THIS YEAR: One of the most unique athletes in Azusa Pacific history, Sara Wagenveld is a PacWest champion in both volleyball and the pole vault … Believed to be only Cougar ever to double as a volleyball player and pole vaulter … Will press for All-American recognition in the vault … Her career-best of 12’ 10¼” currently ranks third best in Cougar track & field history … Teams up with Amanda Fassold, Abigail Gray, and Alyssa Henry to give Azusa Pacific arguably the best set of vaulters in the NCAA … Has won 8 pole vault competitions in her college career … Also throws the discus.
2020 (Junior): Appeared in 5 meets during the abbreviated 2020 campaign … Finished second in the pole vault at the Bearcat Open hosted by Northwest Missouri State with a season-best leap of 12’ 5½” … Won the Rossi Relays discus with a heave of 139’ … Narrowly missed qualifying for the NCAA Indoors in the pole vault.
2019 (Sophomore): Successfully defended her PacWest pole vault champion title with the second-best leap in conference history at 12’ 8¼” … Posted a personal-record vault of 12’ 10¼” at the Azusa Pacific Twilight Meet to punch her ticket into the NCAA Division II Outdoor Championships … Also won the pole vault at the Rossi Relays (11’ 5¾”), Riverside City Invitational (12’ 5¼”), and UC Riverside Spring Classic (11’ 9¾”).
2018 (Freshman): Won her first-ever Pacific West Conference championship by taking the pole vault with season-best effort of 12’ 2” … Finished fifth in the discus at the PacWest meet with a 132’ 2” … Qualified for the NCAA Indoor Championships, finishing 14th at 11’ 10½” … Appeared in 15 meets between the indoor and outdoor seasons.
2017 (Freshman-Indoor): Appeared in 6 indoor meets, competing only in the pole vault … Posted a season-best of 12’ 5½” at the Northern Arizona Tune-Up … Won the Rossi Relays with a mark of 11’ 11¼” … Redshirted the outdoor season.
VOLLEYBALL: Was a 4-year standout for the Cougar volleyball team, leading Azusa Pacific to back-to-back PacWest championships, the first in program history … Was a 3-time All-PacWest honoree, earning first team (2019), second team (2017) and third team (2018) recognition … Led the Cougars to a 74-19 (.796) record over her final 3 seasons with 3 NCAA Tournament appearances, including the regional finals during her senior year … Finished her career with 886 kills and 347 blocks, both of which rank among the program’s all-time top 15.
HIGH SCHOOL: Was a 2-sport standout at Calvin Christian High in Escondido, Calif., where she was a 4-time all-conference honoree in both volleyball and track & field … As a 2016 senior posted the top pole vault mark in the CIF San Diego Section at 12’ 4” which she attained while winning the Coast Conference championship … At the same conference meet, also won the discus (125’ 3”) and shot put (32’ 5”) … Qualified for the CIF state championship meet in both the pole vault and discus … As a 2015 junior, was the conference champ in the pole vault and discus and advanced to the state meet in the pole vault … Won the Coast Conference pole vault title as 2014 sophomore.
PERSONAL: Born April 10, 1997, to Mike and Sue Wagenveld … Has an older brother (Michael) and a younger sister (Rachel) … Michael holds the pole vault record (16’ 5”) at NCAA Division III Claremont-Mudd-Scripps … Her father, Mike, who competed in track & field at NCAA Division III Calvin College (Mich.) was also Sara’s high school pole vault coach ... Earned a bachelor’s degree in English and Humanities from Azusa Pacific in 2020 with a concentration in literature … Was a member of the university’s prestigious Honors program.
