THIS WAS THE first NCAA in memory with four 80-meter (262-5) throwers in attendance.
Georgia senior Mark Minichello, the ’22 champion, entered as a slight favorite over Baylor junior Chinecherem Nnamdi, with Iowa’s Mike Stein also close.
In otherwise perfect weather, a stiff north wind blew directly at the competitors, and it quickly became obvious that long throws would be a difficult task.
In the first flight, Mississippi State’s Remi Rougete took an early lead with a 239-7 (73.04), then improved to 240-11 (73.44) on his third. Sam Hankins (Texas A&M) managed a 235-5 (71.77) mark, which would be the ninth and final qualifier for the final three throws.
Minichello immediately took the lead in the second flight at 257-0 (78.33), but he was definitely not finished. His next throw soared, finally returning to earth at a measured 264-9 (80.70). Wind? What wind? By the conclusion of the flight, he had an 18-3 (5.56) lead on his competition.
In round 4, Washington senior Chandler Ault moved to 2nd with his 250-4 (76.30), ahead of Miami junior Devoux Deysel’s 246-6 (75.14). Rougete also improved, to 243-6 (73.26), but remained in 6th.
The final two rounds were anticlimactic, except for Ault, who became the only thrower to record a PR when he reached 260-2 (79.31). He was close to or beyond that on his last attempt, but his hand touched the foul line.
Nnamdi’s first throw of 246-3 (75.07) would be his best, and he was never again close to that. Stein finished in 7th (238-10/72.31).
Minichello was a very happy winner. “There’s a banner at Hayward that says ‘Champions Win Here,’ and that gave me a lot of confidence and emotions because I knew that it was possible,” he said. “It’s been a long time coming, having been the champion in 2022, coming back and not doing as well as I would have liked last year. Now I think that we’re really putting the pieces together, and I competed as well as I could have possibly done. We’ve been looking forward to this day and circled it on the calendar, so to be able to do what we set out to do was really special.”
MEN’S JAVELIN RESULTS
(June 05)
1. Marc Minichello (Ga) 264-9 (80.70)
(257-0, 264-9, 241-4, 246-4, 242-4, f) (78.33, 80.70, 73.57, 75.08, 73.87, f);
2. Chandler Ault (Wa) 260-2 (79.31) PR
(242-9, 229-9, 242-0, 250-4, 260-2, f) (74.00, 70.03, 73.76, 76.30, 79.31, f);
3. *Devoux Deysel’ (Mia-SA) 246-6 (75.14)
(f, 246-6, f, 230-8, f, 240-7) (f, 75.14, f, 70.32, f, 73.32);
4. *Chinecherem Nnamdi’ (Bay-Ngr) 246-3 (75.07)
(246-3, 235-4, f, 234-10, 234-1, f) (75.07, 71.74, f, 71.58, 71.35, f);
5. **Keyshawn Strachan’ (Aub-Bah) 245-10 (74.95)
(245-10, f, 232-7, 239-11, f, 241-3) (74.95, f, 70.91, 73.13, f, 73.54);
6. *Remi Rougete’ (MsSt-Fra) 243-6 (74.23)
(239-7, 226-2, 240-11, 243-6, 238-6, 237-4) (73.04, 68.95, 73.44, 74.23, 72.69, 72.34);
7. **Mike Stein (Ia) 238-10 (72.81)
(227-0, 232-5, 238-10, 227-2, f, 238-6) (69.19, 70.84, 72.81, 69.25, f, 72.71);
8. Cameron Bates (BYU) 236-6 (72.09)
(224-10, 236-6, f, f, 223-1, 233-6) (68.54, 72.09, f, f, 68.01, 71.18);
9. *Sam Hankins (TxAM) 235-5 (71.77)
(230-11, 217-5, 235-5, f, f, f) (70.38, 66.26, 71.77, f, f, f);
10. Leif Nelson (USC) 232-10 (70.98); 11. ***Kevin Burr (Tn) 231-8 (70.61); 12. Tzuriel Pedigo (LSU) 231-0 (70.40); 13. *Will Lawrence (LSU) 230-4 (70.20); 14. *Ty Hampton (Rice) 230-2 (70.15); 15. Ethan Cocco (Clem) 227-8 (69.39); 16. Braden Presser (Navy) 226-10 (69.15); 17. Abraham Sargent (Fl) 226-3 (68.97); 18. Franck Disanza’ (MsSt-Swi) 224-10 (68.53); 19. **Dash Sirmon (Nb) 221-8 (67.57); 20. Tyler Brown (Nb) 218-2 (66.50); 21. *Ben Shughart (Lib) 216-5 (65.97); 22. Evan Todd (Mt) 214-1 (65.26); 23. Josh Trafny (Web) 203-5 (62.00);… 3f—Matt Kraft (NDSt).