With a college football career awaiting him this fall, senior Tommy Peterson has two goals for the upcoming track season: to break the school’s shot put record and to win a state title.
Peterson, who signed a scholarship letter to play offensive lineman for Iowa Western Community College this fall, says throwing shot put has prepared him for the challenges of the gridiron. “Coach Shrader always told me that (throwing shot put) helps with your explosiveness off the snap,” Peterson said.
Washington head boys’ track coach Steve Roth says having Peterson on the team is a tremendous asset, and says he can be as good of a track athlete as he wants to be. “He puts so much time in that there’s no reason why he can’t go for the gold, and he has the skill sets to do it.” Roth said, “He is looking towards football next fall but he has a great track season ahead of him.”
In his first meet of the season, Peterson squashed the competition with a throw of 52′ 9.00″, nearly five feet better than Mount Pleasant senior Ben Canby who finished with a throw of 47′ 11.75″. He has his sights set on the 53′ 10 and 1/4″ mark, the top throw in the school’s recordbooks set by Austin Henning in 1996.
Peterson’s personal best throw came last year in the state competition, where he threw the shot put 53’ 4.75”, the third best throw in the Class 2A competition.
The boys’ track team is gearing up for their next track meet on Tuesday as the Demons will compete at the Iowa State University Indoor Invitational in Ames.