PUEBLO, Colo. — Central Washington’s Emy Ntekepere saved her best for last at the Division II National Championships Saturday afternoon.

The standout sophomore already held second place and had matched her personal-best before her final attempt, a triple jump of 43 feet, 8.75 inches to win her third national title. Ntekpere soared past the mark of Mount Olive’s Janara Bryant for a second title in as many days after she beat her other GNAC record to win the high jump.

“I was just so scared and I just really wanted to win so bad, so I was just crying and I was nervous,” Ntekpere said in a phone interview. “I just don’t want to get beat by one centimeter.”

She drew extra adrenaline from the enthusiastic support of her Central Washington teammates, including Ellensburg graduate E’lexis Hollis. The fifth-year senior put together a big day of her own, highlighted by a second-place finish in the 100 meters.

Hollis ran a personal-best 11.25 to finish a hundredth of a second ahead of Tusculum’s Jahzara Hart while Lenoir Rhyne’s Alexis Brown shattered the Division 2 record with a scorching 10.93. Not long after that race, Hollis capped off her sensational outdoor collegiate career by clocking a 23.27 to finish sixth in the 200.

“It means a lot,” Hollis said. “I feel like I worked really hard this season to be better at the 200, not just be known for the 60.”

A frustrating start to the day saw Central Washington accept a trophy for its fifth-place finish, only to see it taken away because of a disqualification after the conclusion of a 15-minute video review. Coach Jonathan Hill said if that race had counted, the Wildcats would have captured fourth place and the program’s best performance ever.

Instead, they settled for seventh, still a remarkable accomplishment for a team featured in only six events. Ntekpere said that success will drive her and her teammates to keep working hard this offseason, and she expects them to come back even stronger.

Hill said the strong performances validated the work Central’s athletes put in to not only showcase their physical talents at the highest level, but also to prepare mentally for the stress and chaos of a national meet. Senior Johan Correa provided another example of how the Wildcats rose to the competition as he came into the meet seeded 11th before posting the fastest time in the 800 meter prelims and taking sixth in Saturday’s final.

CWU results

MEN

800: 6, Johan Correa 1:50.11.

WOMEN

100: 2, E’lexis Hollis 11.25. 200: 6, Hollis 23.27. 4x100: CWU, DQ.

PV: T10, Lauryn McGough 12-10.25. TJ: 1, Emy Ntekpere 43-8.75.