SACRAMENTO, Calif. - University of Hawai`i sophomore Annett Wichmann finished in 17th place in the heptathlon at the 2006 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championship, Saturday, at A.G. Spanos Sports Complex. Wichmann tallied 5,191 points, her second highest total of the season.

The Jena, Germany native was just the second UH athlete since the track program was reinstated in 2000 to compete in the NCAA Championship. Distance runner Cheryl Smith competed in the 10,000-meter finals and finished 12th.

After day one, Wichmann tied for No. 16 with 3,150 points. She started the day by leaping 16-11.25 (5.16m) in the long jump, which ranked 26th of the 28 competitors.

Wichmann rebounded in the next event with a throw of 127-1 (38.73m) in the javelin - one of her stronger events. That mark was the sixth best on the day but not near her season-best by 14 feet.

In the 800m final event, Wichmann ran a season-best 2:22.10, which ranked 15th.

Day one leader Jacquelyn Johnson of USC ran away with the competition with a final score of 5,939 points. Missouri State's Tracy Partain finished second (5,827) followed by Washington State's Diana Pickler (5,757).

Wichmann headed to the NCAA Championship ranked No. 16 collegiately this season. She holds nearly every heptathlon school record, including a 5,374-point performance at the WAC Championship four weeks ago.

NCAA Championship Heptathlon Final Results

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