TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – With one meet in the books and the full season still ahead, Indiana State track and field is in full swing as the Sycamores prepare to defend their Missouri Valley Conference titles.
 
Over the coming weeks, the Sycamores' event groups will be profiled on GoSycamores.com leading into the Coughlan-Malloy Cup against Illinois State. This week's preview focuses on the Indiana State throwers.
 
2021-22 Breakdown
Indiana State's throwers put together strong showings at the MVC Championships on both sides. The Sycamore men scored 18 points in the two throws events at the MVC Indoor Championships and 29 points in the four events at the MVC Outdoor Championships. The Sycamore women scored 10 points in the two throws events at the MVC Indoor Championships and 10 points in the three events they competed in at the MVC Outdoor Championships.
 
Indiana State returns most of its throws group on the men's side, including both of its NCAA East Preliminary Round qualifiers, along with a trio of MVC Championship scorers on the women's side. The Sycamores have holes to replace in both groups though, with all-conference honoree Thomas Hickerson and NCAA East Preliminary Round qualifier Jayla Bynum graduating.
 
MEN'S THROWS
Indiana State returns nearly all of its throwers from last season, including a pair of NCAA East Preliminary Round qualifiers in Wyatt Puff and Brett Norton. The Sycamores have to replace Thomas Hickerson, who was an all-conference performer in the javelin, but all of their other scorers from the MVC Indoor and Outdoor Championships are back.
 
Puff ranks in the top 10 in program history in the indoor shot put (10th, 17.87m/58-07.50), outdoor shot put (second, 18.23m/59-09.75) and discus (fifth, 53.90m/176-10). He earned all-conference honors in the discus at the MVC Outdoor Championships with that career-best mark and also placed fourth in the shot put at both the MVC Indoor (17.57m/57-07.75) and Outdoor Championships (17.55m/57-07.00). Puff also added a career-best mark of 18.40m (60-04.50) to place seventh in the weight throw at the MVC Indoor Championships. He qualified for the NCAA East Preliminary Round in both the shot put and discus.
 
Norton scored in a pair of events last season at both the MVC Indoor and Outdoor Championships. He cracked the top 10 in school history in the weight throw with a mark of 19.29m (63-03.50) and later placed eighth in the event at the MVC Indoor Championships (17.95m/58-10.75). Norton also scored in the shot put at both the MVC Indoor (fifth, 17.47m/57-03.75) and Outdoor Championships (seventh, 16.93m/55-06.50) and added an eighth-place finish in the discus at the MVC Outdoor Championships with a career-best mark of 50.95m (167-02). He was an NCAA East Preliminary Round qualifier in the shot put, where he ranks eighth in school history in outdoor season with a mark of 17.85m (58-06.75).
 
Indiana State returns a pair of championship scorers, in addition to Puff and Norton, in the form of Noah Bolt and Elias Foor. Bolt scored in both the weight throw (sixth, 18.72m/61-05.00) and shot put (seventh, 16.20m/53-01.75) at the MVC Indoor Championships and also placed sixth in the hammer throw at the MVC Outdoor Championships with a career-best mark of 57.83m (189-09). Foor cracked the top five in program history in the discus (53.37m/175-01) and also added a fifth-place finish in the event at the MVC Outdoor Championship (52.22m/171-04) and an eighth-place finish in the shot put at the MVC Indoor Championship (15.99m/52-05.50).
 
The Sycamores also return a trio of experienced throwers in Ryan Golliher, Brandon Peck and Justin Miller. Miller had a career-best mark of 56.45m (185-02) in the javelin last season, narrowly missing out on the top 10 in program history in the event. Golliher was a part of the Sycamores' MVC Indoor Championship team and had career-best marks in the shot put (15.80m/51-10.00), weight throw (18.38m/60-03.75) and hammer throw (54.67m/179-04) last season. Peck set personal records in both the weight throw (17.31m/56-09.50) and the hammer throw (56.21m/184-05) in his debut season for the Sycamores last year, and was also a part of Indiana State's MVC Indoor Championship team.
 
WOMEN'S THROWS
Indiana State has to replace two of its top throwers from last season in Brittnee James and Jayla Bynum. Both scored points for the Sycamores at MVC Championships last season and Bynum was also an NCAA East Preliminary Round qualifier.
 
Hannah Redlin is the top returning thrower from last season for the Blue and White, scoring points at both the MVC Indoor and Outdoor Championships. Redlin was eighth in the shot put at the MVC Indoor Championship (13.80m/45-03.50) and placed seventh in the discus at the MVC Outdoor Championships (45.82m/150-04).
 
Freshmen Josie Hapack and Niesha Anderson will also be heavily relied upon during the indoor season for the Sycamores in the shot put and weight throw. Anderson placed in the top five in the shot put at the IHSAA State Championship each of the last two years and was ranked as one of the top 20 throwers in the 2022 class. Hapack earned top-five finishes in the shot put and discus throw at the 2022 Illinois Class 2A State Championship and also placed in the top 10 in the discus throw at the 2021 Illinois Class 2A State Championship.
 
Indiana State also returns a pair of javelin throwers who scored points for the Sycamores at the MVC Outdoor Championship last season. Brooklyn Giertz, who also scored in the pole vault at both the MVC Indoor and Outdoor Championships, cracked the top 10 in program history in the javelin last season (40.07m/131-05) and placed seventh in the event at the MVC Outdoor Championships (38.96m/127-10). Cloe Clark also scored for the Trees at the MVC Outdoor Championships in the javelin with a career-best mark of 34.88m (114-05) to place eighth.
 
Come See The Trees
Indiana State returns to action January 14 with the Coughlan-Malloy Cup, an annual dual meet with longtime rival Illinois State. This year's edition will take place at Horton Fieldhouse in Normal, Illinois.
 
The Sycamores also host three meets during indoor season (Jan. 20-21 - John Gartland Invitational, Feb. 4 - Blue-White Classic, Feb. 18 – ISU Open) and will host three meets during the outdoor season (March 31-April 1 – Pacesetter Sports Invitational, April 13-15 – Gibson Invitational, April 29 – Sycamore Open). Indoor home meets will take place at the Indoor Track and Field Facility (North Gym), while outdoor home meets will be contested at the Gibson Track and Field Complex.
 
Follow the Sycamores
For the latest information on the Sycamore Track & Field and Cross Country teams, make sure to check out GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media including Facebook and Twitter. Fans can also receive updates on Sycamore Athletics by downloading the March On App from the both the App Store and the Google Play Store.