Rice’s Cavanaugh Ruled The NCAA Shot

Celebrating A Century of NCAA Track & Field Championships

Rice’s Cavanaugh Ruled The NCAA Shot

Regina Cavanaugh of Rice was almost apologetic when she won the shot put title at the 1987 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships.

No apologies were necessary as Cavanaugh’s winning ways made history as the first woman in meet history with three victories in any event.

Cavanaugh made her final collegiate competition her most dominant win of all, besting her nearest competitor by 2 feet (0.71m) when five of her six puts would have won.

Still, the pre-med honors graduate – and first female Owl to win an NCAA title in any sport – found room for improvement.

Cavanaugh told Track & Field News she was “a little disappointed. I feel like I should have set a PR or something by winning.”

Even so, her winning mark of 17.34m (56-10¾) gave her collectively the three longest efforts in meet history, topped by a 17.54m (57-6½) heave from a year earlier.

The victory gave Cavanaugh additional history with her career sixth NCAA title in the shot combining indoor and outdoor – a total that has yet to be equaled by any woman in the event in any division.

Cavanaugh’s immense skills led her away from the sport. An eventual Rhodes Scholar candidate, she now uses multiple medical degrees at the Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center in Fort Hood, Texas, near to her hometown of Killeen.

posted: December 6, 2020
1921-2021
The NCAA's First Championships

The NCAA and collegiate track & field will mark a momentous milestone in the spring of 2021 -- the 100th anniversary of the NCAA Championships and with that, the NCAA Track & Field Championships. In June 1921, the University of Chicago hosted the first track & field championships in NCAA history.

This point can’t be emphasized enough: Not only was the event the first for NCAA track & field, but the first championships for any sport under the sponsorship of the NCAA.

To celebrate, over each of the next 365 days, the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) will celebrate moments, student-athletes, and coaches that have made a century’s worth of championships special. From humble beginnings to important historical milestones to the modern-day, collegiate track & field has evolved with the American society.

The 2021 edition of the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships begin with preliminary round action on May 27-29 in Jacksonville, Fla., and College Station, Texas. The championships final site and culmination of the celebration is slated for June 9-12, 2021 at the newly rebuilt Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.

Memorable Moments
McLaughlin Had No Hurdling Competition
June 9, 2018

In 2018, Sydney McLaughlin set a 400H collegiate record in May and then posted the largest margin of victory in NCAA DI meet history one month later.

Fosbury Flopped To High Jump Glory

Dick Fosbury, creator of the “Fosbury Flop,” won back-to-back high jump titles at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in 1968 and 1969 with meet records in both years.

X-Man Reigned At 2006 NCAA Meet

Xavier Carter won four national titles at the 2006 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships, completing the only 100-400 sweep and helping the title-winning 4×100 and 4×400 relay teams.