Kofron Will Be A Hawkeye: Tipton Senior sees Dream come true, will keep wearing Black and Gold

Tipton senior Jamie Kofron signed a national letter of inent last week with the University of Iowa.  Kofron won two Drake Relays titles last spring and captured a state title in May in the discus.  Pictured here are, front row l-r: Kevin Kofron (father), Jamie Kofron, and Jodi Kofron (mother).  Back row: Tipton athletic director Matt Fouch, and assistant Tipton track and field coach Nathan Anderson.  Photo by Ryan Stonebraker.

By Ryan Stonebraker
Sports Editor
  IOWA CITY — Tipton senior Jamie Kofron will not have to put away her black and gold clothing next year when she attends college. Kofron, one the premier high school throwers in the state of Iowa, signed a National Letter of Intent last week with the University of Iowa. There, she will be a member of the Hawkeye women’s track and field team, concentrating on throws.

  “I liked the closeness of Iowa. I love their coach. He is so much like the coaches here and they are building a great program and I am excited to be a part of it,” said Kofron.

  Kofron was determined to work for everything at college and didn’t want to start on top. She was looking for a challenge.

  “After the Drake Relays, I was looking for a school where I would be the worst person on their team. I wanted to work hard every day I was there to be better than my teammates and others at the conference. I think that the Big Ten offers that,” she said.

  Kofron has quite a throwing resume. It was her 2018 spring season where she won a pair of Drake Relays titles. Kofron won the shot put with a best throw of 45-5.0 and won the discus with a best throw of 143-0. Later last spring, she won the Class 2A state title in the discus and was second in the shot put.

  “She is a true student-athlete. Her work ethic, her drive. Either you have them or you don’t and she has them,” said Tipton assistant track coach Nathan Anderson. Anderson has worked with the Tiger throwers, including Kofron.

  “Her strength has increased each year and sometimes you see athletes plateau. She hasn’t. We have a program in place and we have seen it pay off,” he said.

  Kofron was a four-sport athlete early in her THS athletic career and has settled into a three-sport athlete with volleyball and basketball her other sports. Kofron recently finished her volleyball career as a member of the Class 3A runners-up this season. Tipton was 39-4 this year and reached the state tournament each of the last two seasons. She had 597 career kills, 468 digs, and 176 blocks. For her career, she served 1,371-for-1,460 with 104 ace serves. In basketball, she enters her senior season with 448 points, 467 rebounds, and 35 blocked shots. She has scored over 100 points and had over 125 rebounds in each of her first three seasons.

  “It’s tough going from one sport to the next, but I think it develops you as an athlete overall and breaks up the monotony. Most throwers are one-sport athletes and lift all year. I didn’t want to give up being on the teams I was on,” said Kofron.

  Kofron is projected to throw shot and discus at Iowa and could possibly try the hammer throw. Kofron plans to study in the business field. Kofron also visited the University of South Dakota before choosing Iowa. Kofron is the daughter of Jodi and Kevin Kofron of Tipton.