Texas' best high school boys track and field athletes: Meet the state's Top 20 throwers
With the 2022 Texas high school track and field state championships taking center stage next weekend in Austin (May 12-14), SBLive is highlighting the top boys and girls track and field athletes in the state.
Earlier we took a look at the top boys sprinters, the top boys distance runners and the top boys jumpers in the state. Now we turn our attention to the top boys throwers.
There are hundreds of outstanding throwers in Texas, and these lists are not intended to be comprehensive. Tag us on Twitter or Instagram @SBLiveTX and let us know about other throwers worthy of fans’ attention.
TOP 20 THROWERS IN TEXAS HIGH SCHOOL BOYS TRACK & FIELD
(The list is in alphabetical order)
James Allen, Sr., San Antonio Churchill
Personal bests: Shot, 63 feet, 2 inches; Discus, 175-9
Allen went from a regional qualifier throwing in the high 40s as a junior into a district champion and state qualifier this spring, throwing a personal-best at the UIL 6A District 28 meet and advancing to state with back-to-back runner-up finishes at the area and regional meets. He also won the Area 27-28 discus title but didn’t make the finals at regional.
Sultan Bakare, Sr., Katy Paetow
Personal bests: Shot, 58-8¾; Discus, 179-8
Bakare picked the wrong time to have an off week. After being among the UIL 5A state leaders in the shot and discus all season — throwing a state-leading mark in the shot to win the District 19 title — last year’s state runner-up in the shot failed to advance from regionals in either event to this spring’s state meet.
Joseph Bond, Jr., Cherokee
Personal bests: Shot, 52-6; Discus, 162-8
Bond’s road to improving from a runner-up finish at the UIL 1A state meet in the discus as a sophomore appears wide-open — his personal-best mark set in winning the Region III title last week is 15 feet further than his nearest competition. His shot at repeating as 1A champion in the shot is a little more difficult — his personal-best winning throw at regional is only an inch further than Lazbuddie senior Theodore Chavez headed to state.
Rafe Clendenin, Jr., Northside Brandeis
Personal bests: Discus, 180-7
Clendenin also throws the shot put, but it’s in the discus that he really excels, throwing a personal-best to finish second at the UIL 6A Region IV championships to qualify for his first state meet as the No. 2 seed.
Zach Courtney, Sr., Post
Personal bests: Discus, 171-11
Courtney finished seventh at the UIL 2A state meet last spring as a junior, a disappointing showing after throwing a personal-best two weeks earlier at the Region I meet. This year, he has been the 2A leader since early April, when he threw his current PR at the Abernathy A-Town Relays, and he enters state as the top seed after winning the regional title. He’ll play tight end next fall at the University of Colorado.
Cristion Davis, Sr., Austin Vandegrift
Personal bests: Shot, 62-0; Discus, 190-7
Davis failed to get out of the regional round in both the shot and discus last spring, but after throwing a state-leading mark in the discus to win the Clyde Littlefield Relays title in late March, he now enters state with the top seed, winning the UIL 6A Region IV title with a 185-4 throw.
JaHazniah Griffin, Jr., St. Michaels Catholic
Personal bests: Shot, 53-9; Discus, 177-9
Griffin has improved his personal-best by nearly 45 feet this spring, making him the overwhelming favorite to win the TAPPS 5A state championship after posting a third-place finish as a sophomore. He swept the North Regional titles in both the shot and discus last weekend, throwing personal-bests in each.
John Hanson, Sr., Great Hearts Northern Oaks
Personal bests: Shot, 65-2½; Discus, 174-6
It’s not often that a thrower from a small school challenges the “big boys” at the TTFCA Meet of Champions, but Hanson did just that last spring, following up UIL 3A state titles in both the shot and discus by placing second in the shot and third in the discus at the MOC. The Purdue commit’s winning shot put at the Region IV meet last week moved him into second among this spring’s state leaders.
Chris Herpin, Jr., Pearland Dawson
Personal bests: Shot 59-1; Discus, 174-4
For much of the season, it looked as if Herpin would qualify for the UIL 6A state championships in both throws, winning District 23 and Area 23-24 titles in the shot and a district title in the discus. However, after placing third at the Region III meet in the shot, he’ll only contest for the discus title after winning regionals with a personal-best throw.
Andrew Huff, Jr., Stafford
Personal bests: Shot, 51-2½; Discus, 175-10
Huff took over the UIL 4A lead in the discus with his winning throw at the Area 25-26 meet two weeks ago. He followed that up last weekend with a victory at the Region IV meet and now takes the No. 3 seed into the state meet in two weeks.
Nathan Jones, Sr., Brock
Personal bests: Shot, 63-2; Discus, 170-3
If there’s anyone who can challenge defending UIL 3A state champion John Hanson in both throws in two weeks, Jones would be the one to do it. He placed fourth at state in the shot last season and has improved his PRs in both throws by 10 feet in the shot and 19 feet in the discus, going unbeaten in both heading to the state championships. He has signed to play tight end at the University of Minnesota next year.
Alberto Orta, Jr., Friendswood
Personal bests: Shot, 56-9½; Discus, 177-4
Orta ranked among the UIL 5A leaders in the shot put during the spring but gave up the event for the postseason to focus on the discus, in which he placed second at the 5A state meet as a sophomore and swept the district, area, and regional titles this spring. He enters the state meet in two weeks as the top seed, although Ennis’ Heath Vernor has a longer throw this spring.
Michael Pinones, Jr., San Antonio East Central
Personal bests: Shot, 65-9¼; Discus, 156-11
A year ago, Pinones placed a distant seventh at the UIL 6A state championships in the shot, more than 16 feet behind winner Bryce Foster of Katy Taylor. In two weeks, he goes into the state meet as the favorite, having won the Region IV title with a personal-best and state-leading throw.
Matthew Rueff, Sr., Katy Seven Lakes
Personal bests: Shot, 63-11¼; Discus, 188-9
Rueff has the second-best discus throw in the state this spring, achieved in winning the UIL 6A Area 19-20 title, but after a disappointing fourth-place finish at regionals, the Auburn signee will only compete in the shot at state — an event in which last year’s third-place finisher is undefeated this season, with titles at the Strake Jesuit Crusader Relays, Texas A&M Bluebonnet Invitational, and Texas Clyde Littlefield Relays.
Ethan Sanders, Sr., San Antonio Christian
Personal bests: Shot, 59-4¾; Discus, 176-0
Sanders started his career with a second-place finish in the discus at the TAPPS 5A state championships. He came back last spring to win the TAPPS 6A titles in the shot and discus, and the Texas A&M signee earned his chance to repeat by sweeping the shot and discus titles at the South Regional meet last weekend.
Julian Tijerina, Jr., Laredo Alexander
Personal bests: Shot, 59-6½; Discus, 180-4
For all the talent in the UIL 6A ranks this spring, Tijerina is the only thrower to qualify in both events to the state championships in two weeks, earning wild cards after placing third in each at the Region IV meet.
Heath Vernor, Jr., Ennis
Personal bests: Discus, 186-8
Vernor split his time between the hurdles and the discus during his first two seasons, but after a fourth-place finish at the UIL 5A state meet in the discus last spring, he dropped the hurdles to focus on throwing full-time. The result? A personal-best (and 5A-leading) throw to win the Area 13-14 title and a victory at last week’s Region II championships.
Connor Warzecha, Jr., Boerne Champion
Personal bests: Discus, 170-4; Javelin, 188-1
The javelin is not contested at the high school level in Texas, but Warzecha showed his potential in the event with his third-place finish at the Clyde Littlefield Relays. Instead, he focused on the discus during the season, qualifying for the UIL 5A state meet with a runner-up finish at the Region IV championships.
Lucas Williams, Sr., Colleyville Heritage
Personal bests: Shot, 58-0½; Discus, 168-3
With UIL 5A state leader Sultan Bukare of Paetow having failed to qualify for the state meet in the shot, that leaves Williams as the top seed and overwhelming favorite in the field, winning the Region I title with a personal-best throw that is a foot further than his nearest rival. Williams also got into the discus field by winning the regional title.
Trey Wilson, Jr., Hurst Bell
Personal bests: Shot, 62-0
Wilson is an up-and-coming linebacker who has been offered by Morgan State. He took up track this spring and has gone undefeated in seven meets in the shot put, winning UIL 6A District 3, Area 3-4, and Region I titles in the process.
