The final of three national meets was held this past weekend.
Although only a handful of Rhode Island athletes made the trip to Virginia for the adidas Indoor Nationals, those who competed made a major impact. In the weight throw on Saturday, the Ocean State swept the individual titles. Woonsocket’s Shamrock Thoun successfully defended his crown with a meet record of 80 feet, 10.5 inches. On the girls’ side, Toll Gate’s Vanessa Jones continued her late-season surge with a triumphant toss of 59-6.25. Jones’s performance – her second national title this year – led a 1-2 finish for the state, with Woonsocket’s Avaree Caron taking silver at 52-3.5.
Thoun’s effort concludes a dominant final season behind the cage. The Kennesaw State University commit won his second straight state title this winter, and though he wasn’t able to match a sweep of the weight throw across all three national meets, he still earned All-American honors by finishing second at New Balance Nationals and third at Nike Indoor Nationals. In both of those meets, Kayden Hulet of Sparks, Nevada, came out on top, including a nation-leading and meet-record throw of 86-9.25 at New Balance. Thoun finished No. 2 in the country with a best of 83-1.75 from the State Meet.
“Shamrock put together a very dominant indoor season throwing the 25-pound weight, culminating as the state and New England champion,” said Woonsocket coach Marc Piette. “During the postseason, he was a three-time All-American, including adidas national champion. Shamrock competed in 18 meets, winning 15. His losses were against other 80-foot throwers. He ends hisweight-throwing career as a two-time state champion, four-time national champion, and eight-time All-American.”.
At adidas, Jones finished as the No. 1 thrower in the country, improving her previous best of 59-4.75 from her second straight win at Nike Indoor Nationals on March 12. She was second to Canada’s Mykayla Scarlett of Project Athletics Track & Field Club at New Balance Nationals. Scarlett won that meet with a record throw of 66-5, while Jones secured runner-up honors at 58-0.25.
The Vanderbilt University signee finishes her career as a five-time All-American in the weight throw. In addition to her win at Nike Indoor Nationals last year, she was also third at New Balance Nationals in 2025.
