CANTON, N.Y. – Westfield State University junior Travon Godette (Mahar/ Orange, Mass.) became a national champion by winning the javelin throw at the 2015 NCAA Division III Men’s Track and Field Championships at St. Lawrence University on Saturday.
Godette was the first thrower in the first flight, and launched his winning effort of 67.5 meters, or 221′-05″, on the very first throw of the competition.
“Coach had told me that my first throw need to be my most aggressive, and it worked out,” said Godette, who is coached by throwing coach Junior Williams and WSU head coach Sean O’Brien.
“He set the bar high, and no one could get him,” said O’Brien. “He had his best series of throws when it counted. He was seeded number one going into the meet, and it was nice that he set a school record and a facility record on that first throw and put pressure on everyone else in the competition.
Godette had thrown 66 meters earlier this season at the Jerry Gravel Invitational meet in Westfield, which had him seeded second for most of the season.
However, the thrower who had been top ranked for most of the spring, Muhlenberg College’s Tyler Bauer, did not compete at the national meet.
“I took it as a blessing to end up the top seed,” said Godette. “So it was on me to prove it. I had a lot to do and a lot to accomplish and I didn’t want anyone to wonder if I should have been the top seed.”
“It feels good right now, and I am sure it will settle in even more when I get back to campus.”
It was nerve-wracking for Godette to watch all the other throws after his initial salvo.
“It’s the national championship, and any one of those competitors can have a great throw at any time,” said Godette. “There were some 64s and 65s so I had to keep pushing myself as well, stay humble and stay focused.”
Godette had taken the previous week off from competition, bypassing the javelin at the ECAC meet after having not thrown as well since his school-record setting mark earlier this year.
“It had been a tough couple of weeks,” said Godette. “Not competing last week helped clear my mind, focus on the little things with technique that had I gotten away from.”
Westfield’s contingent at the 2015 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships: Dereck Stone, Sean O’Brien, Travon Godette, Junior Williams and Vijay Saxena. (Courtesy of Westfield State Sports)
Godette also found the meet’s location in the Northeast, just a van ride away from Westfield to be a benefit.
“There weren’t a lot of distractions up here. We’d train, eat, and watch the meet and relax, and it was nice to have Dereck Stone here (who qualified for the long jump and finished ninth) as well. It was nice and quiet to focus on the meet.”
Godette becomes the fourth Westfield State athlete to win a national championship and the first male athlete. Most recently, Marlee Berg won the women’s indoor high jump in 2009. Rowe, Mass. native Claudine (Rice) Poplawski won the women’s hammer throw in 1994, and Westfield native Cindy (Sturm) Menard won the 3,000 meter run in 1982 as well as the 1981 cross country title.
Godette’s win puts the cherry on top of a tremendous athletics year for Westfield State University, which won the Smith Cup as the best overall athletics program in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference.
