Kearney, Neb. - Starting in May 2014, a new feature called "Loper Reconnection" will profile former UNK student-athletes. Student Andrew Hanson asks the chosen Loper a series of questions.

The 10th subject is former Karol (McKenzie) Nelson, one of the "Charlie's Angels". Wrestlers Bryce Abbey and Brian Hagan, Darcie Berry (softball), Justin Coleman (football), Jenni Luke (volleyball), Diane Davidson Rouzee (softball & volleyball), Nick Svehla & Mike Hancock (men's basketball) and Jade Meads (women's basketball) were previously profiled.

Nelson still ranks in the UNK all-time top five in the 200 and 400 meter dashses and she also is a member of UNK's fastest relay teams. In 2002, Nelson was inducted into the UNK Athletic Hall of Fame.


Name: Karol (McKenzie) Nelson
Hometown/High School: Elwood, Neb./Elwood H.S.
Years: 1976-79
Sport: Women's Track

Quite a bit has changed on the women's track & field landscape at the University of Nebraska at Kearney since Karol (McKenzie) Nelson wrapped up her career in 1979, but there's one thing that hasn't – her records.

Take one look at the 4x400 relay on the indoor record board and the 4x1 and 4x4 relays on the outdoor marks, and Nelson's name is a constant.

During the Charlie Foster era, the Loper women's track & field teams were a symbol of dominance. These relay teams were no exception.

Back in the '70s, the national meet for women's track & field was administered by the AIAW (Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women) where colleges from every level competed against each other. Starting in the early '80's, the NCAA and NAIA took over governance of women's collegiate sports.

During Nelson's freshman season at the 1976 AIAW championship the 4x1 relay finished third in the nation, the mile relay came in fifth.

"It was an experience of a lifetime that I'll never forget," Nelson said reflecting on her time at then Kearney State College. "I went back a few years ago and several people on my team still have records up there so it was cool going back and seeing that."

Nelson remains in the top five of both the 200 and 400 meters during both the indoor (25.39 & 56.40) and outdoor (24.64 & 55.54) season. All of her teammates on each of the relays also still remain in the top 10 of their respective individual events.

The group of women who ran for Coach Foster during this era came to be known as "Charlie's Angels", based on the popular TV show during that time.

"The newspapers picked up on the headlines because we were a part of Charlie's group," Nelson explained. "I don't remember too many meets we didn't win. It was always 'Charlie's Angels win again.' It was just a fun aspect of being on the team."

While being a part of Charlie's Angels was something Nelson took pride in, she and her teammates had fun with it, too.

"There was a home indoor meet where we were all standing with our jackets and warm-ups on. We had secretly, without Coach Foster knowing it, made t-shirts that were blue and gold that had 'Charlie's Angels' on it," said Nelson. "We all unzipped our jackets at the same time. Thinking back on it, this was probably one of the few times I saw him sneak a grin."

However, Charlie's Angels always kicked it into gear when they needed to.

Outside of the national meet, one of Nelson's fondest memories was at the Drake Relays, which at the time only took the top eight relays to compete in the women's division.

In front of a crowd of about 18,000, Nelson ran the race of her life when she ran a 53 second split in the 4x4 relay.

"The PA announcer said, 'Karol McKenzie has a split of 53 seconds,' and then I remember afterwards I went up into the stands and Coach Foster hadn't reset his stopwatch because he wanted to show me that I had actually run a 53 split," Nelson said.

Today, UNK's open 400 meter record is more than a second off of Nelson's split at the Drake Relays.

Through all of the records and national finishes, though, the honor that might stick out to Nelson the most is simply getting to run for Coach Foster.

"I always thought it was an honor because he was such an icon. He was a pretty serious no-nonsense kind of guy," said Nelson. "He expected you to work hard. He just knew so much about every single event that I just admired him and his knowledge."