Mensi Stiff named Gatorade Tennessee girls track and field athlete of year for third time

Brentwood Academy record holder Mensi Stiff has been named the Gatorade Tennessee girls track and field player of the year for the third consecutive year.

The Ole Miss signee and recent graduate captured both the TSSAA Division II shot put and discus state titles this past season, giving her six state titles (three each) during her storied career.

Stiff holds the state record in both events. She set the state record in the shot put at 52 feet, 11 inches and winning the state with a throw of 50-2.5. She's the first girl in Tennessee to eclipse 50 feet in a TSSAA-sanctioned event.

Her state-winning discus throw was 155-6, short of her state record of 165-7.

“Every once in a while a coach catches lightning in a bottle in the form of a generational high school athlete," said Brentwood Academy assistant track coach Steve Wade. "With Mensi, I’ve been fortunate to be a part of multiple TSSAA and national shot put championships, seven state records in discus and shot put, nation-leading throws, All-American honors and now an unprecedented third Gatorade Track Athlete of the Year award.

"She has incessantly and tirelessly worked to be the best she can be. Simply put, she has redefined and raised the bar for the girls throwing events in our State."

Winning the Tennessee award makes Stiff a finalist for the Gatorade National Player of the Year award, which will be announced in July.

The award recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence but also high standards of academicachievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the field.

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The recipient of a Tennessee State Senate proclamation for athletic, academic and community serviceachievements, Stiff is a published poet and author and a member of the Brentwood Academy Student AmbassadorProgram. She had a 3.75 GPA.

She has volunteered locally on behalf of the Sarah Cannon Cancer Center and at New Hope Academy, serving low-income families. She also has donated her time rescuing abused horses and nursing them back to health in addition to serving as a vacation bible school teacher.