Talent Plus Form Equal Wheeler's Stardom

By Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com

March 16, 2017

It was cold and rainy on April 29, 2016, and Grand Blanc’s Quiara Wheeler was scared.

The line to make to even have your throw measured in the discus at the Charlie Janke Track & Field Invitational in Jackson was 80 feet, farther than her personal best.

“I was really nervous, because I couldn’t throw very far,” she said. “I threw an 88-4 and was really excited. The week after that I started throwing farther in practice. (Grand Blanc throwing coach Garner Pleasant) and I figured out I was holding it wrong the whole season, then I figured out the hand placement and my footwork.”

After that, she took off.

Wheeler went from scared to be short of the minimum measurement to MHSAA champion in a little more than 30 days, throwing 136 feet, 2 inches on June 4 to win the Lower Peninsula Division 1 title.

“Sometimes they will get a big improvement in the disc because all of the sudden it just clicks,” Grand Blanc girls track & field coach Andy Taylor said. “But it usually takes at least a year or more to do that. To improve 50 feet from the end of April to the state meet, I’ve never heard of that.”

Wheeler improving her personal best by more than 60 feet in one season, and her quick ascension to the top of the state’s pecking order in the discus are actually easier to explain than you would guess.

It was a simple formula: extraordinary talent meets proper form – or close to it, anyway.

“What God has put in her, I can’t put in her,” Pleasant said. “She’s an athlete.”

Wheeler doesn’t just throw for the Bobcats, she also long jumps, with a personal best of 16 feet, and has been on the sprint relays.

She holds a third-degree black belt in martial arts, and her coaches feel that background has helped her to quickly pick things up on the track.

“She’s used to putting in the work and having discipline,” Taylor said. “At the state meet, as she was throwing, I happened to look right in her eyes, and you could tell that she was totally focused.”

While her improvement was lightning fast, it was also gradual, and not without some bumps in the road. In early May, her throws crept into the low 100s – 100-4, 102-1, 113-11 – from May 3 to 10.

Before the Kensington Lakes Activities Association meet, Pleasant decided to add a full spin to Wheeler’s arsenal. She faulted three times, however, and did not record a throw.

“I told her, ‘Forget about it, put it behind you,’” Pleasant said. “When we get ready for the Regional, we’re going to do the South African (technique). At the Regional, she throws the discus 120 feet with a legal South African, and that had to go about 150 feet straight in the air and dropped.

“We had two weeks before the state meet, so all we did is work on the full rotation. That’s all we did for two full weeks.”

The new technique helped Wheeler reach 132 feet in the preliminary rounds of the Division 1 meet, easily putting her into the Finals.

Still, the newcomer to the big stage felt the nerves.

“When it came to the Finals, I was by myself and I was trying to calm myself down the whole time,” Wheeler said. “It was kind of overwhelming at first because all of the girls were so good and I was like, ‘How did I make it to the Finals?’”

Wheeler won by five feet, with no one else topping even her preliminary throw.

Her rapid rise caught the eyes of college coaches, and she said she has scholarship offers from Western Michigan University and Heidelberg University in Ohio. Taylor said college coaches are excited about how much more she can grow.

“I actually never really thought about (throwing in college),” she said. “This was before I was good. When the season was going on, I realized maybe I can do this. But I definitely want to continue this in college.”

Pleasant and Taylor both feel Wheeler is only beginning to tap into her potential as a thrower. She’s dedicated her offseason to getting better in the discus, which doesn’t bode well for those trying to catch her.

“I’ve just been training every day, pretty much since October – I also trained in the summer,” she said. “I’ve been lifting weights, and I’m definitely stronger than I was last year. I work out with two other boys, and they push me because they’re stronger than me. I go in and watch videos, footage of me sometimes and how bad my form was. Coming into the season, I’m hoping to be more consistent with my throws.”

Wheeler doesn’t seem worried that she’ll now have a target on her back as the returning Finals champion. In fact, she’s excited to beat her previous achievements, which is what drew her to track in the first place.

Pleasant has her aiming for the stars.

“I told her, ‘You should be setting your sights on the best marks in the state,’” Pleasant said. “That’s what we’re shooting for, having the best marks in the state. It’s not about state, it’s about going out and trying to have some of the best marks in the nation if you can.”

Paul Costanzo served as a sportswriter at The Port Huron Times Herald from 2006-15, including three years as lead sportswriter, and prior to that as sports editor at the Hillsdale Daily News from 2005-06. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Genesee, Lapeer, St. Clair, Sanilac, Huron, Tuscola, Saginaw, Bay, Arenac, Midland and Gladwin counties.

PHOTOS: (Top) Grand Blanc’s Quiara Wheeler tosses the discus during last season’s Lower Peninsula Division 1 Finals. (Middle) Wheeler enjoys a moment away from the throwing circle. (Photos by John Brabbs/RunMichigan.com.)

Just Halfway Done, Tatum Well on Way to Rewriting West Bloomfield Record Book

By Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com

April 18, 2025

WEST BLOOMFIELD – Batting .500 is impressive in baseball or softball, but it’s even more so these days when talking about the track & field program at West Bloomfield. 

Greater DetroitWhen gazing at the school record book for the girls program, junior Kamryn Tatum has her name listed at the top for six of the 12 running events. 

She owns the school records in the 100, 200 and 400-meter dashes and is a part of three relay teams (400, 800, 1,600) that own school records. 

All of those have been established over the last two years. And if all that wasn’t enough evidence that it’s been quite a start to her high school career, Tatum already also owns three individual MHSAA Finals championships. 

Two years ago as a freshman, Tatum won the 200 (24.20) and 400 (55.74) dashes at the Lower Peninsula Division 1 state meet, and followed those up by winning the 200 (24.63) at last year’s MHSAA finale at East Kentwood. 

So, what’s the expected encore this spring? Well, more championships and really fast times, of course. 

“She’s always a student of the sport, but she’s always driven to beat her previous times,” West Bloomfield head coach Nick Stration said. “She’s always trying to get better. You don’t have to coach her much because she always wants to get better.

“Her will to win is what stands out. She is one of the fiercest competitors I’ve been around.”

Tatum is the younger sister of two past West Bloomfield standouts – current assistant coach Raven Tatum, who ran at Wayne State and Indiana Tech; and current Michigan State football player Dillon Tatum. 

Tatum, left, leads the 200 last spring at East Kentwood.Kamryn said she has never actually raced Dillon, but good-naturedly said she’d have a good shot if they did now. 

“I believe I would win, especially since Dillon is all about football now,” Kamryn said. “He’s much stronger and bigger, so that makes a difference on how fast or slow he can run. However, back in high school he would have beaten me for sure.”

Kamryn said she started running track at age 7, but didn’t really enjoy it at first, only doing it because her siblings were racing.

But the love of the sport eventually developed.

“When I got to middle school, that’s when I started having fun,” she said. “I was breaking school records, winning, and getting lots of exposure. Overall, I am somewhat searching for my purpose and enhancing my passion in running.”

It certainly didn’t take long for Tatum to make her mark on the rest of the state with those two Finals titles as a freshman, and the thought of her still having two more seasons at West Bloomfield to go faster has to make other runners cringe.

As a junior, Tatum’s college recruitment is peaking. At the moment, she said she has not received any scholarship offers, but she has been communicating with both in-state and out-of-state coaches. 

“My biggest goal right now is to work on my self-confidence,” she said. “From my perspective, it’s been a little tough so far, but I will continue to put in the work and believe in the plan God has for me. I would love to beat my freshman personal records and break more school records and hopefully earn a medal (or two) at the state meet and nationals.”

Keith DunlapKeith Dunlap has served in Detroit-area sports media for more than two decades, including as a sportswriter at the Oakland Press from 2001-16 primarily covering high school sports but also college and professional teams. His bylines also have appeared in USA Today, the Washington Post, the Detroit Free Press, the Houston Chronicle and the Boston Globe. He served as the administrator for the Oakland Activities Association’s website from 2017-2020. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Oakland, Macomb and Wayne counties.

PHOTOS (Top) West Bloomfield’s Kamryn Tatum (5) runs the final leg of the 400 relay at last season’s LPD1 Finals. (Middle) Tatum, left, leads the 200 last spring at East Kentwood. (Photos by John Brabbs/RunMichigan.com.)