UM's Todd sets school javelin record
MISSOULA — A week after hitting 70 meters for the first time in his career, Montana's Evan Todd set a school record in the javelin at the Montana Open Friday at Dornblaser Stadium.
Todd, a Glacier High graduate and two-time Big Sky Conference champion, threw 71.45 meters — 234 feet, 5 inches — on his second attempt Saturday. That broke the UM record of 232-6, set by Jensen Lilliquist in 2019.
“It felt great. It was a long time coming, I’ve been waiting on that throw for a while,” Todd said.
The crowd at Dornblaser provided him with a clap as he made his approach. The first throw of the day had power, but was turned a bit sideways in the wind and came down quickly. He had no such problems with the second attempt.
He dove to the ground on release. When he looked up and saw the flight, he shouted “get out there,” and his javelin listened. When the distance was announced, there were hugs all around, including to Todd’s family who had traveled down from Kalispell to watch him compete at home one final time.
“It was awesome. I’m so glad they were able to make it,” Todd said. “During the week, I was talking with my coach and thinking whether it was smart for me to throw or not. I knew I wasn’t going to be able to throw at my last home meet so I wanted to give it one last hurrah. It’s super fulfilling to finally get that, and crazy to do it in my last meet here.
“Once I heard 71, I knew it was a record. I threw it, looked up, and could see that it was still fishtailing up there so I knew it had some serious power. I knew it was a big one.”
“Great things happen to great guys, and he’s one of the great guys,” Grizzlies coach Doug Fraley said. “He’s a tremendous leader on our team and I’m just really proud of him for breaking that school record here in what will likely be his last meet at Dornblaser. To see his parents come up and give him a hug as soon as the distance came up on the board, that’s a really special thing for a family.”
Todd was one of three Grizzlies to win an event on the first day of competition of the Montana Open. The men’s and women’s hammer and javelin events were contested on a cool, windy afternoon in Missoula.
Ariel Clark opened up the day with a dominant win in the women’s hammer. Clark threw 184-10 to win, and freshman Morgan Thomas finished fourth with a PR throw of 152-8. Freshmen Scout Nadeau out of Bigfork and Mary Mickelson also had season-best throws in the hammer.
In the women’s javelin, Lea Moose topped a 15-athlete field with a throw of 142-7. Walker McDonald had a big throw in the men’s hammer to finish second in the field. McDonald set a new PR with a mark of 184-11, and had two throws that beat his previous career best mark.
The bulk of the meet will be on Saturday with field events starting at 11 a.m. and track events beginning at 11:20.
Friday’s results
Men’s Javelin- Evan Todd (234-5^, 1st), Everett Fred (189-1, 4th), Porter Coffield (163-1, 8th)
Men’s Hammer- Walker McDonald (184-11*, 2nd), Wade Rykal (151-11, 5th), Alex Shields (139-6, 9th)
Women’s Hammer- Ariel Clark (184-10, 1st), Morgan Thomas (152-8*, 4th), Scout Nadeau (147-6*, 6th), Mary Mickelson (145-4*, 7th), Molly O’Dell (139-0, 9th)
Women’s Javelin- Lea Moose (142-7, 1st), Ashley Carroll (131-5*, 5th), Tatum McNamara (108-2, 11th), Brooke Stayner (79-9, 15th)