College track and field: Hammer prowess earns Bendik a trip to Division I

Melinda Bendik wasn't exactly sure about her future two years ago when she sheepishly stepped onto the South Plains College campus in Levelland.

There still is a little bit of uncertainty for the 2007 Odessa High School graduate, though that's a good thing.

After competing two seasons for the South Plains women's track and field team - and playing a major part in the program's NJCAA outdoor national team title last month in Kansas - Bendik is set for a new adventure far from the Permian Basin.

Bendik signed last month to compete for NCAA Division I program Liberty University, which competes in the Big South Conference and is located in Lynchburg, Va.

Perhaps it was the confidence of her Division I deal that helped Bendik finish fourth in the discus on the opening day of NJCAA nationals and then second in the hammer on the meet's final day as South Plains rolled to the team crown.

"I really didn't walk around and gloat or anything, but I really felt like I did my part," Bendik said. "Last year I got third in the discus and didn't place at all in the hammer and I felt terrible about that because we lost (the team title) by seven points. It was heartbreaking thinking I could've helped out the team."

Bendik used the motivation to keep improving in both events, particularly in the hammer - which she didn't even plan to throw as a freshman.

Discus had been a given since Bendik was a two-time district champion for Odessa High and a third-place Region I-5A finisher her senior season.

But she decided with South Plains coaches to try out the hammer even though she had no previous experience.

"By the end of my freshman season, my coach told me the hammer probably would turn out to be my better event in the long run," Bendik said. "That's how it turned out to be."

Bendik did set the South Plains program record in the discus with a toss of 154 feet, 1 inch, this season during a meet in Lubbock.

But the path toward earning a Division I scholarship - Bendik said she has a full ride at Liberty - came by what she did in the hammer, including a season-best heave of 168-3 on April 9.

Bendik recorded six hammer throws of 150 feet or more, including her runner-up effort of 160-5 at the national meet.

"I feel like I have a lot of room to grow in the hammer," Bendik said. "When I look around at the top throwers, especially in the Big 12, they're all huge, muscular girls. What I'm working on the next couple of years is to get stronger.

"The first year I went to South Plains, I didn't like (the weight room) so much. This year, I really, really started to like it and I started seeing the results. I plan on hitting the weight room hard. It works."

At Liberty, Bendik was recruited by Clendon Henderson, a native of Meadow who competed at South Plains before earning All-American honors for Liberty in the discus.

Henderson, who also competed at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials, was told about Bendik from South Plains head coach Chris Beene and the connection was made.

"He knows where I'm coming from since we're both from West Texas and I really liked that," Bendik said. "At least it's someone who knows some of the techniques and I've been working out (at South Plains) since we've had the same coaches. He's still training for the 2012 Olympics and I took that into good consideration because I hope to learn a lot in the discus from him.

"I'd love to throw after the next two years (in college). It will be kind of hard to do, but I'm definitely staying optimistic. I really want to continue. I'm not burnt out on it at all and I love going to practice every day."