CHESTER, Pa. – Just about two weeks ago, Alissa Sellers (Huntingdon, Pa. / Huntingdon Area) crushed her personal record in the triple jump to win the Landmark Conference title. She took the podium four times at the outdoor championships and was named Landmark Field Athlete of the Year for her efforts.
Sellers' accomplishments continued to earn her conference honors as she was named to the First Team All-Conference in the triple jump and Second Team in the long jump.
On Thur. May 19, the senior proved that she isn't ready for her career to end just yet. Sellers took on the Mideast Invitational at Widener University with hopes of qualifying for the NCAA Division III Track and Field Championships. To get there, she was going to have to crush her title-winning 11.32m mark. On her last attempt of the day, Sellers did just that. She recorded a mark of 11.96m (39' 3'') that broke the all-time record at Juniata by half a meter and qualified her for the NCAA Championships. The previous record of 11.46m was set by Gennifer Washington in 1993.
Sellers heads into the NCAA Outdoor Championships ranked eighth in the country in the triple jump.
"I still cannot believe it," Sellers said. "I'm really excited about this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I have trained really hard this season and have had a great support group made up of teammates, coaches, family and friends who have pushed me to be the best that I can be at every meet. I think of their advice right before I jump, 'You only have six jumps. Go for it. Give it all you've got. There's nothing to lose' take a deep breath and fly."
The 2016 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships will be held at Wartburg College in Waverly, IA from May 26-29.