Bucknell senior Wade Shomper qualifies for NCAA East shot put round
Wade Shomper lifted Bucknell into a rare national moment, becoming only the third Bison shot putter to reach the NCAA East First Round.
Bucknell senior Wade Shomper turned a breakthrough spring into a rare national berth, qualifying for the NCAA East First Round in the shot put and giving the Bison another individual entry on the regional stage. For a program that has sent only two previous shot putters to that meet, and whose men last advanced athletes in 2019, Shomper’s finish carried weight well beyond one event.
The Lewisburg performance arc started on Feb. 6, when Shomper set the school record in the shot put at the Penn Classic. Bucknell said he later reset that mark again and picked up a second Bison of the Week honor, underscoring how quickly his season climbed from promising to record-setting. The decisive outdoor leap came at the Raleigh Relays on March 28-29 in Raleigh, North Carolina, where Shomper threw 18.23 meters, 59 feet, 9.75 inches, a mark Bucknell said effectively secured his NCAA qualification. He followed that with Patriot League Field Athlete of the Week recognition on March 31.
Shomper’s consistency carried into the league championships. At the Patriot League Indoor Championships, he improved his personal record to 18.22 meters, 59-9.50, and Bucknell called it a new program best. The performance made him the first Bison since Jeff Brown in the 60-meter dash in 2020 to win a Patriot League individual event at the indoor meet. “March was a big month for Wade,” said throws coach Ryan Protzman. “Wrapping up his indoor career with a huge throw and winning another Patriot League title. He picked it right back up in his first outdoor meet.”
He carried that form into Annapolis, Maryland, where he repeated as Patriot League outdoor shot put champion. Shomper unleashed a personal-best 18.40 meters, 60-4.25, in the fifth round, enough to secure 10 points for Bucknell as the men finished third with 99.5 points. That was Bucknell’s best outdoor finish since 2021 and one of the clearest signs yet that the throws group is raising the program’s ceiling.
Shomper’s place in Bucknell history is narrow and notable: he joined Timothy Medlock, who qualified in 2009, and Joseph Breen, the former school-record holder who advanced in 2016, as the only Bison shot putters to reach the NCAA East First Round. Bucknell also named Shomper to the 2026 Academic All-Patriot League Team, noting that the International Relations and Economics major carried a 3.78 cumulative GPA and a 3.66 GPA for the fall semester. The NCAA DI East First Round was scheduled for May 27-30 in Lexington, Kentucky, where Shomper’s season will extend onto a bigger national platform for Bucknell and for Lewisburg sports followers watching the program’s profile rise.
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