When Miya DeBlecourt and Kate Van Appledorn joined the Holland Christian track and field team as juniors, they were just hoping to have some fun.
That fun quickly turned into success – in record form.
Van Appledorn broke the school record in the shot put last year and has rebroken it as a senior (41 feet, 3 inches).
Meanwhile, DeBlecourt broke the school record in the discus with a throw of 118-1, breaking the mark of 117-5 set by Olivia Schipper in 2012.
“Last year, we were not super good at technique and now we are working on fundamentals and getting stronger on the side,” DeBlecourt said. “It has given us more confidence because we have developed that strength and technique. Setting the school record was really awesome, seeing that hard work pay off.”
Van Appledorn has since broken DeBlecourt’s school discus record with a throw of 127-6 as the pair continues to push each other.
That hard work has come from working on the small things. Last year, it was brute strength for the Maroons pair of near-6-footers.
“I think now that I know what I am doing a little better, I can work on the finer skills and get more technical about it,” Van Appledorn said.
The other big factor is going head-to-head every day.
“We get to push each other. I hang out with her in the weight room, at school, at practice, pretty much everywhere,” Van Appledorn said. “We make each other better every day by competing against each other.”
DeBlecourt agreed.
“Kate is one of my best friends,” she said. “I look up to her so much because she is so disciplined and pushes me every day.”
They get along so well and push each other so much that they are not ready to be done as teammates.
Both have committed to throw at Calvin University next year.
“Just starting the sport last year, I didn’t really see it going super far, but I have had a lot of success,” DeBlecourt said. “I am really happy to have that opportunity alongside Kate.”
Van Appledorn was already headed to Calvin for volleyball, but couldn’t pass an opportunity to double up.
“I just really enjoyed my high school experience and when Miya told me she was looking into Calvin, I really wanted to keep playing a sport with her,” she said.
Throws have not been the strength of the Maroons track and field program in a long time. But this senior duo – and coach James Viel -has changed that and made for a well-rounded team that could challenge for a state title, especially with the distance runners who led the Maroons to the cross country championship in the fall.
“Every event is strong on this team and that is really fun to see,” Van Appledorn said. “We want to make it to state, keep growing and finish the season strong.”
Contact sports editor Dan D’Addona at Dan.D’Addona@hollandsentinel.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter @DanDAddona or Facebook @HollandSentinelSports.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: How Holland Christian throwers transformed track and field program, landed records, college spots
Reporting by Dan D’Addona, Holland Sentinel / The Holland Sentinel
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