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University of Michigan junior Emily Pendleton (Woodmore) took third in the discus, while freshman Erin Pendleton (Woodmore) finished eighth to qualify for the NCAA Championships as the University of Michigan women's track and field team completed competition at the NCAA East Preliminary Round on May 29 at Irwin Bell Track.
Emily Pendleton earned her third consecutive NCAA Championships berth, finishing third in the discus with a mark of 54.48 meters (178-9) on her third throw. Big Ten Outdoor Freshman of the Year Erin Pendleton also moved on to the NCAA Championships with an eighth-place throw of 51.82 meters (170-0). She fouled on three of her first four attempts before hitting her mark on the fifth attempt to advance.
The Pendleton sisters will be Michigan's lone representatives at the NCAA Championships (June 9-12), both competing in the discus. Emily will look to improve upon her 2009 ninth-place showing, while Erin is making her NCAA Championships debut.
Erin, who earlier this season rewrote the school’s discus-throw record, won the event with a Big Ten Championships record throw of 56.31 meters (184-9). Emily took runner-up, throwing 54.57 meters (179 feet) as the duo combined for 18 team points.
Erin was named Big Ten Outdoor Freshman of the Year to go along with first team honors, the conference office announced May 19. Emily also earned second team honors after picking up two runner-up finishes at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships (May 14-16).
Erin picks up conference honors for the first time in her career after winning her first Big Ten Title, earning the first team distinction. She won the discus with a throw of 56.31 meters (184-9), setting a new championship record. Her throw beat the old record of 56 meters held by Indiana's Katrina Koch, set in 1992. Her title in the discus marked the third consecutive year that a Wolverine has won the event at the Big Ten Championships. She also finished 10th in the hammer, with a throw of 50.93 meters (167-1).
Emily, who was the two-time Big Ten defending champion in the discus, garners All-Big Ten accolades for the third consecutive outdoor season, earning second-team honors this season. The junior captain finished runner-up in the discus (54.57 meters, 179-00), runner-up in the hammer throw (55.86 meters, 183-3) and seventh in the shot put (14.40 meters, 47-3), scoring 18 points for the Wolverines.
The Pendleton sisters combined to win every discus event this season, picking up eight titles between the two. Erin Pendleton set a new school record in the discus at the Jesse Owens Classic (May 1), throwing 56.87 meters (186-7) to collect the second of her Big Ten Field Athlete of the Week honors.
At the Big Ten meet, Michigan accumulated 56 points over the course of the three-day meet to finish in eighth place. Penn State won for the third consecutive season, scoring 133½ points.
Not surprisingly, a younger sister, Woodmore junior Carly Pendleton, competed in the discus at the Division III girls’ state track meet at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium on the campus of Ohio State University over the weekend.
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