Moriah Evans '24 won a gold medal at the 2017 AAU Junior Olympics 400g turbo javelin competition in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Moriah competed against 54 11-year-old girls for the title.

When presented with the choices of volleyball and track, Moriah decided to give track a try. Moriah joined Track Xplosion Track Club in the early spring of 2017.

Moriah started out as a sprinter, but took an unexpected interest in throwing the javelin. She started practicing the javelin throw and entered her first javelin competition on June 3rd, 2017, at the Powerade State Games in Greensboro, North Carolina. Having no experience whatsoever and with only two javelin practices, Moriah competed in her first javelin competition where she came in first place with a javelin throw of 20.37 m or 66.10 feet and received her first gold medal.

Moriah went on to compete in the AAU States and Regional Qualifiers, where she ranked in the top three of her age group in the turbo javelin throw. Her rankings automatically qualified her for the 2017 AAU Junior Olympics to be held at Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, Michigan.

Moriah's first throw of the tournament landed over 25 meters (82 feet). Her second throw landed at 27.28 meters (89.5 feet), winning her the gold medal and bumping her ranking up to #1 in the country.

Congratulations to Moriah!

Moriah, center