The NJCAA announced this morning that Southwestern sophomore Molly Venteicher is the NJCAA Women's Track & Field Athlete of the Week. This is the first week of the 2023 season the NJCAA has give out its national awards.

Venteicher, from Massena and a 2021 graduate of CAM High School, earned the national honor after placing second in both the weight throw and the shot put at Saturday's Dutch Athletic Classic in Pella. She shattered her personal records in each event, breaking the school record in both. Venteicher started the day by launching a 2.66 meter PR in the weight throw to break her own school record with her toss of 15.53 meters (50 feet, 11.5 inches). That marks ranks as the top throw in the NJCAA this season. Later, she added nearly a meter to her indoor shot put PR with a throw of 12.58 meters (41 feet, 3.25 inches). She ranks sixth nationally in the shot put, and has already punched her ticket to the national championships in each event.

"It doesn't feel real right now," Venteicher said after being notified of the national award. "It means a lot, for all of my hard work to achieve that."

It's a huge honor for both Venteicher and the Southwestern track & field program, as a whole.

"Molly is a perfect example of what hard work can achieve. She has worked her tail off to improve as much as she has. A lot of credit goes to Coach (Mark) Evans, as well. He has done a tremendous job working with Molly and all of our throwers," said Scott Vicker, director of cross country/track & field. "Her winning this award is an incredible honor. I feel like throwers often get overlooked in track & field, so I'm incredibly happy for her to be recognized for just how special of a meet she had Saturday. To our knowledge, this is the first time we've had a national track & field athlete of the week."

Venteicher said one of the keys to her significant improvement in the weight throw from last year is going back to a one-spin approach from two spins.

"It allows me to get set and to use all my power when I'm set," she said.

She said her goal for the rest of the season is to keep improving. Her main goal was to qualify for nationals, which she took care of quickly.