Last year's national leader started off the 2017 season with a small improvement over the same meet in 2016. Will she compete at other indoor meets this season?
Every January, vaulters of all ages from around the country assemble in Reno, NV for the National Pole Vault Summit. The events features youth, high school, college, pro, and masters competition, plus more than 20 vaulting mats and runways in the same room, making it arguably the most unique experience in track & field.
Since Reno is a relatively easy trip from California, we always have the largest group of participants of any state, and that traditionally includes some of the state's best jumpers. This year was no exception, as Rachel Baxter and Tate Curran returned to the Summit and brought home improved results from the 2016 event. Baxter cleared 13' 5" to lead all female participants, going 1" higher than last year and entering the national rankings at US #2. Curran improved even more, posting a mark of 16' 4". That's a 10-inch increase over his best at the 2016 Summit, and it lets him debut at US #6 this winter.
Numerous other California vaulters participated, and we will work on getting those performances into the database this week. Jumping in the 2nd high school boys flight, Noah Hurley (College Park) cleared 15' 8", which is good for US #12 so far this indoor season. On the girls' side, Brooke Tjerrild (Clovis North) posted a 12' 5", while McKenna Caskey (Mater Dei) and Kaitlin Heri (Redondo Union) both cleared 11' 9".