Bucknell Athletics Hall of Fame
- Induction:
- 2017
- Class:
- 2004
Sport: Track & Field
Maria Garcia Harkley made her mark as the top hammer thrower in Bucknell history and the first Bison ever to top 200 feet. Her top mark of 202 feet, 8 inches was the school record by more than 29 feet when she graduated, and she captured Patriot League gold medals in the hammer throw in each of her four years at Bucknell.
Garcia's throws coach, Bob Schanbacher, described her as, "the finest technician of any female thrower in any throwing event in my tenure, and I can’t imagine who was better in the history of Bucknell Athletics."
Garcia was named Patriot League Field Athlete of the Meet as a senior in the spring of 2004, and then she went on to place eighth at the NCAA Regionals and 20th at the NCAA Championships in Austin, Texas. A three-time All-East performer, she was runner-up at the 2004 ECAC Championships. During one incredible run in during her senior year, Garcia broke the school record in the hammer throw at five consecutive meets. Earlier that year, she also shattered the school mark in the indoor 35-pound weight throw. She finished second, third and fourth in the weight throw at the Patriot League Indoor Championships.
A member of the Patriot League 25th Anniversary Team, Garcia came close to making the 2004 Olympic Team from her native Dominican Republic. Prior to Bucknell, she attended Hope High School in Providence, R.I.
(Hall of Fame Class of 2017)
