WINONA, Minn. — Saint Mary's University's Anna Swanson (Osceola, Wis.) has been sitting on one of the nation's top performances in the javelin since April 24, when she delivered a toss of 42.46 meters to win the event at the SMU Drake Alternative.
 
Friday, Swanson finally heard the words she has been waiting for since uncorking that event-winning toss: "You're in."
 
The Cardinal sophomore's throw withstood the test of time, putting  her among the top in the nation — and earned her a trip to her first-ever NCAA Division III Outdoor National Championships.
 
And Swanson won't be going to Irwin Belk Track at North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro, N.C., alone — the Cardinal men's 4x100 relay team of Kyle Lichttenegger (De Pere, Wis.), Matt Boone (Mindoro, Wis.), Noah Anderson (St. Paul, Minn.), and Garrett Jackson (West Linn., Ore.) also made the championships field.
 
"We are excited for all of our qualifiers," said Saint Mary's head coach Jake Malm. "And we are looking forward to our chance to compete against the best in the country."
 
Swanson, whose 42.46-meter toss leaves her sitting 12th among the 19 qualifiers in the javelin, while the men's 4x100 relay team's school-record time of 41.28 has them sitting 12th heading into the 14-team event.
 
The prelims of the 4x100 relay will take place at 3:15 p.m. on Thursday, with the finals set for 12:15 p.m. on Saturday. The javelin prelims and finals will take place on Thursday beginning at 4 p.m.