By: Craig Morgan
TEMPE, Ariz. – The birth of Samantha Noennig's throwing career isn't quite as cinematic as Maggie Ewen's, but the Sun Devil redshirt freshman hopes it will follow a similar story arc.
Noennig secured a place alongside Ewen (shot put, discus) for the NCAA Championships in Eugene, Oregon, from Wednesday through Saturday when she placed 11th in the shot put at the NCAA West Preliminary Rounds in Sacramento, California on May 24.
"It has been my goal all year, and when I missed indoor NCAAs, I made it my mission," Noennig said. "I'm really excited to be able to compete on the biggest stage of NCAA track and field and I'm ecstatic that Maggie and I can go do this together and my first nationals will be with her by my side. She has been through it all."
Noennig's mom, Deb, was a heptathlete at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. When she realized her daughter had some athletic ability, she suggested Sam give track and field a try.
"We had an empty lot by our backyard and there was a concrete slab so we would just throw off of that into our backyard," said Noennig, who grew up in Hartford, Wisconsin, about 40 miles northwest of Milwaukee. "She started me with hurdles and triple jumps, too, but I tore both ACLs in high school. After the first one, my surgeon was like, 'no more hurdling or triple jumping for you,' but I could still throw and that's what I loved to do anyway."
Deb Noennig had some experience with the shot put, but none with the discus. When she had taught Sam all she could, she took her to Joe Frontier, who coached at the Madison Throws Club, about an hour and a half west of Hartford. Noennig said Frontier became like a second father to her.
"There was a lot of one-on-one work and then group settings," she said. "He taught me how to lift and he'd take me to lunch and we'd just talk about stuff."
Noennig won a pair of state championships at Hartford Union High School in the discus (2014, 2015) and she added a shot put state championship in 2015. When it came time to search for colleges, Arizona State's warm weather and former throws coach Dave Dumble were the main attractions. Dumble preached a similar style to Frontier, but by the time Noennig arrived for a redshirt season while she recovered from another ACL surgery, Dumble had departed for Oregon State and Brian Blutreich had taken over as throws coach.
"To her credit she came in with eyes wide open and said, 'let's go, let's see what we can do,'" Blutreich said. "Even if things don't go well, she always has a great attitude and she is always ready to go. That's a great quality to have."
Blutreich had to be careful with Noennig the first year as she recovered from surgery, but the pair achieved an early milestone when she made the U.S. Junior National team, won the USATF Junior National Championship in the shot put and qualified for the USATF Pan American Junior Championships in Lima, Peru, last July.
"Her physical attributes are fantastic," Blutreich said. "Throwing is the ability to move something fast and when you watch her run and jump, you're just like, 'whoa, OK, this girl can make things move. When you can make your body move like that you should be able to make an implement move like that and that's where I come in.
"She's about ready to turn a big corner. We're running out of time this year but she has brought her lower-end marks up from last year. She hasn't hit the big, big throw yet. That will come in time, hopefully this week, but the signs are all pointing forward for her for next year. To get this experience at the national meet so early in her career is only going to help her for the next three. I definitely see her upside being a top 3-5 thrower for sure in the shot put."
As she heads into her first national meet, Noennig is trying to soak up all the knowledge she can from Ewen, who is competing in her final collegiate meet.
"When I got here, I knew she was really good but it has been amazing working with her," Noennig said. "She became one of my best friends and has taught me how to compete at this level. At Pac-12s, she was like a big sister showing me how to do everything. She has been there for me every step of the way and I couldn't be more grateful for all her help.
"She works harder than anyone I have ever met so I strive to be like her. I try to work as hard as she does. It's really helpful watching her because she does a lot of the technical stuff really well. It makes me want to strive for more and throw farther. She is setting a lot of records here. Hopefully, I'll be able to break some of them or at least get close. She has set the bar so high."
Follow Craig Morgan on Twitter
TEMPE, Ariz. – The birth of Samantha Noennig's throwing career isn't quite as cinematic as Maggie Ewen's, but the Sun Devil redshirt freshman hopes it will follow a similar story arc.
Noennig secured a place alongside Ewen (shot put, discus) for the NCAA Championships in Eugene, Oregon, from Wednesday through Saturday when she placed 11th in the shot put at the NCAA West Preliminary Rounds in Sacramento, California on May 24.
"It has been my goal all year, and when I missed indoor NCAAs, I made it my mission," Noennig said. "I'm really excited to be able to compete on the biggest stage of NCAA track and field and I'm ecstatic that Maggie and I can go do this together and my first nationals will be with her by my side. She has been through it all."
Noennig's mom, Deb, was a heptathlete at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. When she realized her daughter had some athletic ability, she suggested Sam give track and field a try.
"We had an empty lot by our backyard and there was a concrete slab so we would just throw off of that into our backyard," said Noennig, who grew up in Hartford, Wisconsin, about 40 miles northwest of Milwaukee. "She started me with hurdles and triple jumps, too, but I tore both ACLs in high school. After the first one, my surgeon was like, 'no more hurdling or triple jumping for you,' but I could still throw and that's what I loved to do anyway."
Deb Noennig had some experience with the shot put, but none with the discus. When she had taught Sam all she could, she took her to Joe Frontier, who coached at the Madison Throws Club, about an hour and a half west of Hartford. Noennig said Frontier became like a second father to her.
"There was a lot of one-on-one work and then group settings," she said. "He taught me how to lift and he'd take me to lunch and we'd just talk about stuff."
Noennig won a pair of state championships at Hartford Union High School in the discus (2014, 2015) and she added a shot put state championship in 2015. When it came time to search for colleges, Arizona State's warm weather and former throws coach Dave Dumble were the main attractions. Dumble preached a similar style to Frontier, but by the time Noennig arrived for a redshirt season while she recovered from another ACL surgery, Dumble had departed for Oregon State and Brian Blutreich had taken over as throws coach.
"To her credit she came in with eyes wide open and said, 'let's go, let's see what we can do,'" Blutreich said. "Even if things don't go well, she always has a great attitude and she is always ready to go. That's a great quality to have."
Blutreich had to be careful with Noennig the first year as she recovered from surgery, but the pair achieved an early milestone when she made the U.S. Junior National team, won the USATF Junior National Championship in the shot put and qualified for the USATF Pan American Junior Championships in Lima, Peru, last July.
"Her physical attributes are fantastic," Blutreich said. "Throwing is the ability to move something fast and when you watch her run and jump, you're just like, 'whoa, OK, this girl can make things move. When you can make your body move like that you should be able to make an implement move like that and that's where I come in.
"She's about ready to turn a big corner. We're running out of time this year but she has brought her lower-end marks up from last year. She hasn't hit the big, big throw yet. That will come in time, hopefully this week, but the signs are all pointing forward for her for next year. To get this experience at the national meet so early in her career is only going to help her for the next three. I definitely see her upside being a top 3-5 thrower for sure in the shot put."
As she heads into her first national meet, Noennig is trying to soak up all the knowledge she can from Ewen, who is competing in her final collegiate meet.
"When I got here, I knew she was really good but it has been amazing working with her," Noennig said. "She became one of my best friends and has taught me how to compete at this level. At Pac-12s, she was like a big sister showing me how to do everything. She has been there for me every step of the way and I couldn't be more grateful for all her help.
"She works harder than anyone I have ever met so I strive to be like her. I try to work as hard as she does. It's really helpful watching her because she does a lot of the technical stuff really well. It makes me want to strive for more and throw farther. She is setting a lot of records here. Hopefully, I'll be able to break some of them or at least get close. She has set the bar so high."
Follow Craig Morgan on Twitter