Junior thrower overcoming injury

This time last year, junior Mike Minton could not even throw a shot put without excruciating pain from a ball of cartilage that had formed in his elbow. Now, he is winning invitationals against competition from around the country.\nThis past weekend the No. 17 men's track and field team traveled to Plainfield, Ind., for the Canon IV Classic meet where Minton easily won the shot put. This was his second victory in as many weeks.\n"I didn't throw as far as I wanted, but I'm making progress and becoming a better thrower," Minton said.\nThis week marks a year since Minton went into surgery for his elbow. The ball of cartilage was pressing against a nerve making it practically impossible for him to extend his arm without pain.\nMinton said he was smart during his rehabilitation, which is one of the things he attributes his success in the season to. Instead of rushing back to throwing, Minton was patient and found other ways to improve at his sport. He used cross-training tactics such as running, plyometrics, abdominal work and weights that didn't require both arms.\n"Too many times, athletes become impatient and try to rush things," Minton said. "It was very difficult for me, but I found other ways to train hard without using my other elbow and feed the hunger with training and not do anything stupid."\nCoach Marshall Goss said Minton's intelligence is one of his key traits as an athlete and a major reason he has found success. \n"He's a very, very competitive young man," Goss said. "He'll give us every effort he has."\nGoss said Minton can be competitive to a fault at times. Earlier this season, Minton struggled to regain the feel in the throwing ring after a year absence. Goss said he was thinking too much and was too hard on himself.\n"At times, he just needs to relax and take it as it comes," Goss said. "I'm sure that the maturity that he has gained over the past three years will help him do that."\nMinton said the reason he struggled at the beginning of the season was mental. He said after the third meet of the season, he focused more on technique in training which has led to his big performances the past two weeks.\n"I really want to be a good thrower," Minton said. "But whenever you step into the ring, you can't be tense. You've got to have confidence and be relaxed, and I'm at the point where I'm now relaxed heading into the ring."\nNow Minton has his focus on the Big Ten Championships at the end of the month, where the competition promises to be stiff. Minton said he knows he can compete on that level.\n"I feel like I've put myself in a position to go out and be competitive," Minton said. "Now I can just go out with the mindset that I just want to do as well as I can and that will get me where I want to go"