NEW ORLEANS - Less than a week after finishing as the female high-point scorer at the NCAA Division II Championships, New Mexico Highlands senior
Salcia Slack captured her second-straight U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Female Outdoor Field Performer of the Year on May 27.
"It was a phenomenal swan song in terms of outdoor eligibility for Salcia," Head Coach
Bob DeVries said. "To be the national Field Athlete of the Year for the second consecutive year is a great accomplishment. Her performances at the NCAA Championships with six All-American honors was amazing to watch."
Slack claimed First All-America honors, as well as a Second Team nod. She won the third-straight multi-event national championship when she took the title in the heptathlon, winning 5-of-7 individual events. Her total of 5,691 points was 216 better than her nearest competitor. Also in the field events, she got First Team All-America by finishing sixth in the long jump (6.22 meters) and Second Team accolades in the triple jump (12.19 meters) by finishing 10th.
Also throwing the shot put, Slack finished 15th with a throw of 13.79 meters.
Early in the season, Slack easily broke the NCAA Division II record in the heptathlon with a total of 6,141 points at the Jim Click Combined Events on April 9-10. Her mark still is fourth-best in the world.
However, to recognize just her field accomplishments at the NCAA Division II Championships would be a disservice. Slack took runner-up honors in both the 100 hurdles (13.42) and 400 hurdles (58.24) while finishing fourth with the 4x400 relay team with a time of 3:43.23.
For the NCAA Championships, she was the high-point scorer with 30.25 points. Other honors for her during the outdoor season include high-point scorer at the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Championships with a record 59 points, the USTFCCCA South Central Track AND Field Athlete of the Year and set the record for USTFCCCA All-Region Honors (10).