Kaila Butler Earns All-America Honors with Career-Best Throw at NCAAs

Thursday, June 10

Eugene, Ore.

4:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

NCAA Championships

Kaila Butler - All-American - June 10 2021

Kaila Butler Earns All-America Honors with Career-Best Throw at NCAAs

June 10, 2021 | Women's Track and Field

Hammer Throw Results Hammer Throw Results (PDF)Photo Gallery (Also Available at Bottom of Page)Photo Gallery

Finishes ninth in hammer throw to earn All-America accolades for the second time

By: by Mike Cihon, BGSU Strategic Communications

EUGENE, Ore. – Bowling Green State University's Kaila Butler closed out the 2021 outdoor track and field season with an All-American performance.

Butler finished ninth in the hammer throw at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field National Championships on Thursday (June 10), and was named a second-team All-American for the second time in her career. The national meet, hosted by the University of Oregon, is taking place at Hayward Field.

A CAREER-BEST PERFORMANCE

Butler's first throw on Thursday was her best, as she recorded a career-best distance of 219-feet-10 (67.01m).
That topped her previous personal best by more than four feet. She threw 215-7 at the NCAA East Region Preliminaries in Jacksonville, Fla., on May 27.
Butler, competing in the second of two flights, recorded throws of 215-4 and 214-4, respectively, on her next two attempts, putting her in ninth place and making her one of nine competitors from the 24-woman field to move on to the finals.
Butler's first throw in the finals was 216-1, her second-best throw of the day and of her BGSU career. She threw 209-3 on her next effort before fouling on her final attempt.
As mentioned earlier, Butler earned All-America Second-Team honors. She finished 12th in the hammer throw at the 2019 national meet..

NOTES & NUMBERS

Butler was the last seed in the 24-competitor field at the 2019 national meet, but threw 212-1 (64.64m) to place 12th overall and earn All-America Second-Team accolades for the first time. On Thursday, she had four throws of over 214 feet.
Her top throw of 219-10 on Thursday is the seventh-best throw in school history, and is the best by any BGSU throw not named Brooke Pleger.
Butler is BGSU's top national finisher in the hammer throw since Pleger placed third in back-to-back seasons in 2014 and 2015.
How strong was the field in both 2019 and '21? Each year, Butler threw further than Pleger did when she placed seventh in 2013 and third in 2014.
Butler's performance on Thursday is the second-best at a national championship in program history, just behind Pleger's 2015 distance of 219-11 (67.03m).

QUOTING HEAD COACH LOU SNELLING
"What a positive way to end a long year, throwing a personal best at the biggest meet of the outdoor season to make an NCAA final. Super gritty, and likely the second-best performance in NCAA history to not place."

QUOTING ASSISTANT COACH DERRICK VICARS
"I'm incredibly proud of Kaila and how she competed today. We knew it would take a lifetime best to make the final and she did exactly that. It was a great end to the season."

PHOTO GALLERY

Gallery: (6-11-2021) TF: Kaila Butler at 2021 NCAA Champ's

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