Eastern Washington University Athletics

A Pacific Northwest native, Marcia Mecklenburg is now in her 27th season as head coach of Eastern's women's track and field program in the 2021-22 school year. She coaches Eastern's throwers.

Since Mecklenburg’s tenure began at EWU in the fall of 1995, the women’s program has had three All-Americans (Morgan Fossen 2022, Keisa Monterola 2012, Carolee Gutierrez 2007), 50 individual Big Sky Conference champions, plus five relays, and 194 Big Sky All-Conference performers (top 3 finish at Big Sky Championships), in addition to 14 relays. 

As coach of both the women's and men's throwers, Mecklenburg has coached two NCAA All-Americans in the javelin -- Carolee Gutierrez in 2007 and Ryan Cole in 2001. She has also coached athletes to 10 NCAA Championship appearances. In all, since 1995 she has coached the EWU throwers to win 38 individual Big Sky Conference championships with a total of 128 Big Sky All-Conference performances

At the end of her tenure, the throwers she's coached since 1995 own 118 current positions on EWU's top 10 lists indoors and outdoors for men and women in the shot put, discus, hammer, weight throw and javelin. Broken down, 40 of the marks were by women outdoors and another 27 indoors, with 28 men's outdoor marks and 23 indoors ranking in the top 10. For perspective, every athlete in the top-ten in the women’s javelin, women’s outdoor shot put and hammer throw, women’s weight throw, men’s hammer throw and men’s weight throw has been coached by Mecklenburg.

Women's current school records outdoors since 1995 include the discus (Emma Murillo, 169-0 in 2015), shot put (Erica Chaney, 51-0 3/4 in 2011), javelin (Carolee Gutierrez, 175-7 in 2007) and hammer (Kaytlyn Coleman, 203-1 in 2016), and indoor records include the shot put (Chaney, 51-7 3/4 in 2011), discus (Julie Nielson, 151-0 in 2001) and 20-pound weight throw (Coleman, 67-3 1/2 in 2016).
 
For the men, current school records outdoors since 1995 include the javelin (Ryan Cole, 244-7 in 2001) and the hammer throw (David Paul, 226-2 in 2007). Indoor records include Paul in the 35-pound weight throw with a mark of 68-8 1/2 also set in 2007.

Mecklenburg took over at EWU after nine seasons as an assistant at Washington State University. At WSU, she coached All-America athletes in the shot put, discus and javelin events, including the 1987 and 1988 NCAA discus champion.

Before joining the Cougar coaching staff in 1986, Mecklenburg was an assistant coach for five seasons at Montana State and also coached at Seattle Pacific. At MSU, she coached 11 all-conference athletes and a pair of national qualifiers.

Mecklenburg has extensive strength and conditioning coaching experience. She was an assistant coach for the United States at the 1997 Indoor World Championships.

Mecklenburg received her bachelor's degree from Seattle Pacific in 1979 and her master's degree from Montana State in 1991. She is a former state champion at Edmonds-Woodway High School in the Seattle area, and competed four times in the AIAW National Championships in the shot put and discus while at SPU. She was inducted into her high school's hall of fame on Oct. 24, 2019.

During the course of her competitive career, Mecklenburg also competed in three Olympic trials and made three U.S. teams. As a competitor in masters' competitions in the hammer throw, she set an American record for her age group at the Nike World Masters Championship in summer 1998.

Mecklenburg has a daughter, Echo.