Chambana Sun

All-American heptathlete Melissa Wullschleger has been named the women's Big Ten Freshman of the Year, as announced by the conference on Wednesday, June 18. This recognition marks the eighth time a member of the women's program has received this honor and is the first since Olympic medalist Ashley Spencer won it in 2012.

"Melissa's growth throughout the season was incredible and the Big Ten made the right pick for this award," said Petros Kyprianou, director of track, field, and cross country. "From a seventh-place finish at the Big Ten indoor meet to fourth place and All-American at the NCAA outdoor meet; I'm tremendously proud of her and her accomplishments. It was no accident; she's one of the hardest workers on the team and takes coaching extremely well. I cannot wait to see what the future holds for her in this program!"

Wullschleger recently secured fourth place in the heptathlon at the NCAA Outdoor Championships with a program record of 5,928 points. Her performance matched Carmel Corbett's highest finish for the program in this event, who was also an Illini heptathlon All-American back in 1996. Wullschleger now stands as only the third All-American heptathlete from her program.

Before achieving All-America honors, she placed fourth at her first collegiate heptathlon during the Big Ten Outdoor Championships with a score of 5,749 points. At the Big Ten Indoor Championships, she finished seventh in the pentathlon with a score of 3,984 points—the fourth-best score in program history.

Originating from Olten, Switzerland, Wullschleger achieved a javelin throw of 44.20 meters (145-0) at the NCAA Outdoor Championships—her program's third-best—to secure her All-American status.