Jake Koffman demonstrated again Friday that he is going to be a tough man to beat in the discus this season.
The Orono High School junior unleashed a throw of 186 feet, 3 inches during a five-way meet at Old Town High School. The effort is an all-time best for a Maine high school athlete.
But it is not recognized as a state record because those standards can only be set during a state championship meet.
“You see the event and you start watching some good kids throw and you know which ones are good by how the discus flies and how long it stays in the air,” said Orono head coach Chris Libby. “Then you see Jake let one go and it is just jaw-dropping to watch how far he can chuck a disc.”
The all-classes state record is held by Scott Mason of Lawrence High of Fairfield, who threw 177-8 at the 1980 Class B outdoor meet. Justin Whitney of Winthrop set the Class C standard of 169-1, also in 1980.
Jared Bell of Deering holds the Class A record at 176-7, set in 2013.
Koffman’s performance on Friday beat his previous personal record by nearly 10 feet and would have surpassed the all-classes mark by 8 feet, 7 inches.
The only other Maine high school competitor who has been within 26 feet of Koffman’s 186-3 this spring is South Portland shot put star Daniel Guiliani Jr., who threw 169-9½ last Wednesday.
Libby credited Orono throwers coach Lin White with helping develop Koffman and the team’s other discus, javelin and shot put competitors.
Koffman is the two-time defending Penobscot Valley Conference Small-School champion in the discus and earned the Class C state title last June.
Libby said he envisions more good things ahead for Koffman throwing the discus. Orono coaches stress to their athletes the need to “pop” a big throw amidst the routine of consistently good efforts.
“Everything that he’s doing is very normalized. He fouled another throw that was probably over 190 feet, landed in the woods, at Old Town,” Libby said. “Jake has not popped a throw yet.”