RENO, NEV. – With the 2022 season just around the corner, there are tons of position groups looking to make an impact throughout the season. One of those being from Coach Scott Williamson's position group that includes throwers, jumpers, and multi athletes. 

Williamson, who has been coaching at the University since 2012, was pleased with the way his athletes competed during the 2021 season.

"I felt like our group did some good things last year considering the circumstances of a "covid year" and all that entails," Williamson said. "I also think that they could do a lot more in terms of challenging themselves. The great thing about our sport is that it's very easy to judge ourselves against ourselves and not always against the competition. Our goal is to always be the very best version of ourselves that we can be, so that is my challenge for the athletes this season." 

Multis

For the first group, Williamson will see three familiar faces return for their final seasons with the Wolf Pack and one transfer from the Huskers. The Multis. 

One name that is familiar for all Wolf Pack fans being Nicola Ader. The seven-time All-American returns this season after qualifying for both the NCAA Indoor and Outdoor championships. The indoor season saw Ader move into second all-time at Nevada in the pentathlon with a point total of 3,937. While in the outdoor season, Ader not only broke her own record in the long jump, but she also earned three medals at the Mountain West Championships. These included gold in the heptathlon (5,607pts) which moved her 3rd all-time at Nevada, bronze in the high jump (1.77m), and bronze in the long jump (5.91m). 

Joining Ader next season is fellow Germany native Anna Maria Sommerfeld. Sommerfeld during the season finished in fifth at the MW Championship in the heptathlon with a point total of 5,061. This mark also moved her to 10th all-time at Nevada in the event. She also finished in seventh at the Championships in the javelin with a distance of 40.35m. Combined from both events, Sommerfeld earned the Pack 10 team points.  

The last multi returning from the group will be Reno native Hanah Smrt. During the MW Championships. The senior finished in eighth place in the heptathlon with a point total of 4,726 points. This finish scoring her team a point, making it so all multis scored for their team during the championship. Smrt also had four top-five finishes throughout the season in the six meets she competed in.

Transferring from the University of Nebraska Kate Kadrmas. Some of her collegiate bests from her first seasons with the Huskers include a point total of 3,381 in the pentathlon and a point total of 4,689 in the heptathlon. Kadrmas will look to improve her marks during her first season with the Pack. 

Jumps

The next group for Coach Williamson will include seven athletes. Two veterans, three newcomers, and two transfers. The jumpers. 

Starting off the veterans for the jumps being Rayven Nealey, who during the season moved to third all-time at Nevada in the outdoor triple jump at the Rice Twilight with her distance of 12.69m. This distance also would qualify her for NCAA Regionals. Nealey finished in fourth at the MW Championships in the triple jump, which earned her team five points. Lastly, she finished in first in the triple jump in both the Tri-Team Challenge and Bobcat Invitational.

The second veteran being senior Gabby Fraser, who competed in five regular-season meets during the season. Fraser Moved to 9th all-time at Nevada in the outdoor triple jump with her distance of 11.88m at the UNLV Spring Invitational. She also finished in the top-four in two events during the season. Both at the Sacramento State Tri-Team Challenge in the triple jump (3rd) and the long jump (4th). 

Transferring from Cal State Fullerton, Iesha Hamm looks to provide a very impressive resume to the Pack in her final year of eligibility. Hamm was a part of the 2019 Women's Big West Championship team. She became a two-time Big West Women's high jump champion during her career, which is the first in Cal State program history to win back to back in that event. She had three NCAA regional appearances and became an NCAA Second Team All-American in 2019. If that's not impressive enough, she also holds indoor and outdoor high jump school records at the university. 

Also joining Hamm and transferring from Cal State Fullerton is jumper Naiah Boardingham. Just like Hamm, Boardingham holds a school record at the University. The senior's mark being in the outdoor long jump. At the 2021 Women's Big West Championship, she earned a first place finish in the long jump, finished in second in the 100m, and ran on the 4x100m relay team that took second place. Also had a NCAA Regional appearance in the long jump. 

Lastly, three newcomers will be joining the group this season. First being Reno Native Maya Aiyuk who joined the Pack last season but did not compete during the 2021 season. The sophomore will make her debut in 2022. 

The next newcomer being freshman Natasha Chetty, who specializes in the long and high jump. Throughout her career, she won the African Championships silver medal in 2019 and won two gold medals at the Indian Ocean games in 2019. Some of her personal bests include a height of 1.77m in the high jump, and a distance of 6.04m in the long jump. 

From Argentina, Marian Milani will also be joining the Pack as a freshman. Some of Milani's accolades include a personal best distance of 5.75m in the long jump and a distance of 12.60m in the triple jump. She also competed in the Juegos Binacionales, a competition between Argentina and Chile where she finished first in the triple jump. 

Throws

Lastly, Coach Williamson's throwers include a big group of five young athletes. Three newcomers and two veterans. 

The first veteran returning is Gaia Osborne, who competed for the first time since 2019 last season in the MW Championships, where she ​​finished ninth in the javelin finals with a distance of 38.88m. The other veteran returning is Rachel Garrison who will look to improve on her 2021 season. 

The throwing group will also see three talented freshmen join the squad. First from Eureka, Nev. is Alia Minoletti. In her senior year of high school, she finished in first place in the NIAA 1A State Championship for shot put and first place NIAA Northern 3A-2A-1A Championship for shot put as well. The freshman also competed in volleyball and basketball in high school. 

Emily Poole, who transferred to the Pack from North Dakota State,  was a two-time Montana state champion in the javelin, and also a two-time Montana state champion in the discus. The freshman only competed during the outdoor season at NDSU, where she placed in seventh at the Summit League Championships in the javelin throw. 

Lastly, Oregon native Isabelle Steerman looks to bring over her high school success to the Pack. She earned Rookie of the year in track during the 2017-18 season. Was also the Northwest League 2021 Girl's athlete of the year in track. In her time competing in track, she has a 141'05 personal best in the javelin.

"I have very high expectations of the jumpers, multis, and throwers as we return almost our entire squad that contributed at our conference championships," Williamson exclaimed. "Along the way we have added some very high profile high school recruits as well as some transfers who have had lots of success at a conference and national level at their previous schools. This year I believe we have multiple athletes that will be vying for conference championships and all-American status in their respective events."

Coach Williamson and his Pack will be preparing over the winter for the start of their indoor season that starts in Washington, where they will compete in the Cougar Classic on Jan. 15.