The 6-foot-2 senior won both the shot put and the discus at the Division 3 state meet this past season, hurling the former a meet-record 49 feet, six inches and the launching the discus 159-11. Leppelmeier took bronze in the shot put, discus and hammer throw at the New Balance Nationals Outdoor, and her season-best efforts in both the shot put (50-10.25) and the discus (171-5) ranked among the nation's top five prep performances in 2017 at the time of her selection.
Leppelmeier has maintained a 4.0 GPA in the classroom. She has signed a National Letter of Intent to compete on an athletic scholarship at Purdue University this fall.
A devoted member of her church youth group, Leppelmeier has volunteered locally on behalf of a homeless shelter, a nursing home, blood-donation drives and a Vacation Bible School. "Molly is a one-of-a-kind athlete," said McComb coach Jennifer Beckman. "She sets the bar high for herself and she pours herself wholeheartedly into everything she does. It's so rare to have a state champion athlete who is also able to graduate as valedictorian of her high school class."
