Episode 90 - Simone Wilson and Kayla Armstrong

“Competing at USAs is something that I'll talk about for the rest of my life. I'm sure the people around me are going to get sick of it, but I'm sorry, I’m going to keep talking about it!” This week we sit down with Concordia Chicago duo, Simone Wilson and Kayla Armstrong! Fresh of their national titles in the 400mH and 400m, Simone and Kayla head to Eugene, Oregon to compete against the best athletes in the USA for a chance to compete at the World Championships next month. Before they compete on the biggest stage, we learned how Simone and Kayla got to Concordia and what their progression looked like. They both are thrilled with the opportunities they received at a D3 school and cited they didn’t need a D1 school to achieve the success they’re having. Simone came to Concordia without qualifying for the State meet. She was sold on the small school experience and the family atmospher the team presented. She quickly made an immediate impact while becoming an All-American her freshman year. Kayla had a different approach to Concordia. She came in as a State champion with the option to potentially go to a Mid-Major D1. She saw the benefits Simone saw in the family atmosphere and felt more comfortable at Concordia. Simone competes at 4:50pm PST and Kayla competes at 7:11pm PST .on Thursday Kava Haus Kava Haus is a family owned coffee shop in Wilmington, Ohio. In fact, there’s a special connection to D3 as it’s Simon Heys’ family store. They’re offering 10% off to D3 Glory Days Listeners when you use Kava22 at Checkout. Head to www.thekavahaus.com to get your morning started right. Summer of Hayward Don’t miss out on all the action leading up to the World Championships. Hayward Field will host so many great events that you don’t want to miss. Get your Summer of Hayward Tickets now! D3 Glory Days Patreon We launched a Patreon! As we said, we will never go behind a paywall - so any support is greatly appreciated. This past season was a great undertaking in our labor of love. We enjoy bringing you this content and we realized we could do so much more with a little bit of backing. We want to ensure D3 gets the coverage it deserves and keeping this website paywall free! If you have enjoyed this podcast and the articles we have put, please consider becoming a Patreon of D3 Glory Days. In full disclosure, the money will go directly into the show: equipment, subscriptions we need, and most importantly, money to our writers. If you are able, we would appreciate your support. How to Support D3 Glory Days As always, we really appreciate your support of this podcast. If you’d like to help spread the word, share the podcast with a friend, or leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or leave a rating on Spotify! We launched a live D3 Track Show. Subscribe to our YouTube channel so you don’t miss it. If you would like to help support the podcast or say thanks to our writers, please consider making a donation on the D3 Glory Days Venmo. This helps offset some costs, hosting services, and help out our new writers.