Going into the NCAA Outdoor Track and field Championships, Montana State junior Emily Tyrrell was pretty confident she could throw well at Eugene. But what she found when she got there was not anything like she expected.

Tyrrell placed tenth in the women's javelin Saturday with a throw of 158-9 in a field where there were only six U.S. citizens in the top ten finishers. The event was won by Evelien Dekkers from Florida with a monster throw of 193-6. Dekkers, a senior from Florida hails from the Netherlands. The top eight American placers in each event, plus any internationals who placed in the top eight receive All-America honors. There were three other internationals in the top eight in women's javelin besides Dekkers.

The real test for Tyrrell came after her javelins came back from preliminary inspection. During the warm-up period, she noticed her javelin tail was bent, something that happened after she delivered her javelin for inspection.

"At first, I thought she was just nervous," coach Jorah Griffith said. "But I think the damaged javelin threw her off some at first. She had spent a lot of time dealing with her nerves and had them under control. The first throw she made you could see the javelin bend in flight a little. The only other javelin we had was a tail wind javelin so she tried that in her second throw, but she was throwing into a head wind."

Griffith said she didn't want to make any excuses for Tyrrell.

"The bent javelin was just another hurdle she had to overcome," Griffith said. "On her third throw, she let it all go and threw the best she could and got in out to 158-9, which was good enough for fourth in her flight."

After her flight, Tyrrell had to wait until the last throw of the the preliminaries to know she was bumped out of the finals.

"She was sitting in ninth going into the last throw, which would have got her in," Griffith said,"but the last girl threw one foot farther than Emily and knocked her out. It was a little nerve-wracking waiting until the end, but I am extremely proud of how she handled the pressure and the All-America honor is a great reward for her season."

Marissa Taschida, from Missoula, took fourth in the event. Taschida went to high school at Loyola Sacred Heart and throws for Washington State.

Women's Javelin Results