Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes LaBrae junior Matthew Kujala competes during the Division IV boys discus, taking home bronze with a new personal-best throw of 177-09 feet.

COLUMBUS — Matthew Kujala admits that his first trek to Columbus last June didn’t meet his expectations, as he failed to even make the finals. After tossing a career-best throw of 177-09 feet on his first attempt at this year’s OHSAA state meet, though, the LaBrae junior snagged himself a bronze medal in the Division IV boys discus.

Vindication felt great for Kujala, but setting the tone early helped ease the nerves.

“It was unexpected, but I’m glad I did throw it that far. I wish I could have thrown it farther with my following five throws, but that’s fine to me; 177 isn’t a bad day,” Kujala said. “I’ve thrown against Ethan (Stein) at the regional meet, and I’ve seen Hunter (Spangler), who took second before. They both had great throws, but I knew there was competition. I knew I could beat some of them. The thing is, I knew I could have lost a lot more than what I did.

“I just wanted to come out here and do what I could do, and I think I did that.”

Stein tossed the disc 191-00 feet to win the event for Gilmour Academy, while Spangler’s silver medal throw marked 178-08 feet. Both throwers were seniors.

“In a way, it lets me relax, but then it really makes you want more, though,” Kujala said. “You PR by one foot, then you’re like, ‘I want to get more.’ But a PR is a PR, so you can’t complain. [Last year] gave me a lot of drive. The last thing I wanted this year was to come down and do bad and disappoint myself again and disappoint my family. I wanted to live up to what I have the physical capabilities of doing, and it drove my work ethic throughout the offseason and through the indoor season to become better at what I do.”

Kujala admits that he initially wasn’t interested in competing on the track and field team, but he eventually did so after some of his friends joined the Vikings squad. His two older sisters, Emily and Mara, both threw for LaBrae.

The lineage runs further back, however. His father, Robert “Bob” Kujala, owns the Vikings boys shot put record. He then went on to become an All-American thrower at Hiram College during his senior season in 1996, and he was named to the Terriers’ hall of fame in 2009.

“I kinda went there one day and said, ‘Let’s try this,’ and got better at it. I found I had a liking for it, and I wanted to continue with it. I really found a vested interest in getting better at the sport,” Matthew Kujala said. “(My dad) was a glider, so he couldn’t teach me full spin, but this has been me and my dad’s journey from the start of seventh grade. It’s been me and him who’ve worked towards it. My sisters are super supportive; they come to every meet. They cheer me on from the side and watch me throw when they can.

“This is my dad’s thing, but my mom has always been there to support me. It’s built up into tradition for us to kind of support one another, as I particularly in this instance, go through my high school career throwing.”

In the fall, Kujala tosses on the pads and battles as a left guard and defensive tackle for the Vikings’ football team. Throwing and combating on the offensive and defensive lines share a lot of similar traits.

“I never played football until last year. I came and I found a love for that game, too. It gave me work ethic, too,” Kujala said. “Playing football, you battle through a hard, hot summer with your buddies with literally blood, sweat and tears throughout the entire summer. It opens your entire eyes to work ethic. It makes you want to be that much better of a thrower. I’ve noticed that after my first year of football that I became an elite thrower and started throwing really well.

“The lifting, conditioning, and agility aspect work hand in hand.”

Kujala also competed in the shot put in Columbus, reaching 49-10.75 feet for 14th place. Senior Brayden Clark also podiumed for the Vikings, earning eighth place in the boys 400-meter dash at 50.82 seconds.

“All of the momentum that you can give me, I feel like I have right now,” Kujala said. “I didn’t end shot the way I wanted to this year, but I’m going to come back harder than ever, hopefully, next year for shot and discus.

“In discus, I want to try and chase that state meet record of 196-03. I want to try and maybe chase that next year, and it’s giving me momentum. I’m not going to slow down now that it’s right there in front of me. That’s what it’s all about.”