Two incoming Iowa freshmen helped the United States earn 59 medals at the Pan American Junior Championships from July 22 through Sunday, according to a release.

Kayla Beattie won gold in both the 3,000 meters and 5,000 meters at the championships, which were held in Miramar, Fla. She won the 3K with a time of 9:30.63 on July 23 and dominated the competition in the 5K with a 16:48.44 time on Sunday — a full six seconds ahead of the second-place finisher.

Gabe Hull took home the silver medal in the discus with a toss of 189-7, and he was only beaten by a Pan Am Junior meet-record 218-5 mark from a Jamaican thrower.

Hull was an Indiana state champion in the event while in high school, and he told USA Track & Field his previous successes served as motivation during the Pan Am games.

"At the beginning, I was just thinking I would settle for whatever I could get," he said after his medal-winning throw in the final round. "Then I [remembered] I had done well before, so I could do well again. I almost reproduced the good things I had done before, so it ended up well."

— by Seth Roberts