Ending her high school career on a high note, 2019 Owensville High School graduate Bailey Rasmussen will continue throwing the shot put and discus at the collegiate level.

Majoring in pre-med, Rasmussen will trade her Dutchgirl orange and black in for Bronco red and white.

“Their academics are strong and I really wanted to go into pre-med,” Rasmussen said. “Their science building is brand new and I love that.”

Rasmussen also liked the atmosphere in the small college town of Hastings, Neb.

“I love the atmosphere of the track program and the coaching staff,” Rasmussen said. “It’ll be a little far from home, but I think it will be fun to go out and see what the world has to offer.”

Shot put and discus won’t be the only events in Rasmussen’s future as a Bronco thrower.

She will also compete in the hammer throw and the weight throw during the indoor track season.

Located in south-central Nebraska northwest of Kansas City, Hastings College is a small liberal arts school that participates in the Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) and is in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA).

Rasmussen will compete against GPAC schools from Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota and Nebraska.

Hoping to add more highlights and accomplishments in college, Bailey certainly had plenty of them while competing for OMS and OHS track over the past six years.

Bailey’s best throw of her high school career came on her home track at Dutchmen Field back in May of 2017 during the MSHSAA Class 3, District 5 Track Meet hosted by OHS.

Winning a district title with a mark of 117 feet, eight inches, that throw placed Bailey fourth all time in school history behind Gena Menz (118-00 in 2000), Courtney Nicks (122-01 in 2004) and current OHS record holder Haley Record.

Rasmussen is also up there on the Owensville Middle School charts.

Posting her best throw of 99-01 at Hermann in April of 2015, that mark is second only to Nicks who launched the discus 102-01 back in 2001 to set the OMS school record.

That spring as an eighth grader, Rasmussen won meets at Owensville, Hermann, Union and Pacific.

As a freshman, Bailey flirted with triple digits until the annual Four Rivers Conference (FRC) track meet hosted by St. James High School.

Launching the discus 101-03, the Bronco freshman-to-be placed second to earn All-FRC honors as a freshman at OHS.

As a sophomore, Rasmussen again placed second at the FRC meet held in 2017 at Sullivan High School with a throw of 106-06.

Winning a district title and placing third at sectionals, Bailey qualified for the state meet for the first time. Placing 14th that year at state, Rasmussen had something to shoot for in OHS orange and black.

As a junior, the third time was the charm for Bailey by winning a FRC title in the discus with a throw of 115-10 at New Haven High School in 2018.

Staying in 115 land, Rasmussen made it through districts and sectionals before qualifying for state as a junior for the second time in her OHS career.

Winning three meets as a senior which included a sectional title at Waynesville, Rasmussen made the finals for the first time at state before finishing seventh in the Class 3 Girls Discus ending her pursuit of a state medal.