Sophomore Charlotte Frere set a new school record for the discus throw during the Southern Miss Invitational on March 30 with a throw of 49.09 meters. On April 6, Frere broke her previous school record and the CCIW record for the longest discus throw during the first home meet of the year.
“Setting the CCIW conference record was a bit more shocking to me because it wasn’t even on my radar, and I didn’t even know I broke it,” Frere said. “Setting the top mark is something I’m proud of, but I’m trying not to dwell on it because it’s still really early in the season, and a lot can happen throughout the year.”
Frere’s throw at the Viking Olympics also ranked number one in Division III, with a distance of 50.02 meters. Before breaking her CCIW record, Frere’s throw at the Southern Miss Invitational broke a 16-year school record set in 2008 by Marissa Banks. Director of track and field, Chad Gunnelson, said he knows the importance and size of this feat’s accomplishment.
“The CCIW has been one of the strongest conferences in the country for throws events, particularly women’s throws,” Gunnelson said. “For her to break the record in a conference that has been as strong and has been as deep as the CCIW shows just how incredible her mark is historically and how far our discus throw is.”
Frere is a two sport varsity athlete at Augustana. In the winter, she plays on the women’s basketball team. Because of the overlapping schedules, Frere does not start training until the beginning of the outdoor track and field season. She doesn’t get the opportunity to train as much as other athletes, but Throwing Coach Taylor Hurry works one-on-one with Frere and oversees her growth and training.
“We don’t get to have hands-on time with Charlotte until she’s done with basketball,” Hurry said. “It has been great to see her hold on to the technical stuff she learned last year. What we’re hoping to see as she continues to go is that distance consistency because that’s going to let her bring home hardware or aim for a national championship.”
The culture of the track team has also helped Frere achieve high success. When Frere gets ready to throw during a meet, her teammates make sure to cheer her on and support her, which is something that she thinks boosts her performance.
“Having a close team does have a positive impact on my performance because their support is never-ending,” Frere said. “Every time I walk into the ring, it’s never silent. There are always teammates around me cheering me on.”
The track team has an ongoing tradition when a record is broken; the athlete smashes a vinyl record. This provides a fun way for the team to celebrate a huge accomplishment for not only the athlete but also the team.
“Records are meant to be broken,” Gunnelson said. “There are a lot of records right now that are kind of within reach, and I think people have their eye on them. It’ll be fun to break the record both proverbially and then break some actual records when we smash them at our team meeting.”
