Over 6 years at Niceville as throws coach, Emily Webb has built up Florida's best program in her specialty. A native of Ohio and mom of three young boys, the dedicated assistant coach to her craft and her athletes has created something very special and incredible. The list of state champions and college-bound throwers is growing. The list of accolades probably would be even greater if not for Covid wiping out the final half of the 2020 outdoor season.
The Niceville team is considered one of the top teams in the 4A classification with a good chunk of their points expected to be produced before even the majority of track races get underway with their deep squad of throwers.
Niceville senior Ben Miazga is the current state leader in the boys shot put with a season best mark at 18 meters, while teammates Mitchell Ratley at 16.2 meters for FL #5 ranking and Noah Harman at 15.78 meters for FL #10 ranking all rank among the top 10 in the state of Florida regardless of classification.
In the discus, Niceville has 3 of the top 15 ranked throwers in the state led by Massimo Grisotto at FL #4 ranking with a season-best mark of 47.16 meters.
The javelin has equal depth with virtually an entirely different group of four athletes ranked among top 20 statewide led by junior Nathan Stepp at a season-best throw of 52.6 meters as the fourth-best thrower in Florida currently.
Megan Hague is the leader of the girls' program and showcased that this past weekend winning all 3 three throwing events at the Jimmy Everett Invitational. Hague is ranked fourth in Florida for the javelin (35.58m), while currently, state ranked third in the shot put (13.36m) as well as the discus (45.76). Hague is one of the few throwers that is great in all three of the events. Most are only exceptional at two of the three events.
Coach Webb joined us for a 20 plus minute interview on Wednesday discussing her background in the sport and how she ended up in Niceville as well as what it has taken to build up the throwing program to this point. She shares insights on her top athletes, coaching style, and ways we could better cover or promote the throwing events.
We will be on-site at the Okoolasa County Championships on April 6th with dedicated coverage of the throwing events.