Humboldt High School graduate Drew Wilhite reached the NCAA DII Championship podium after taking fifth in the heptathlon over the weekend in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
Teammate Leo Chauchard and Wilhite finished fourth and fifth respectively in the NCAA DII Heptathlon — adding 9 points to Pittsburg State University’s 75.5-point team total to capture the NCAA DII national men’s team championship.
Wilhite showed early promise to make the medal podium after opening the competition Friday with a third-place finish in the 60-meter dash — clearing the distance in 7.08 seconds. He faltered in the long jump with a scratch on his initial try, then rebounded for his best jump at 6.48 meters for 12th.
Wilhite was .34 meters shy of teammate Chauchard in the shot put, taking fourth with a 13.74-meter best throw. 
Wilhite wrapped up the first day of competition by tying five opponents for third in the high jump with a 1.91-meter leap.
During the opening event of day two of the NCAA DII championships, Wilhite had some making up to do after finishing 14th out of 16 competitors in the 60-meter hurdles — clearing the run in 8.72 seconds. He then went from near worst to near first after tying two other competitors for first in the high jump with a 1.91-meter leap, then tied first in the pole vault after clearing the bar at 4.85 meters. Wilhite secured his fifth-place medal after taking 10th in the 1,000-meter run in 2:56.
Before coming to Pittsburg, Wilhite was a multiple-time state qualifier for Humboldt High School until graduating in 2022. He majors in business management.
