Katie (Ostlund) Stephens, a former national-champion javelin thrower for Oklahoma Christian, joined the Eagles' track and field coaching staff as an assistant for the 2021-22 academic year, focusing primarily on the throwing events.
Stephens began working with the OC men's and women's programs last semester. Originally from Mount Hope, Kan., she was known as Katie Ostlund when she starred for the Eagles from 2012 to 2015. She finished third in the NAIA in the javelin as a freshman in 2012, unleashing a still-standing school-record throw of 146 feet, 7 inches, at the national meet in Marion, Ind.
She won National Christian College Athletic Association titles in the javelin in 2013 and 2015 and finished third in the NCCAA in
2014, making her a four-time All-American. She earned NCAA Division II All-South Central Region honors as a senior in 2015 and was named to the U.S. Track and Field and Coaches Association's All-Academic Individual Team.
She is one of only three women to have won a national title representing OC in any sport, along with Peggy Murphy (NAIA marathon) and Denise Mattoon (NAIA indoor weight throw and indoor shot put). Her two sisters, Emily and Miranda, also competed in throwing events for OC.
As OC's throws assistant coach, she is stepping into the role formerly held by OC legend Jeff Bennett, who coached Stephens during her collegiate career. Bennett – a 1972 Olympian who's a member of the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame and who has been involved with OC's track and field programs on and off since the late 1960s – retired from coaching following the 2021 season.
