LH grad Pierce sets program record at Duquesne
Submitted photo
For Laurel Highlands graduate and Duquesne sophomore Mia Pierce, the fourth time was the charm.
Pierce broke the Dukes’ record in the women’s discus on May 18 in the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Outdoor Track & Field Championships at George Mason Stadium in Fairfax, Va.
Pierce, a true sophomore, set the record in the event with a throw of 49.55 meters (162 feet, 7 inches) on her fourth of six attempts to win the ECAC title over Army West Point’s Sophia Dykstra, who had a mark of 47-10 (154-6).
Duquesne’s previous program record was 49.34, which was set by Mercedes Oliver in 2017.
“To break the program record in the discus was a big goal of mine,” Pierce said. “We filled out goals this year prior to the season, and that is one I wrote down. During the competition at the ECAC meet, my first throw was the best I ever opened up with in a meet, as it approached 46 meters, so I knew I was close.
“I felt like I could build upon that first throw. Going into the finals and my last three throws, I talked to my coach and tweaked something before breaking the record.”
Pierce competed last season as a true freshman and reached the podium at the ECAC meet. She didn’t win the championship, but was proud of her performance.
“It was pretty cool to win the meet title this year,” Pierce said. “I was more excited about the throw because that is really what matters most. It’s great to win, but you want to have your best throw.
“I still feel the nerves, but I have learned to handle that better this year and not put as much pressure on myself.”
Pierce competed in the javelin the first meet of the outdoor season this year, but due to a knee injury that she suffered in the fall, she spoke to her coach, and the duo decided that competing solely in the discus would be best.
“I threw the shot put in the indoor season this year to get a feeling of a competitive atmosphere,” Pierce said. “Discus and javelin are not part of indoor track, so we have our in-season and off-season lifts, which are different. We start training in August and go all the way up to May. I will take some time off once the season ends before starting my training in the summer.”
Pierce’s season came to an end at the ECAC, as she just missed qualifying for the NCAA East Regional Championships. The top 48 were selected to compete, but Pierce was in the mid-50s when the final rankings were released.
Pierce graduated from Laurel Highlands in 2023, but not before earning two state medals in the discus as a junior and senior, and also qualifying for the state meet in the javelin in her senior campaign.
“I had a pretty big PR (personal record) at the WPIAL meet in the discus my sophomore year, and that entire summer, I spent a lot of time up at the high school practicing,” Pierce said. “I was the WPIAL runner-up my junior year and went to states. I played volleyball in high school, and thought about playing at the next level my freshman and sophomore years, but I ultimately went with track & field.”
Past the competition being stronger, Pierce didn’t find the transition from high school to college track & field to be challenging.
“The competition is the best around at the collegiate level, but the meets are similar with the exception of how they are run,” Pierce said. “In high school, we didn’t have an actual official at our meets until the WPIAL and state meets. We just had coaches from the schools that were participating handle it.
“You also get 15 minutes to warm-up and then you start the competition right away in college. The atmosphere is a little more relaxed in high school.”
Pierce is a nursing major at Duquesne, and plans to start working in the field once she finishes school.