HAMMERIN’ IT — Dakota State University’s Conner Tordsen begins his spin before launching the hammer during a regular-season track & field meet at the University of South Dakota in Vermillion, S.D. Tordsen shattered all the Dakota State records in the hammer throw during his career. (Photo courtesy of Skyler Pattison)

FAIRMONT — Dakota State University senior Conner Tordsen has made waves during his five years competing for the Trojans’ track & field team.

He was selected April 26 as the national NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) Men’s Outdoor Field Athlete of the Week, which is the second time in his collegiate career he earned this honor. The first was Aprll 13, 2022.

He competed in the Northwestern Red Raider Open on April 21-22 and won the hammer throw with a toss of 196 feet, 1 inch, won the discus at 170-11, as well as won the shot put at 50-2.

He also has been named the North Star Athletic Association Field Athlete of the Week for his accomplishment in the Mount Marty Twilight Meet at William Field in Yankton, S.D. after setting the school record in the hammer throw at 202-1 3/4. He previously set the record at the Sioux City Relays on April 14 in Sioux City, Iowa, with a throw of 201-10, which earned him another Field Athlete of the Week honor.

On April 7 at the University of South Dakota Early Bird Invitational in Vermillion, S.D., he broke the school record this spring in the hammer with a throw of 201-2.

His first Field Athlete of the Week honor was March 28 after setting a school discus record with a throw of 178-8 at the Wildcat Invitational at Wayne State University in Wayne, Neb. He broke his previous record discus throw of 172-1 set in 2022.

On April 14, Tyler Lems held the previous Dakota State record, throwing the hammer to 165-2, which he set on April 20, 2019, during the Red Raider Invitational in Orange City, Iowa.

Tordsen’s distances in the hammer and discus qualified him for the NAIA Outdoor Track & Field Championships May 24-26 in Marion, Ind.

In the April 14 meet, Tordsen also collected a second-place finish in the shot put by tying his season-best throw of 50-7 1/2, which also qualified him for the national championships.

At a meet on March 24 of this year, Tordsen won the discus with a school-record throw of 178-8, breaking his own record of 172-1 that he set in 2022.

The Fairmont native has an outdoor personal records of 47-10 in the shot put set Aprl 15, 2022, at the Bethel College Invitational; 172-1 in the discus set May 6, 2022, at the USD Twilight; and 143-5 in the javelin set May 14, 2021, at the NSAA Championships.

His indoor shot put personal-record throw is 47-10 set Feb. 20, 2022, at the NSAA Indoor Championships and weight throw school record is 59-8 1/2 set Feb. 1, 2022, in the Mount Marty Lancer Last Chance Meet held Feb. 12, 2022.

Torsden graduated last spring with a biology degree and minors in health and chemistry. He has a 4.0 grade point average.

The 6-4, 250-pound Tordsen was granted a fifth year of eligibility due to missing one year because of the pandemic. He missed his sophomore season.

“I used my extra year and I’m taking some business courses to learn as much as I can before I head to Minneapolis to attend the University of Minnesota Dental School,” said Tordsen.

Meanwhile, the busy Tordsen continues to shine in the track & field.

He threw the shot put and discus in high school and was recruited by Dakota State, the University of South Dakota and Bethel, but selected DSU.

“I went on a visit to Dakota State and liked the campus atmosphere, small class sizes and the head coach (Anthony Drealan) was on the same page as I was when it concerned my throwing,” Tordsen said. “He really takes an interest in my progress and I appreciate the time he spends with me to make sure everything is going well with my progress.”

Tordsen began throwing the hammer and javelin as a college freshman. He utilizes the four-turn system when throwing the hammer.

“I’m a rotational thrower for shot and discus, but I use the four-turn technique for hammer and just a regular approach for javelin, which is not thrown at every meet.

“I was not very good at the hammer my freshman year and I missed my sophomore year because of the pandemic. I talked with my coaches, went home and practiced. I was much better at the hammer and javelin when I returned for my junior season. The hard work and preparation got me where I’m at today.”

Tordsen also was offered the chance to play football at Dakota State. He played four years of football with the Trojans, playing defensive end. He earned all-conference honors two years.

“I loved playing football and I played for four years, but just did track my fifth year at Dakota State,” Tordsen said. “I spent a lot of time doing homework on bus rides to away games and late at night in my dorm room. It’s a lot of work, but it pays off.”

The DSU student-athlete is focusing on the final few weeks of his collegiate track season and then moving from Madison, S.D., to Minneapolis where he starts dental school in the fall.

Tordsen, the son of April and Jamie Tordsen, has an older brother Walker and two younger brothers who are a senior and freshman at Fairmont High School in Sawyer and Oliver, respectively.

“Sawyer is going to Augustana University to play football, but Oliver is still young and doesn’t know what he wants to do,” Conner Tordsen said. “Oliver has time to see what happens and plan out his future.”

Tordsen has the conference meet before the national championships.

After his track season is over, Tordsen wll have a few weeks to rest before attending dental school.