Track and field's Cowper earns All-American honors
June 7, 2002
BATON ROUGE, La. -- Dale Cowper of Marlette, Mich., a senior on the Western Michigan University men's track and field team, earned All-American honors at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, hosted by Louisiana State University the final week in May.
Cowper finished 13th overall and eighth among American competitors in the hammer throw. In his final event as a Bronco, Cowper threw 200 feet 8 inches. Andras Haklits of the University Georgia won the event with a toss of 253 feet 8 inches. Cowper entered the meet as the No. 18 seed based on his toss of 205 feet 0 inches at the Sea Ray Relays April 12. Cowper placed 16th in the hammer throw at the 2001 NCAA Championships.
"It was a heck of a performance considering everything Dale's been through," said WMU associate head coach Mike Turk. "It would have been easy to write him off, but he came through as a champion. He continues to represent WMU at the highest level and did as best as anyone could (coming off an injury)."
Cowper hurt his knee prior to the Mid-American Conference championships. He had surgery to remove his meniscus May 9, giving him only one week to prepare for the MAC championships, where he finished second with a toss of 189 feet 7 inches.
Cowper finishes his career as a two-time All-American. He finished 12th overall, sixth among Americans in the 35-pound weight throw at the 2001 NCAA indoor championships. He earned a total of 38 individual titles, nine of which occurred in the hammer throw. He competed in a total of four NCAA championships in his career.
Media contact: Travis McCurdy, 269 387-3221, travis.mccurdy@wmich.edu