Monmouth College junior thrower Kayla Braun (Evansville, Illinois) set a new personal best in the shot put on Thursday night with a throw of 13.85m at the Augustana Last Chance Qualifier. The throw also puts Braun in 19th nationally with a chance at qualifying for the NCAA Championships. 

Her previous outdoor best in the shot put was 13.21m at the 2024 Meet of Champions, also held at Augustana. Braun's shot put throw is the fourth-best in Monmouth history and surpassed her season best by nearly a full meter. She threw 12.86 last weekend at the Midwest Conference Tournament, finishing second to teammate Maddie Boley (Beecher, Illinois).

The top 20 in each event aualify for the NCAA D3 Outdoor National Championships in Geneva, Ohio. The championships take place next Thursday, Friday and Saturday with the qualifiers being announced this weekend. Currently, Braun is 19th in shot put, Boley is 5th in discus and ninth in hammer while Jillian Toth (El Paso, Illinois) is 13th in hammer. None of the men are ranked in the top 30 for any event.