PRs in Shot Put and 200m Lift Nettles Into 16th Place Through Four Events in NCAA Heptathlon Finals

Wednesday, June 10

Eugene, Ore.

All Day

Ball State University

NCAA Outdoor Championship

Kenli Nettles on Day I of 2026 Heptathlon Finals

Photo by: Josh Brunette

PRs in Shot Put and 200m Lift Nettles Into 16th Place Through Four Events in NCAA Heptathlon Finals

June 12, 2026 | Track & Field

NCAA Live Results Photo Gallery

EUGENE, Ore. -- Saving the best for last, Ball State senior Kenli Nettles registered career-best marks in the shot put and 200 meters, in consecutive events Friday night to close Day 1 of the heptathlon finals at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships at historic Hayward Field. Her 3,411 standings points through four events represent her best first-day total this season.

For the second straight year, Nettles completed Day 1 of the NCAA heptathlon finals. She sat in 22nd place through the first four events after the opening day in 2025. But moments before last year's long jump competition to begin Day 2, she withdrew with injury concerns. She has no plans of an early exit in 2026 and sits in 16th place through those same four events on Friday.

The Cardinals' graduate student placed 19th out of 24 in the day's opening event, the 100-meter hurdles, then 23rd in the high jump, falling shy of season-best marks in both events. But in the shot put, she bettered her career-best throw by more than a full meter (13.50 with a previous PR of 12.47) and finished fourth overall to sit in 20th place heading into the evening's final event.

She improved her standing in the final race, lining up in lane 4 and finishing fourth by shaving .08 seconds off her personal record. Fourth in her heat and 11th in the 200m overall, she rose four spots in overall standings leading into Saturday's final events.

The two-time MAC heptathlon champion hopes to join former teammate Jenelle Rogers as the only Cardinals ever to finish in the country's top 20 in the heptathlon (Rogers finished fourth in 2024, fifth in 2023). Saturday's slate opens with the heptathlon long jump at 2:30 p.m. PT (5:30 p.m. ET) followed by the javelin and the 800 meters.

NCAA Heptathlon Finals Results - Friday:
2:45pm ET | 11:45am PT - 100m Hurdles (13.81 PR) | 14:08, 19th place
3:45pm ET | 12:45pm PT - High Jump (1.75m PR) | 1.60m, 23rd place
5:45pm ET | 2:45pm PT - Shot Put (12.47m PR) | 13.50m PR, 4th place
9:43pm ET | 6:43pm PT - 200m (24.43 PR) | 24.35 PR, 11th place
NCAA Heptathlon Finals Schedule - Saturday:
5:30pm ET | 2:30pm PT - Long Jump (6:02m PR) | ESPN+
6:45pm ET | 3:45pm PT - Javelin (40.10m PR) | ESPN+
9:43pm ET | 6:43pm PT - 800m (2:18.01 PR) | ESPN+
Heptathlon personal best (5,655 points at 2025 MAC Championships)