Photo by: Tommy Martino
Morris sets school record in hammer, adding another accolade to her resume
5/6/2022 9:48:00 PM | Men's Track and Field, Women's Track and Field
MISSOULA, Mont. – Montana's Tanessa Morris set a school record on Friday, throwing the hammer 210 feet, 11 inches to kick off the Tom Gage Classic in Missoula.
It was always likely to happen, ever since she hit 185 feet in her first meet as a Grizzly last March. It was the start to a fantastic junior season – after transferring to Montana from the University of Lethbridge, in her home nation of Canada – a season in which Morris was named the Big Sky Athlete of the Week in April, won a Big Sky individual title in May and competed at NCAA Regionals later that month.
Morris had surpassed 200 feet in a meet four times over the past two years, but was still nearly 8 feet shy of Hana Feilzer's school record of 209-10. Still, she knew she was capable of achieving it, reaching similar distances on multiple occasions in practice.
Friday, finally, was the day that it all came together for Morris.
"I wasn't sure this would be the case early on," she said. "I couldn't break 57 meters (roughly 187 feet) at all yesterday at practice and then fouled on my first throw today."
Her coach, Ryan Weidman, told her to relax and just let things happen.
So on her second throw, she tossed a 'safe' throw, one that she knew would be in play and could get her to the finals, netting her three more attempts.
Her 'safe' throw of nearly 192 feet turned out to be good enough to win the whole meet, with Eastern Washington's Vernice Keyes finishing second out of 12 throwers at 184-0.75. Morris' third attempt was even better.
In the finals, though, is when history happened.
On Morris' fourth attempt, she unleashed her record-breaker (all three of her finals throws surpassed 200 feet).
"You can usually tell on the release (if it's going to be a good throw)," she said. "I thought it was good, maybe 62 meters, but I didn't feel like 64. Once I heard the distance, I got excited. Very excited."
She has now won the hammer 11 times during her Griz career, including every home meet and the 2021 Big Sky Championship meet.
While she still has plenty in the tank while at Montana – she'll look to defend her Big Sky title next week in Ogden, Utah, before again competing at NCAA Regionals, and perhaps, the NCAA Championships – Friday's school record was a perfect way to cap her throwing career at home.
"To have Hana Feilzer here cheering me on, it means the world to have the support I have here," said Morris, who took a photo with Feilzer following her throw. After setting the record in 2019, during the Big Sky Championships in Missoula, Feilzer went on to represent Montana at nationals, placing 17th in the nation.
Morris will try to continue following in Feilzer's footsteps over the coming weeks. Morris is the favorite to defend her Big Sky title, currently the only thrower in the conference to reach 200 feet this season. Additionally, Friday's mark ranks her 26th in the entire country.
"Every coach, even professors on campus, has been so supportive," Morris said. "Hearing my team cheer for me, they are the most supportive team I have ever had the pleasure of being on."
In addition to Morris, her teammate, Kaitlyn Gallo, placed third in the hammer (52.83), while Ariel Clark finished eighth (51.17) and Savana Ramirez was ninth (49.96). The men's hammer also took place on Friday, with three Grizzlies advancing to the finals, but complete results were not available.
The majority of the Tom Gage Classic will take place on Saturday. In addition to the track & field events throughout the day, Montana will celebrate the 50-year anniversary of its 1972 Big Sky championship team (11:30 a.m.) and honor its senior class (4:30 p.m.).
It was always likely to happen, ever since she hit 185 feet in her first meet as a Grizzly last March. It was the start to a fantastic junior season – after transferring to Montana from the University of Lethbridge, in her home nation of Canada – a season in which Morris was named the Big Sky Athlete of the Week in April, won a Big Sky individual title in May and competed at NCAA Regionals later that month.
Morris had surpassed 200 feet in a meet four times over the past two years, but was still nearly 8 feet shy of Hana Feilzer's school record of 209-10. Still, she knew she was capable of achieving it, reaching similar distances on multiple occasions in practice.
Friday, finally, was the day that it all came together for Morris.
"I wasn't sure this would be the case early on," she said. "I couldn't break 57 meters (roughly 187 feet) at all yesterday at practice and then fouled on my first throw today."
Her coach, Ryan Weidman, told her to relax and just let things happen.
So on her second throw, she tossed a 'safe' throw, one that she knew would be in play and could get her to the finals, netting her three more attempts.
Her 'safe' throw of nearly 192 feet turned out to be good enough to win the whole meet, with Eastern Washington's Vernice Keyes finishing second out of 12 throwers at 184-0.75. Morris' third attempt was even better.
In the finals, though, is when history happened.
On Morris' fourth attempt, she unleashed her record-breaker (all three of her finals throws surpassed 200 feet).
"You can usually tell on the release (if it's going to be a good throw)," she said. "I thought it was good, maybe 62 meters, but I didn't feel like 64. Once I heard the distance, I got excited. Very excited."
Morris, who was competing for the final time at Dornblaser Field, will graduate this month with two degrees, one in geosciences and another in anthropology. Next for the Canadian thrower is school at the University of Nebraska, where she will work toward a master's degree in natural resource sciences and a concentration in hydrological sciences and continue throwing for the Cornhuskers.The throw ➡️ The celebration
— Montana Griz Track & Field (@MontanaGrizTF) May 7, 2022
At 210-11, that's a 𝙎𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙡 𝙍𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙙 for @Tess_M_15!#GrizTF #BigSkyTF #GoGriz pic.twitter.com/NRYbxzNMhu
She has now won the hammer 11 times during her Griz career, including every home meet and the 2021 Big Sky Championship meet.
While she still has plenty in the tank while at Montana – she'll look to defend her Big Sky title next week in Ogden, Utah, before again competing at NCAA Regionals, and perhaps, the NCAA Championships – Friday's school record was a perfect way to cap her throwing career at home.
"To have Hana Feilzer here cheering me on, it means the world to have the support I have here," said Morris, who took a photo with Feilzer following her throw. After setting the record in 2019, during the Big Sky Championships in Missoula, Feilzer went on to represent Montana at nationals, placing 17th in the nation.
Morris will try to continue following in Feilzer's footsteps over the coming weeks. Morris is the favorite to defend her Big Sky title, currently the only thrower in the conference to reach 200 feet this season. Additionally, Friday's mark ranks her 26th in the entire country.
"Every coach, even professors on campus, has been so supportive," Morris said. "Hearing my team cheer for me, they are the most supportive team I have ever had the pleasure of being on."
In addition to Morris, her teammate, Kaitlyn Gallo, placed third in the hammer (52.83), while Ariel Clark finished eighth (51.17) and Savana Ramirez was ninth (49.96). The men's hammer also took place on Friday, with three Grizzlies advancing to the finals, but complete results were not available.
The majority of the Tom Gage Classic will take place on Saturday. In addition to the track & field events throughout the day, Montana will celebrate the 50-year anniversary of its 1972 Big Sky championship team (11:30 a.m.) and honor its senior class (4:30 p.m.).
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Track and Field
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