By Terry Carter
AUSTIN-On a sweaty Saturday morning at Mike Meyers Stadium, Seven Lakes senior Matthew Rueff knew 10 minutes into his state championship appearance that he needed to dig deep.
Always a consistent shot put machine, Rueff elevated his previous personal best throw of 63-10 on five efforts at the UIL Texas State Track and Field Championships this weekend. He never fouled on his six attempts in Austin while every other competitor did.
Throwing fourth among nine of the strongest, best shot putters in Texas, the Spartan senior launched a 64-1.5 blast on his first effort, to lead momentarily. Michael Pinones of San Antonio East Central, then pushed Rueff’s solid opening effort into second place with a 66-5.75 heave.
It stayed there until the last round while Rueff focused on unleashing the unlimited potential that lurks in all of us.
All business, Rueff immediately focused on his next throw after Pinones unleashed his best effort of the day. And the Spartan senior had motivation to rise above because of an earlier talk in the crowd while teammate Janey Campbell was competing in her event.
“(Rueff) told me he was going to win after a conversation with a (possible) parent, who told him categorically that Michael Pinones was going to win. Matthew said ‘Really? I bet you he won’t win today,” Seven Lakes field event throwing coach David Cooper said. “When he told me that story, he said, ‘I am not going to lose today.’”
On his third throw, the Auburn-bound thrower and upped his game by 23.75 inches to 66-1.25 — only 4.5 inches behind the leader.
With three throws left in his high school career, Rueff kept reaching towards new horizons. Rueff talked with his throwing coach, and they made adjustments to generate a chance of the shot put sailing farther than ever before off of his hand.
By this time, the first three throws from all 6A competitors revealed this was essentially a 2-man showdown. No one else exceeded 62-2.75 on any throw, and only four athletes cleared 59-0.
The Seven Lakes senior spent the next three throws transforming himself from a competitor, a contender, a Region III-6A champion into a Spartan legend right there in the infield.
Each spinning rotation and release revealed a veteran athlete staying within the throwing circle and still increasing his effort to claim victory. He became more vocal as he made his final three throws count. His final effort included the look of a super hero that is both unmistakable and within every athlete as they push for new records.
Was is the Hulk or Thor?
No, it was accomplished by the hero we now know as the record holder for the longest shot put throw ever by a Seven Lakes athlete — the athlete acknowledged by thousands on Saturday as the 2022 UIL 6A Boys’ Shot Put State Champion.
Rueff favors Superman. But this championship effort belonged to only Matthew Rueff, even though he was thoughtful enough to share it with his coach afterwards.
Rueff dug down and discovered his own super hero performance that won state with a 68-1.75 toss. It exceeded his previous best ever by more than four feet — and even met Coach Cooper’s ambitious 2021 summer goal of 68 feet for the state meet.
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- Seven Lakes senior Matthew Rueff unleashes the winning throw in the 6A boys’ state shot put. His 68-1.75 effort earned the Spartan senior first place and established a new school record. (Photo by Terry Carter/UDPhotos)
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- Matthew Rueff enjoys the “Air Spartan” carry of his final high school shot put, which won a gold medal and made the 6 a.m. workouts and extra effort worth it for both coach and athlete. (Photo by Terry Carter/UDPhotos)
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- Seven Lakes throws coach David Cooper celebrates after Matthew Rueff’s dominant effort on Saturday at UT-Austin to win the 6A shot put state championship. In August Rueff will begin classes as a student-athlete at Auburn University. (Photo by Terry Carter/UDPhotos)
