“It was sort of up and down,” Drenth said. “I think we went through some growing pains, but for the most part, we competed pretty well.”

Freshman thrower Beth Rohl and junior distance runner Emily MacLeod highlighted the action for MSU.

Rohl began the championships with a 53.44-meter throw in the discus Wednesday that was good enough for fifth place. Friday, MacLeod finished sixth in the 5,000 meter run with a time of 16:06.75.

“I thought Beth competed exceptionally well in the disc,” Drenth said. “Obviously, scoring fifth at your first NCAA outdoor championship is quite an accomplishment.”

Drenth also said he was happy with the way MacLeod “capped the meet” for the Spartans.

However, MacLeod said her fifth-place finish was more of a struggle than she had hoped. In 12th place with one lap to go, MacLeod needed to run the fastest final lap of anyone in the field to place in the top eight and earn All-American status.

“It wasn’t the ideal race, but it worked out well,” MacLeod said. “I realized a little bit too late that I had to get going.”

Four other Spartans also competed at the championships. Sophomore Becca Buchholtz finished 13th in the high jump, and freshman distance runner Josh McAlary finished 13th as well in the 1,500 meter run. Freshman hurdler Keenan Michael and senior triple jumper Kyron Foster both battled through injuries to compete but were unable to advance to the finals in their respective events. Rohl also tossed in the hammer throw but did not match the success she had in the discus, as she did not record a legal throw.

Regardless of finish, Drenth said it was great for his athletes to be able to compete somewhere as rich in track and field history as Eugene.

“(Oregon’s) Hayward Field is a historic place,” Drenth said of the stadium where the competition was held. “There’s been a lot of great track and field meets there for a long, long time. To be able to be a part of something like that is pretty special.”

MacLeod said the knowledgeable and excited fans at Hayward Field encouraged her to perform at her best.

“The atmosphere gets the adrenaline pumping,” MacLeod said. “Every time you go by the stands, they’re clapping or banging on the bleachers. It’s pretty loud.”

With only one MSU participant at nationals not returning next season, Drenth said the future is bright for the Spartans.

“It was probably one of our larger groups of people we’ve taken,” Drenth said. “It’s important now that this group comes back with some perspective and really establish themselves as leaders and build the expectations for people around them.”

As the second-best freshman in the discus and the only freshman in the hammer throw, Rohl said she was happy to have such success this early in her career but also was excited for the entire MSU team going forward.

“It’s a great feeling obviously to finish this high already,” Rohl said. “But it’s also great knowing our program is so young and that we’re on the rise. People are looking out for us now, and they know that we have a lot of potential.”