Q&A with Senior Track Thrower Jen Yeakle

Jen Yeakle just concluded her Spring-Ford track & field career. The senior specialized in throwing throughout her three years with the program, and was mainly tossing the discus. However, Yeakle was a mutli-talented athlete, throwing the shot put and javelin at times, as well.

Yeakle's throwing coach Jeff Mast praised her work over the years.

"Jen is dedicated, works hard, and is a powerful young lady," Mast said. "Her biggest obstacle was being able to look up when you throw. All the throws, you want to be chest up, look up. Her tendency was always to go down. That's the difference in this year and other years. She's starting to look up, her technique is a little better and her distances are better."

Yeakle is not the only thrower on the team. She is joined by , who will be throwing the javelin at states this weekend, and Akunna Okere, who also challenged in the discus, just to name a few. Okere and Yeakle were competitors and friends as Rams.

"They pushed each other all year long and that's what I think helped them," Mast said. "In the middle of the season, Akunna was throwing further, now at the end, Jen was throwing further. The inter-squad competition really helps."

With two PIAA District Tournament appearances, Yeakle ended her career last weekend at that very competition. She leaves behind a lead-by-example legacy for a young girls team.

"Jen is a quiet leader," Mast concluded. "She not only was good in the disc, but was also our best shot putter. Occasionally she threw the jav. She never did that before. She'd do whatever you ask of her. She's a silent leader. A lot of kids are talkative and cheerleader type leaders. There's other kids that go out there and lead by example. She shows up to practice, never complains and does whatever she can do to help herself and the team."

Yeakle and LRSC Patch Editor Kevin Haslam took some time last week to chat about her career and future in this week's Q&A (note: the interview took place before the district tournament occurred).

LRSC Patch: Tell me about your career. When did you get started throwing?

Jen Yeakle: I started my sophomore year.

Patch: Being a senior now and going to districts again... Talk about going to districts last year and the difference of doing it as a junior and doing it as a senior.

Yeakle: Junior year, I didn't really know what to expect when I went to districts. But now, since I went, I am ready for it. I want to do better than I did last year.

Patch: What would you say is your personal best accomplishment in your track career?

Yeakle: Making districts and making it to finals at Henderson this year, too.

Patch: Tell me a little bit more about Henderson. What was that like and your mentality coming in, as well as your satisfaction coming in to the finals.

Yeakle: Coming in, I wasn't in the best flight. I was in the second one. I was kind of mad that I wasn't with all the good people to push me further. Then, I wanted to PR and do my best. Then I made the finals and it made me feel better.

Patch: Who would you say is the biggest inspiration for you, or the biggest motivator for you?

Yeakle: Akunna helps me a lot. She's my biggest competitor.

Patch: You guys throwing together and she pushes you. What kind of relationship do you guys have? Are you good friends? What do you do to motivate each other?

Yeakle: We're really good friends. When we throw, we're competitive at the same time. But, we still cheer each other on.

Patch: What are your plans for after Spring-Ford?

Yeakle: I'm going to focus on academics. I'm going to University of West Florida to study marine biology.

Patch: Wow, you don't hear too many kids say that. What drew you to that career field and led to your decision to go all the way down to Florida to pursue that?

Yeakle: That college has a really good marine biology program. I had to get out of PA because there's a lot of land and you can't really study as well. I always liked aquariums and marine life since I was a little kid. My room has a dolphin border and all. I've always liked it.

Patch: Wrapping up your career at Spring-Ford, could you take a moment and think of your favorite memories?

Yeakle: Sophomore year, making it to PAC-10s for shot put was big because I just made the cut and it was exciting. Making it to districts my junior year, too. And of course the time you spend with your team and everything.

Patch: If you could go back to the beginning of your career and talk to yourself - give yourself some tips on becoming the competitor you are today, what would you tell yourself?

Yeakle: Never give up. You have bad weeks, bad throws, bad meets. Just keep pushing for next week and practice harder and keep going.