(photo by Tim O'Dowd)

William and Mary's Bob Smutsky (Dillsburg, Pa.) saved his best for last, literally, throwing a lifetime-best on his sixth and final attempt to win the USAT&F Junior National Championship in the javelin Saturday afternoon.  The rising sophomore, who was seeded fourth coming into the event this week in Des Moines, was fifth after the first round and second every round after that, before unleashing a monster 69.08m (226-8) toss on the final attempt.  His is the second national championship of the week for the Tribe, who also saw Emily Stites (Wyoming, Ohio) win the junior women's 5,000m on Friday night.

With the winning performance, Smutsky improved to second all-time at W&M in the javelin, ranking behind only record-holder and All-American Brandon Heroux '12.  The mark of 69.08m is the 12th-best ever single performance in school history, and guaranteed Smutsky a spot on Team USA for the Pan-Am Junior Games, Aug. 23-25 in Medellin, Colombia.  He becomes the fifth W&M men's track and field athlete ever to win a national title from the USAT&F or its predecessor organizations, just the second to do so as an active athlete, and the first to win a junior-age (19 and under) title.  He is also the first non-runner to win a national title for the Green and Gold men.

Saturday's performance is just the latest, and greatest, highlight of Smutsky's freshman campaign.  Both one of the top throwers and one of the top sprinters on the team, he qualified for the IC4A Championships both indoors and outdoors in the 200m dash, as well as the javelin outdoors.  He won the Colonial Athletic Association title in the javelin in early May, helping the Tribe win its first team championship since 2004, and was 15th at the NCAA East semifinals, just three places shy of earning All-America honors.  In the 200m dash, he set the freshman record indoors at 22.21 seconds, and lowered his best to 21.68 outdoors in mid-April.

W&M Men's Track and Field All-Time AAU/USAT&F National Champions
2013 - Bob Smutsky '16, Junior Javelin
2011 - Jon Grey '11, Club Cross Country
2010 - Ed Moran '03, Road 10K
1970 - Hal Michael '71, Outdoor Mile
1970 - Juris Luzins '69, Indoor 1,000y

2013 USAT&F Junior National Championships Men's Javelin
1. Bob Smutsky (W&M) 69.08m/226-8
2. Robert Entwistle (CCU) 65.89m/216-2
3. Tom Carr (Shore AC) 65.13m/213-8
4. Jay Stell (Navy) 64.40m/211-3
5. Carson Fuller (Washington) 61.98m/203-4
6. Michael Shuey (Penn St.) 61.05m/200-3
7. McLean Lipschutz (Monmouth) 60.98m/200-1
8. Andrew Henn (Unattached) 57.76m/189-6
9. Stephen Burk (Michigan) 57.66m/189-2
10. Cameron Acosta (Unattached) 57.33m/188-1
11. Chase Pote (Wichita St.) 57.20m/187-8
12. John Hoplin (Unattached) 54.48m/178-9
-- Tyson Holmes (Wichita St.) FOUL