Michigan track and field throwing coach Allison Boevers likes to joke with her athletes that, “You don’t pick the shot put. The shot put kind of picks you.”
If that’s the case, the shot put made a wise choice in Hempfield grad Liz Tapper.
Tapper spent most of her freshman year with the Wolverines trying to find her niche among the throwing events. By the end of the 2024 outdoor schedule, when she broke the 17-meter mark in a late-season meet, it was apparent that shot put would be the way to go.
And the 2025 indoor and outdoor seasons proved she was on the right path. During indoor season, Tapper broke the program shot put record five times — in only seven meets — culminating in a toss of 18.26 meters (59 feet, 11 inches) during the Big Ten indoor championships. She placed third.
One month ago, at Texas A&M, she set the outdoor program record with a heave of 17.29 meters (56 feet, 83⁄4 inches). Next up is the Big Ten outdoor championships, which are set for this weekend in Eugene, Ore. She has the fourth-best mark in the conference — and 16th in the country — entering the meet.
Tapper said she used the lessons she learned from her freshman year to propel her forward this season.
“I think after that freshman year, you kind of have it down pat,” Tapper said about adjusting to college life and athletics. “I definitely learned so much about myself, time management, how my days need to be spent, how much time I need to spend on everything each day.
“Coaching-wise, I feel like I’ve grown in that aspect, taking cues from my coach, trying my best to use them in every throw. Competition-wise, I know how to go into competition and handle myself, not let stress kind of take the wheel at competitions.”
Boevers said Tapper is perfectly wired to excel in the shot put.
“Her mind works kind of like a math equation,” Boevers said. “… The shot put, I think, gets a bad rap that you need to be really strong and fast. There’s a lot of physics that go into moving an implement, and she likes the challenge of that, I think.”
Besides figuring out the formula to perfect her technique, Tapper said the mind is important in other aspects of throwing. She said she has trained herself to stay positive during competition. At the same time, she said she tries not to be too hard on herself.
When she came to Michigan, she said, she was a perfectionist. She had to learn to be comfortable with the fact that not every throw is going to be perfect.
In reality, she needs only one perfect throw at each competition, and she is hoping to achieve that at the Big Ten championships. She finished 12th last season but is confident she is on the brink of a big throw.
“I 100% know it’s coming,” she said. “We’ve been training so hard for it, and we’re seeing it in practice. We just need that opportunity at that meet, and we need the energy from that meet, and it’s all going to come together.”
Even if that doesn’t happen this weekend, Tapper still has two more years to achieve her goals. Boevers is loath to put specific numbers on her athletes, but she sees big things for Tapper.
“I think the goals for her are just to continue to move the mark and to do it at an opportune time to be a winner and be a champion,” Boevers said. “I think she’s capable of that, yes.”
Added Tapper: “I definitely think 19 (meters) and beyond are in reach. … My goal for myself is to get to 20 meters before I graduate, so I definitely think all of that is attainable.
“There is no ceiling to your potential as long as you’re willing to put in the work to get there.”