McArthur Throws For Historic NCAA Finish At NCAAs

Friday, March 8

Birmingham, Ala.

All Day

North Carolina

NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships

Daniel McArthur

Photo by: Walt Middleton

March 8, 2019 | Track & Field

Results

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Redshirt sophomore Daniel McArthur topped off his indoor season in record-breaking fashion at the 2019 NCAA Indoor Championships at the Birmingham CrossPlex on Friday. A native of Mooresville, N.C., McArthur finished fourth in the men's shot put to earn first-team All-America honors after setting another school record of 66-8 1/2 (20.33 meters).

McArthur's fourth-place finish is the best NCAA shot put performance in the history of Carolina men's track & field. Before Friday, only Vikas Gowda had ever earned a top-five NCAA finish in the men's shot after he placed fifth at the 2006 NCAA Indoor Championships.

"I'm unbelievably proud of Daniel," head coach Harlis Meaders said. "He's come a very long way in a very short amount of time. He was able to keep his composure and compete at his best in the biggest meet of the year. That's what we always want to do. We want to show up when the lights come on. He went up against the best competition he's faced all year — the NCAA champion is the NCAA record holder and he lost to a couple other really great throwers — but at the end of the day he was absolutely amazing. Couldn't be more proud of him."

"It's so rewarding to get here after missing last year's indoor season," McArthur said. "Throughout all my challenges, I've always had my dad by my side. Especially during high school, he was always telling me, 'If you follow me, I'll get you there.' Knowing I was able to do this not just for me but for all the people who have helped me along the way — my family, my coaches — it's nice to be able to give back to all those people who gave so much to me."

McArthur's performance marks the best NCAA Indoor finish for Carolina's men's program since Matteo Sossah placed second in the heptathlon. The North Carolina native is also the first Tar Heel to earn indoor first-team All-America honors since AJ Hicks placed sixth in the men's weight throw in 2016.

"I'm excited for Daniel and I'm excited for what this means for the program as a whole," Meaders said. "It only further proved that we can be one of the toughest schools in the country academically and still perform at the highest level athletically. We saw that with Kenny Selmon, we saw that with Nicole Greene and now we're seeing it with Daniel McArthur. I think it's fantastic that he's local grown, too. Daniel's shown that there's a lot of talent in the state of North Carolina and we're going to try to get those up-and-coming kids to come to Chapel Hill."

McArthur opened the night with a new school record of 66-3 (20.19 meters) in his first attempt. Heading into the second round in third place, the redshirt sophomore threw over 20 meters for just the second time in his career.

McArthur's third attempt sealed the deal. His throw of 66-8 1/2 (20.33 meters) improved McArthur's school record for the second time that day and moved him back up into the fourth-place spot where he would stay for the remainder of the competition.

But both McArthur and his coach say he's just getting started.

"All of Daniel's accomplishments today are amazing, but he and I both know that there's still a lot to come," Meaders said. "We're still just scratching the surface of what he's really capable of so this was a really big step. Our athletic trainer Kelly Fleming and our strength coach Eric Hernandez have played a major role in getting him to where he is now. He was an ACC Champion, now he's a first-team All-American. Our next goal will be to be an NCAA Champion, but Daniel has Olympic aspirations so we needed to make this step. Again, I was so happy he was able to do it at the biggest meet of the year."

"There's a lot more on the way," McArthur said. "I know the Lord has bigger and better things for me and this is just a stepping stone into that direction."

UP NEXT: North Carolina track & field returns to competition and opens the outdoor season at the Georgia Tech Invitational in Atlanta, Ga. from March 15-16.