of people knocking on her door,” women’s head coach Lucky Huber said this week. “If we had to rewind five years, she would probably be at a big-time school.
“I had a Big Ten (Conference) coach tell me they’ve revamped their recruiting because they didn’t get her,” he added. “There are a lot of places kicking themselves, because she’s had success against their best runners.”
Instead, Ladwig — formerly Erickson — has developed into one of the country’s top mid-distance runners.
Owner of two Division II national titles and 10 individual conference titles in the 800-meter run, Ladwig will compete with 12 of her teammates at the NCAA West Preliminaries, which begin today (Thursday) and continue through Saturday in Austin, Texas.
Even with such a big meet looming, the 23-year-old Ladwig opened up about her career in Vermillion — specifically what she recalls before stepping on campus.
“Honestly, I wouldn’t have expected any big schools to look at me,” she said Tuesday night from Texas. “I was thinking mostly D2 and D3 schools. But I’ve always been a USD fan; that’s what I grew up around.”
After earning the Class B Outstanding Athlete award at the 2007 state high school track meet, Ladwig came to USD in the fall of 2007 and had an immediate impact.
Not only did she win three North Central Conference outdoor titles, she claimed Division II national titles in the 800 at both the indoor and outdoor meets.
In short order, she proved her recruitment was a smart idea, Huber said.
“To be a national champ, that’s at a whole other level,” he said. “She had a great mentor right away in Steph Gebhart, a small-town girl herself from Elkton. She really helped another small-school kid, and now you see Emma working with the younger kids.
“That’s a special thing.”
As a sophomore, she was part of four first-place victories at the Great West Conference Indoor Championships in Vermillion, setting the stage for an illustrious Division I career.
“Never in my wildest dreams did I think about Division I; it just wasn’t something I thought about yet,” she said. “I came in as a freshman and thought, ‘I can’t look that far ahead,’” she said. “I just wanted us to get All-American in the relay and see what happens from there.”
Over the next two years, Ladwig was first in six more Great West Conference events, and last year, qualified for the NCAA West Preliminaries — where she finished 32nd.
And two weeks ago at the Summit League Outdoor Championships in Fargo, N.D., Ladwig used her typical “sit and kick” style to win the 800. That victory marked the third different conference she has ruled the 800.
“That’s a function of the dysfunctional transition,” Huber said. “It’s been neat to see her rise up to that level. I mean, just think about it. She’s a girl from Gayville, a really small town. She came to a Division II school and jumped right in to the North Central. She proved herself right away, then did the same in the Great West, and now in the Summit League.
“The transition has been good for her; Emma’s made it perfectly,” he added. “That’s the kind of the model we hoped USD followed.”
Notoriously nervous before her races, Ladwig said even with all her success and her accolades, that trait has never changed from her freshman year.
“One of our freshmen, Kristie Mullen, asked me if the nerves get any better, so I showed her my fingernails,” Ladwig said. “I had pretty much chewed them all away.
“All I had to say was, ‘Does that answer your question?’”
In what could be her final collegiate race, Ladwig will compete in the first round of the women’s 800 tonight at 8:35 p.m. (central) at the West Preliminaries.
She is seeded 27th in the event with a qualifying time of 2:07.7, and would need to finish in the top 12 to advance to the NCAA National Championships, to be held June 6-9 in Des Moines, Iowa.
“I was looking at my heat sheet, and I was thinking, ‘Oh, they’re good, and that one’s good,’” she said. “They’re all really good. I just want to represent well. I’m fine with whatever outcome happens.”
The Coyotes will have 12 other athletes competing in Texas, eight women and five men.
Other women’s athletes include Bethany Buell and Emily Grove (pole vault), Alexa Duling (100 hurdles, 400 hurdles), Analisa Huschle (long jump), Jasmine Mosley (shot put, discus), Kate Wellensiek (javelin) and Kenna Wolter (triple jump).
On the men’s side, Kyle Ballew (pole vault), Kyle McKelvey (shot put), Jeff Mettler (steeplechase), Casey Shade (800) and Cody Snyder (discus) will look to advance to the national meet.
“To think back and say we’re now at the national meet, it’s huge,” Ladwig said. “Regardless of what happens, I’m happy with what I’ve done.”
Ladwig, who begins physical therapy school at USD in late July, is also nearing completion of a Master’s degree in Kinesiology.
As part of her thesis work, she worked with the USD women’s basketball players and studied their body composition. Ladwig used a BOD POD, a lima bean shaped machine that uses air displacement to measure such things as body mass and resting metabolism rate.
In other words, complex stuff.
“It’s probably not what the average person thinks of with a college athlete,” Huber joked. “She likes to do things that most wouldn’t even consider.”