On July 26, Alyssa Watkins threw herself into the national spotlight.
“It was humid,” she said. “Tons of mosquitoes. It was horrible.”
Nevertheless, at the USA Track & Field national championships near Houston, the Camp Verde High School athlete persevered to throw the hammer more than 123 feet — a personal record — and finish third in the country among all 15- to 16-year-olds.
“My goal is to get into either the 2016 or 2020 Olympics in the hammer,” she said. “This is only my second year throwing the hammer.”
Yet, Watkins, a single-sport athlete for the Cowboys who brings a 3.0 grade-point average into her junior year, has already thrown the hammer — a shot put on the end of a length of wire with a handle — 123 feet, 3 inches. A schedule conflict May 9 prevented her from throwing with Cowboys senior Viola Logston at the state championships at Mesa Community College.
For the full story, please see the Wednesday, Aug. 6, issue of the Camp Verde Journal.
