Maria Deaviz wasn't going to let the pandemic stop her from chasing history this outdoor season in the throws. On Saturday, the Souderton senior broke her own state record in the shot put, with a winning mark of 53-00.25 at the ROSE Invitational.
The invite, which had USATF officials on hand, was held at Laurel high School in New Castle, Pennsylvania and sponsored by Rodhe Sport, included competitions in the shot put, discus, and javelin and featured a number of PA's top throwers.
Deaviz's toss over 53 feet tops her own state record of 52-1.25, which she put up at the Throws U Summer Meet in Kutztown on June 26. Her new best of 53-00.25 is also No. 14 in U.S. high school history. It is over two feet better than Payden Montana's previous outdoor state record of 51-00 from 2018.
Watch Deaviz's winning throw above.
It was yet another impressive full series for Deaviz, who put a best of 49-1 in the prelims, before marks of 51-10, the 53-00.25, and then a 50-3 in her three finals' attempts. Deaviz, who is signed with the University of Virginia, also posted a PR in the discus, earning the win with a toss of 150-7.
Schuylkill Valley's Ashlyn Giles was third in the shot put with a PR of 45-8.25 and Hempfield Area's Isabella Gera was fourth with a best of 41-9.5, an outdoor PR.
Niedrowski PRs in the javelin, other perform well
Wyomissing Area junior Evan Niedrowski had a strong day in the javelin. The junior, who won the PIAA Class AA state title in the javelin last spring, had a monster series that saw him top out at 211-2. That performance is a PR and would have been the best mark in PA last spring by almost five feet.
Niedrowski also had four other throws that soared well past the 200-foot marker to make for a very consistently solid day. He still has another high school season to go, too.
Hempfield Area's Daniel Norris won the boys' discus with a PR toss of 161-1. Plum's Logan Parker took second with a mark of 154-2. In the boys' shot put, Wilmington's Connor Vass-Gal picked up the win with a mark of 61-3, while Parker added another PR, a 59-5.25 for second.
Slippery Rock Area's Maryann Ackerman won the girls' javelin with a winning toss of 135-9.