Jess Herauf

Women's track and field • Pentathlon/heptathlon

And now for the outdoor portion of the Jess Herauf Show.

After breaking school and Big Ten records in the pentathlon during the recent indoor season, the All-America Gophers junior moves outside and picks up two more events for the heptathlon.

Along with her sky-high individual goals, Herauf feels the Gophers are built for more outdoor success, especially with the addition of discus and javelin. Herauf scored a season-best 5,490 points, ranking second in school history, to finish as a Big Ten heptathlon runner-up last year.

"You have a lot more discus and javelin throwers [on the team] that are going crazy because they can't compete indoors, but I know that they'll add a bunch of points in the Big Ten that will make a difference," Herauf said. "You add javelin, and that's my best event. So I'm really excited to see what we can do in the heptathlon."

Herauf was named first-team All-America for the first time in February after placing fifth in the pentathlon during the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships.

In the indoor season, Herauf shattered the school record three times in the pentathlon and had career-best performances in the 800-meter run and the shot put. In February, Herauf set the Big Ten pentathlon record with 4,361 points to claim the conference title.

Herauf

"It was such a great feeling crossing the finish line," said Herauf of her Big Ten title. "There was a bunch of teammates waiting for me, and I knew I had broken the record and won the pentathlon. They all gave me a hug, and it was a great and unbelievable moment."

Master Tesfatsion