Murphy medals

BLOOMINGTON — As the second and third flights of discus competitors threw during the preliminaries, Maria Murphy sat talking to one of her friendly rivals. She was trying to take her mind off of the event and not think about her possibilities of making the finals.
The day turned out to be one she’ll never forget.
Murphy had the lead early in the meet, advanced to the finals and finished in eighth place in the discus to end her career with a state medal at Friday’s IHSAA Girls Track and Field State Finals at Indiana University.
“I don’t really know what to say right now,” said the Jay County High School senior, who couldn’t hold back a proud smile the rest of the afternoon and evening. “I’m super happy. ... It feels awesome, because I didn’t just get ninth, I got eighth. I got a medal.
“I’m pretty excited.”
Murphy earned her eighth-place finish with a toss of 126 feet even, just over a foot short of her career-best. She trailed seventh-place finisher Michaela Hazlewood of Linton-Stockton by 1 foot, 11 inches, and was two inches ahead of ninth-place Sonya Napariu of New Palestine.
The top nine athletes at the meet earned state medals.
“Throughout her career she did all the little extras and that’s the payoff,” said JCHS coach Brian McEvoy. “She’s worked really hard for it, so it’s awesome to see her achieve that.
“Just to get here is a huge accomplishment in its own right. We always talk about when we get to these bigger meets ... it’s not just a destination. You come here to perform. She really stepped up and performed today and that was a real cool experience.”
The team’s last state medalist was Amanda Johnson, who was ninth in the 800-meter run during her senior season in 2008.
Throughout the week leading up to the state finals, Murphy, who was seeded 24th out of 27 competitors, knew she would need to be better than she had shown through the first to stages of the IHSAA tournament series to even have a chance to advance through the preliminary round. And she was.
Murphy got off to a solid start, tossing 119 feet, 11 inches, on her first attempt to surpass her regional effort by nearly four inches. And then she set the mark to beat.
The senior, making her third appearance in the state finals, sent the discus soaring 126 feet even to put her in first place. That effort had her leading the meet after the first flight, but she knew a spot in the top-10 for a berth in the finals was still a long shot given that the No. 10 seed entering the meet was Leo’s Keanna Gary at 129 feet, 8 inches.
“I’m not going to get my hopes up,” she said after her flight, “because if I get my hopes up and they get crushed then it’s just that much worse.”
However, Murphy, who distracted herself by talking with shot put state finalist Ariel Capps of Decatur Central, remained in the lead after the first round of throws in the second flight. And by the time the second group of nine finished its preliminary throws, she was in third place.
She dropped to sixth after the first round of the third flight, which included the No. 1 through 9 seeds, leaving her in a precarious position. But only one thrower each surpassed her on the final flight’s second and third attempts.
Murphy was eighth heading into the finals, and that’s where she stayed as only three out of 10 finalists improved upon their preliminary marks over the course of the final three throws.
“I knew I could do it,” said Murphy, who had finished 26th and 15th in her previous two trips to Bloomington. “I just had to keep my head on my shoulders and not freak out. I just had to have fun with it and come here and do my best.”
DeKalb’s Rachel Dincoff won the discus state title at 143 feet, 7 inches.
The state medal capped a standout career for Murphy, who will compete next season for the University of Dayton.
She won the 2011 regional championship at Ben Davis, and finished her career with five sectional titles — three in the discus and two in the shot put. She went undefeated in both throwing events through the sectional meet during both her junior and senior seasons.
“This is why you coach,” said McEvoy.
“It’s an awesome experience. It’s neat to see a kid that’s put so much work in over her career and improved so much to finally be able to show what they’re capable of on the big stage. It’s really neat to see our program and our school represented down here so well.”

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