Simmons Earns MVP Honors at ACC Championships
CORAL GABLES, Fla. — Miami Hurricanes thrower Isaiah Simmons continued his record-setting season at the 2013 ACC Outdoor Championships, earning men’s field MVP honors after a pair of Top-3 finishes in shot put and discus.
The Woodbridge, Va., native earned All-ACC honors for his shot put and discus performances. Simmons also competed in the men’s hammer throw.
“Isaiah had a phenomenal weekend,” Miami director of track & field and cross country Amy Deem said. “He showed great poise and leadership. We are excited not only for his future, but the future of the entire men’s team.”
Simmons’ big weekend kicked off April 18. The standout thrower broke the Miami record in the men’s discus, surpassing Mitch Sammons’ 31-year-old mark of 175’ 2” by more than three feet.
Simmons placed third in the discus with his record-setting throw of 178’ 6”. The redshirt freshman scored all six of the Hurricane men’s points Thursday to put Miami in fifth place after the first day of competition.
Friday was Simmons’ best day at the 2013 ACC Outdoor Championships. He won the men’s shot put and broke his own Miami record with a mark of 61’ 11.75”. The win would be the only victory for any Hurricane student-athlete at the 2013 ACC Outdoor Championships.
Miami throwing coach Cory Young is proud of how Simmons has performed in his first year of collegiate competition. Young expects things to get even better as Simmons’ career progresses.
“Isaiah has worked very hard this year to battle through some injuries,” Young said. “He’s done a tremendous job of coming back from his redshirt year and really coming in and buying into what we’re doing. I think his performance at ACCs really culminated a lot of the things that have happened so far. I think it’s just the start of some good things that should happen the rest of this year and on throughout his career.”
Simmons, who was the ACC champion in both indoor and outdoor shot put this year, holds Miami’s outdoor records in shot put (61’ 11.75”), hammer throw (168’ 10”) and discus (178’ 6’).
Simmons shined at the conference championship meet, but the redshirt freshman is not done yet. He looks to continue on his remarkable season this weekend in at the Penn Relays in Philadelphia.
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