After starting their spring season at home on March 25, Cole Christoffersen and McKenzie Scheil were recognized as NSIC field athletes of the week for their strong performances on the opening week.  

The pair of throwers started their season with NCAA national provisional marks in the hammer throw, Christofferson threw the 16-pound weight a whopping 57.9 meters (just under 200 feet), Kenzie Schiel the four-time All-American threw the 9-pound weight implement 61.36 meters (just over 200 feet). However, there was also a third thrower that threw a NCCA provisional mark, in hammer throw Brooklyn Chipps sent the weight flying 58.7 meters. On the first meet of the outdoor season the throwers had a total of three NCAA championships qualifying marks.  

However, this is nothing new to the throwers, after continued success for the wildcat throws team they have built a tradition of excellence. For years, the throwers at Wayne State have been constantly placing at the Conference meet, sending athletes to the DII Championships, and placing at the national level. Cole, Kenzie, and Brooklyn are putting their names up there with athletes like Dylan Kaup, Cade Kalkowski, Ben Allen, Tia Jones, Jadin Wagner and Kenzie Sullivan and many more athletes that have all earned All-Conference, All-American, and All-Academic honors.  

“Being part of a program like Wayne State Throws College has been a time I will never forget coming in as a freshman and getting the pleasure to watch the past athletes that have come before have remarkable success and make it to the national meet every year and trying to continue that tradition,” Christofferson said.  

Just like Christofferson, Schiel wants to continue the success of the program,  

“Being a thrower means keeping that thrower tradition alive,” Schiel said. “The throwers have had someone make it to Nationals for many years and I want to do everything in my power to keep that going. It has helped me find the motivation to stay on track and work for what I want to accomplish. Being a part of the throwers is a huge honor. When we go to meets everyone knows who the Wayne Throwers are and who came before us. The group is made up of amazing, hardworking, dedicated athletes that will do whatever it takes to be part of the Wayne State Throws team. That includes every thrower that came before and everyone that will come after.” 

Going into their last season Christofferson and Schiel both have their eyes on the prize, 

  “My goal for this next meet is to improve my mark and that’s what my goal will be for the whole season I have some marks in my head that I am trying to go after and of course what should be everyone’s goal is to make the National meet at the end of May,” Cole said. 

“For this season I want to get another conference championship in the Hammer throw and place top 5 in the shot put,” Schiel said. “Then after the conference is Nationals, after getting 2nd last year at outdoor nationals I want to go for the gold, but even placing at nationals is always a goal for me.” 

But for the two it is more than just the medal they want, both throwers want to be the person the new first-year athletes to look up to, the way they did to the senior athletes when they came here.  

“The impact I want to leave at Wayne is one that makes every athlete younger than me work hard and keep doing what the coaches are asking of you to succeed to the best of your ability,” Christofferson said. “I want to be that guy that teammates remember for the rest of their time at Wayne State.”