NAMPA, Idaho - Laurenz Waldbauer dominated the competition in the javelin all season.

The 2026 national champion won everywhere he went, from the Texas Relays to the Mt. SAC Relays to the Great Northwest Athletic Conference championships, he did not lose to a fellow college athlete.

So, after his first two throws Saturday at the NCAA Division II National Track and Field Championships in Emporia, Kansas, it was a bit of a shock that Waldbauer was sitting in 10^th place.

 "I was just asking myself, 'Why would I make it so hard on myself?'" Waldbauer said of what was going through his mind before his third throw. "With the marks I threw all year, it shouldn't be a doubt I'd qualify for the finals."

In track and field throwing events, each athlete gets three throws. The top nine athletes then advance to the finals, where they will have three additional throws. The longest throw from any of the six throws is the winner.

Waldbauer threw wide left on his first throw, which was the first time in five years of competition he had thrown the implement out of bounds.

His second throw was in bounds, but it was not enough to qualify for the finals.

His third throw, though, was a thing of beauty.

"I decided this was no time to dog myself – I know I can do it. I have done it so many times in practices and meets," Waldbauer said. "I put those thoughts away, went on the runway and had no reason to hold back. Sometimes you need to take risks and that is what I did and it worked out great."

Boy, did it.

Waldbauer's national title puts him into rarefied air at NNU. He joins Payton Lewis (pole vault, 2017) and Ashley Puga (800 meters, indoor and outdoor titles, 2009) as the only athletes to ever win an individual national title. The 1996-97 women's basketball team won the NAIA Division II national championship and is the only other national champion in school history.

The title was also the first for a GNAC male athlete since 2018 and Waldbauer is only the second GNAC male to win the javelin title, joining Alaska Anchorage's Cody Parker who won in 2013.

"It feels nice to contribute to the program in such a meaningful way," Waldbauer said. "Internally, I think I could have put that school record a bit higher, but I'm very happy with how the season went."

Waldbauer's impact on the program took a bit of a winding journey.

The Vilsbiburg, Germany native, was recruited to NNU by former throws coach Oscar Duncan, an elite javelin thrower in his day. After Duncan moved on to another school, Waldbauer ended up having three different head coaches and two different throws coaches.

He was still successful despite the tumult.

In his freshman season, Waldbauer won the javelin title at the conference meet, qualified for nationals and got 13^th place.

He then decided to transfer to Division I Minnesota, but after one semester, an injury and surgery, he decided that Nampa was a better fit.

So, he transferred back, qualifying for nationals as a red-shirt junior and again placing 13^th.

Before his redshirt senior season, the program hired Jake Knight as throws coach, and after a feeling-out period for both athlete and coach, the pair hit it off and Waldbauer's results started skyrocketing.

"He is an amazing talent – even without the coaching or training," said Knight, who placed fifth in the discus at the national meet in 2019 for NNU. "When you have someone as disciplined and determined as Laurenz, it is no surprise that he won. The guy is a perfectionist – the same routine every day. I've been around pro football guys and people who went to the Olympics and (Laurenz) is every bit on the same level than them, if not better in his preparation."

Waldbauer ended up placing second as a redshirt senior and, after graduating with a double major in management and global business, planned on either returning to Germany and pursuing life after athletics or transferring to a Division I school.

Instead, he came back to Nampa.

During practices throughout the school year, Knight would practice throws under pressure, trying to simulate what might happen at competition if Waldbauer needed a throw to advance.

Which brings us back to Saturday and the national championships.

After his second throw, Waldbauer and Knight talked.

"We were both a little bit shaken and nervous, but nothing too crazy," Knight said. "I told him, 'How many times have you thrown over 65 or 66 meters this season?' And I didn't give him a chance to answer, I just said you've done it a million times. You need one base throw – don't go crazy."

Knight then watched his star pupil step up on the runway and immediately start pumping himself up by slapping himself on the chest – something he has done throughout the season.

When Waldbauer started slapping himself in his face to get even more pumped up, Knight was a bit worried that the thrower might be so amped that he would overthrow the attempt.

On the contrary, Waldbauer launched a monster throw.

Waldbauer said he had a pretty good idea the second he let the javelin fly that it was going to be the one.

After the throw, he was standing to the side waiting for the result to go up on the scoreboard and when the numbers 73.53 meters flashed on the screen, Waldbauer went crazy.

"It was a cool moment," said Knight of the winning 241-foot, 3-inch throw. "He's standing by us, the mark pops up and we went ballistic. I hadn't seen Laurenz react in that way before – just went crazy yelling and pumped up. That is what you love in throws – that energy."

Waldbauer hadn't won for sure at that point, but he was far enough ahead of the field to feel somewhat comfortable, including on his final throw, where he again let it all hang out and launched another top mark of 73.34 meters (240-7).

"Hopefully other athletes in the program see their teammate winning and it motivates them," NNU track and field head coach Greg Mitchell said. "You cannot undersell what something like this could do for our program. We owe Laurenz a lot – we gave him a lot of opportunities of course, but he came through when it mattered and we will hopefully get some momentum going and keep the track and field team in a great spot."

A great spot like Waldbauer enjoyed on Saturday – atop the podium as a national champion.