During his sophomore year at Muhlenberg, Tyler Bauer began to understand how athletics can be a mental game and one that helped him turn a new page.

It was then that he discovered how he could begin a path that eventually would lead him to consecutive appearances in the NCAA Division III Track and Field championships in the javelin.

He also recently ended his career as a two-time All-American and three-time Centennial Conference champion in the event.

For Bauer, it was a matter of a self-evaluation and a new relationship that helped him come full circle for the former Northampton High standout.

“In high school, I enjoyed football and I thought it would be fun throwing the javelin,” said Bauer, who finished fourth in the event at the District 11 Class 3A meet as a senior. “I decided to place some more emphasis on track once I got to college.

“It used to be all about simply working with weights. I also was all concerned about numbers and nothing else. But then I started working with coach (Andrew) Fahringer and my career changed.”

Fahringer, a former Whitehall High grad and Penn Relays and University of Virginia record holder in the javelin, was hired as an assistant coach during Bauer’s sophomore year.

The emphasis suddenly went from strictly weights to a combination of weights, agility, and speed.

As a result, Bauer won the first of three consecutive conference titles and made the first of two NCAA appearances, only to have an injury keep him out of one this season after he set a new team record of 225-2, a mark that is 10th best in Division III history.

“After I had my first workout with him (Fahringer), I knew I was on the right track,” said Bauer. “I had suffered a lot of anxiety before I would throw and it really became a mental game with me. But with (Fahringer), it was different.

“He has different workouts that were hard, but I could begin to see the difference. It was his principals that helped change me. In high school, I never threw over 200 feet. I really began to feel better about so many things than I did before.”

Fahringer also saw his student quickly evolve into a well-rounded student athlete who served as a captain for his squad this past season.

“I have a hybrid program,” said Fahringer of his 5-11, 215-pound protégé. “Tyler (Bauer) has always been a big, strong kid. But he took my program in stride. He developed into an amazing athlete and amazing student.

“Tyler (Bauer) couldn’t do things that his body wasn’t ready to do. He has worked very hard and realized that he had to allow this program to work itself. He saw what a combination of different things could do for him.

“I really wanted to concentrate on throwing less during the regular season and look to peak during the postseason. It looked like it worked for him.”

Bauer graduated summa cum laude as a double major in biology and music performance concentration.

He also was honored as Muhlenberg’s Greek Leader of the Year, awarded to a student in the graduating class who has demonstrated outstanding leadership within both the College Community and the Greek system.

He has been leaning toward a career in physical therapy, an occupation held by his mother Cynthia.

Whatever the case, he has found a new outlook on life through track.

“I have been looking at that for a long time,” said Bauer. “I’ll miss throwing the javelin, but I learned more about myself through it. I’m ready for more challenges ahead.”