On Saturday, January 14th at the Lehigh Angry Birds Invitational, Monmouth weight thrower Tim Wilson went into the meet with one thing on his mind. To take down the school record set in 2013 by Errol Jeffrey who threw 19.96m. Wilson's best coming in was 19.85m.
After initially struggling in the prelims something had to change for the record to happen. "Coach Abe and I talked about fixing one thing on the throw and once that changed, everything was bound to click", Wilson stated. On his fifth throw Wilson finally got into form hitting 20.13m, more than enough to break the record. That performance ranks Wilson 30th in the NCAA.
"Once it left my hands I knew it was good it, was just a matter of how good. I was in a state of shock and couldn't believe it," Wilson reflected, "but once the officials said the distance, it was an amazing feeling that words can't even describe."
Wilson was ecstatic with the throw but isn't settling. "It was a great accomplishment to break the record, but since the beginning of the season my mind has been set on going to Texas A&M to throw at nationals to represent Monmouth", said Wilson who knows this is just the beginning. "With the support of my coaches, family and teammates, I know that as long as I trust the process, the mark will come".
The record comes as a mark of resiliency for Wilson, who tore his ACL his sophomore year, requiring surgery and months of rehab. "It was a tough blow, it tested me mentally and I had no idea what I was about to go through. Battling depression, I had to fight to get back into the circle and accomplish my goal, Wilson said when asked how he dealt with the injury. "I have to thank the great people at Elite Sports Physical Therapy. Driving there 3 days a week to get the proper treatment was crucial and with the support of my team, I was able to overcome the injury".
Tim Wilson competes in a few more meets before championship season begins in the middle of February when Monmouth battles for the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference title and the IC4A championship in Boston.