Former Whiteland star finishes 10th in national meet

Ryder Emberton’s final high school track & field meet in Indiana didn’t go quite how he’d hoped — but he’s more than made up for it since.

A week after winning the shot put at the Midwest Meet of Champions, the former Whiteland star turned in another strong performance this past weekend at the New Balance Outdoor Nationals in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Competing in the championship division of the shot put Saturday against the best throwers from across the country, Emberton turned in a solid 10th-place finish with a heave of 60 feet, 3 3/4 inches.

At the Midwest Meet of Champions, his winning throw had covered 63 feet, 6 3/4 inches — but that still wouldn’t have come close to matching national champ Jordan Geist of Pennsylvania, whose mark of 73-1 3/4 beat the rest of the field by more than five feet.

On Friday, Emberton threw the discus in the Emerging Elite division, one step below the championship level. His top throw of 152 feet, 6 inches placed him 14th among the 39 competitors who landed at least one measurable throw.

Emberton had finished second in the discus at the state meet on June 3 with a mark of 173-9, and he was fourth in that event at the Midwest Meet of Champions with a toss of 167-4.