PUEBLO — Buena Vista High School’s Mason Finley shattered the state’s all-classification discus record Saturday in the Class 3A Track and Field Championships at Dutch Clark Stadium.
Finley’s record helped Buena Vista High School place second in the team standings behind Platte Canyon.
All eyes were on Finley Saturday as he tried to break the national prep discus record of 234-feet, 3 inches set by Orem (Utah) Mountain View High School’s Niklas Arrhenius in 2001.
The 6-foot-8, 330-pound gentle giant did not break the national record but he set a new Class 3A state meet mark with a 211-foot, 6-inch heave on his first throw of the competition at South High School. Roaring Fork’s Jon Arauio was a very distant second at 149-feet, 2 inches.
“I would’ve liked to get the national record, but I’m just happy I won state again,” said Finley, a junior. “The wind hurt me a little bit and I usually throw better as the competition goes on, but I didn’t do that (Saturday).”
Finley competed at South Saturday because Dutch Clark’s discus pit only has a capacity of 190 feet. South’s discus pit can accommodate throws up to 300 feet.
