In the sport of track and field, it is a common belief that the field portion of the sport is easier than its track counterpart. However, throwing requires a mastery of body control and balance. While it may not be as physically intensive as something like a 400-meter run, throwing takes as much skill than any running event.
This track season, a B-A thrower has come out and dominated the shot put on discuss rings, winning each individual meet and placing at invitationals.
For this reason, Jayce Quick is the BluePrint’s Athlete of the Week.
Jayce is a junior thrower for the Blue Devils. He specializes in shot put and discuss, but, he occasionally dabbles in the javelin as well.
Jayce started the season off with a bang against Bald Eagle and Bellefonte, throwing a new PR of 47 feet in the shot put, which is less than five feet from the current school record. In a trend that would reoccur throughout the season, Jayce also would go ahead and win the discuss that meet, too.
This is Jayce’s second year of throwing, and he has seen great improvement in both shot and disc from last season. He credits B-A’s field coach, Jarret Taneyhill. for his growth.
When asked about Jayce’s improvement, Coach Taneyhill said, “Jayce is having a great year, and I’m looking forward to see what he does as we move into bigger meets. He works really hard in the weight room and is always studying his throwing technique.”
Jayce’s favorite part of throwing isn’t hitting new personal records or even winning meets. Instead, Jayce values the memories and friendships that he makes during the season. His favorite part of track and field is hanging out with his teammates and talking to throwers from opposing teams.
Coach Taneyhill would reinforce this by saying, “Jayce has also stepped up as a leader among the throwers and a great role model for the younger throwers.”
For the remainder of the season, Jayce has three clear goals. He wants to break 50 feet in shot put, 150 feet in disc and do well enough at Districts to advance to the state finals.
Track is not the only sport that Jayce is dominant in. Last fall, he was the linchpin of the offense line for the Blue Devils football team, holding down the left tackle spot. Jayce had a great season and showed a lot of improvement from his sophomore campaign, much like this track season. After the football season concluded, Jayce was awarded with a spot on the all-LHAC second team.
After high school, Jayce wishes to continue either his football or his track career in college.
