How Mensi Stiff, Tennessee's best in the girls shot put and discus, wrapped up storied career
MURFREESBORO – Mensi Stiff heard the claps initially.
Clap. Clap, clap.
The fan gallery assembled beyond the shot put pit quickly got in unison Wednesday during the TSSAA Division II-AA track and field state championships at Dean A. Hayes Stadium.
Here was the state's all-time best Tennessee high school girls track and field athlete in both the discus and shot put, wrapping up her storied career with one throw.
And those assembled didn't want to miss it.
Stiff, a Brentwood Academy senior and Ole Miss signee, tossed the shot put 50-feet-2 ½ inches. It wrapped up her sixth TSSAA state title — she has three in the shot put and three discus championships. And it was well beyond teammate and second-place finisher Taylor Grimes' second-place throw of 38-9 ½.
"I heard it start," said Stiff, who added three non-TSSAA sanctioned Tennessee indoor championships. "But I kind of zone out. Looking back like five minutes later, that's really sweet and grateful to have that community do that. It's sweet of them.
"It's so nice."
Her best throw was behind her state-record of 52-11 in April. Stiff remains the only girl to throw the shot put over 50 feet in a meet according to TSSAA records.
"I'm just grateful to come to my last (state championships) and win," Stiff said. "I just had to understand that's still a really big deal. And I think I understood that (Wednesday) and I'm grateful for that."
Not bad for an athlete, who had to be coaxed into throwing in track and field. Not bad for an athlete that will compete next week at the U20 championships to qualify for the Pan American games in Chile.
Stiff also won the discus with a throw of 155-6 — almost 10 feet behind her state record of 165-7.
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All of those accolades surprised Stiff as she soaked in her last day as a Brentwood Academy athlete.
"Holy cow, I didn't even think of all o that," Stiff said. "It's crazy to hear it all when people say all of that stuff to me. It's surreal. You don't think of it when you win something.
"It's also not all my hard work. It's my coaches' hard work."
Brentwood Academy throw coach Steve Wade has trained Stiff since she arrived at the private school.
"It's an end of an era for me," Wade said. "I've never had one like her and never will again.
"I'm glad she got at least 50. When you are the only girl in Tennessee history to throw 50 and do it again on your last throw and get another one in the inventory. That's pretty key."
Reach Tom Kreager at 615-259-8089 or tkreager@tennessean.com and on Twitter @Kreager.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Mensi Stiff wins two more TSSAA track and field championships in final meet
