NCAA Articles

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Mike Palmer Qualifies For Pole Vault Finals At NCAA Outdoor Championships
Spartan senior is one of 13 competitors that will compete in Friday's final.


June 8, 2005

Results

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Michigan State senior Mike Palmer (Shepherd, Mich.) advanced to the finals of the pole vault Wednesday night at the 2005 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Sacramento. Palmer was one of 13 competitors to clear 16-10 3/4 during the qualifying round to advance to Friday's final.

Palmer cleared the opening height of 5.00m (16-4 3/4) on his first attempt. At the second height of 5.15m (16-10 3/4), Palmer missed on his first try, but cleared the bar on his second attempt to move on.

Junior Mark Langlois (Fruitport, Mich.) was one of seven competitors that failed on all three attempts at the opening height of 5.00m and did not advance. Seven others cleared 5.00m before being eliminated at 5.15m, cutting the field of 27 to 13.

Friday's finals are scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. Pacific (9:30 p.m. Eastern).

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Rudzinska And Russell Advance Out Of Qualifying Rounds
Rudzinska moves in 800 meter semifinal; Russell into pole vault final

June 9, 2005


SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Senior All-American Beata Rudzinska (Ilawa, Poland/University of Gdansk) and junior All-American John Russell (Cincinnati, Ohio/Princeton HS) moved out of their respective qualifying rounds as day one wrapped up at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships at the Alex G. Spanos Sports Complex.

Russell was among a group of 12 that all nailed their opening two heights in the men's pole vault. Six of the 12 finalists, including Russell, cleared 16-04.75 and 16-10.75 using only one attempt on each height. BYU's Trent Powell passed on the opening height and cleared 16-10.75 on his first try. The final is slotted for Friday at 6:30 p.m.

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http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/mld/my ... 850378.htm

CCU pole vaulter advances to finals

From staff reports

SACRAMENTO, Ca. - Mark Johnson's jump of 16 foot, 10 inches Wednesday qualified him for the pole vault finals Friday in the NCAA championship at Alex G. Spanos Sports Complex in Sacramento, Calif.

Last year he was out in the preliminaries.

"I'm excited," Johnson said. "That's what I've been training for all season. Coming to the meet I just needed to stay relaxed and clear bars and I did. It feels pretty good."

The Coastal Carolina junior was one of thirteen competitors who made the 16-foot, 10 inch vault. He was one of seven who cleared it on his first attempt and it set the stage first appearance in the NCAA championship pole vault finals.

"Like he has been all year, he was consistent and that's what it comes down to," said CCU mens track and field coach Jeff Jacobs.

The finals include the top 16 vaulters. Johnson expects those competing for the NCAA championship to be jumping in the 18-foot range. He said he has a shot to be close to the top eight that will be named All-Americans.

"Right now with my [personal best] I'm ranked ninth," Johnson said. "I'll probably have to jump that or higher to get All American."

The vaults were lower than expected due to uncharacteristic rain in Sacramento.

"The weather played a part in the results today," Jacobs said. "Seven guys went out on the first vault alone. I was surprised that it was at [16-10] and it didn't go to the next bar."

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Even though senior P.J. Brown was ranked 24th entering the pole vault he didn’t let that deter him from qualifying for the finals of the event. Brown persevered through the rain and wind and recorded no misses as he was one of 13 competitors to clear 16-10.75. The finals will take place on Friday at 6:30 p.m.

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http://www.byucougars.com/Filing.jsp?ID=6660#

Seven Cougars Advance at NCAA Championships
by Jeff Reynolds, BYU Athletic Communications

BYU pole vaulters Robison Pratt and Trent Powell were the only competitors to pass the opening height on Wednesday, and went on to tie for the lead with a clearance of 16-10.75 after a one-hour rain delay. Both will advance to the finals in the pole vault on Friday.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (June 8, 2005)

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Mickie Rzepka Reaches Finals Of Pole Vault Competition At NCAA Outdoor Championships
Rzepka breaks her own school record to advance.


June 9, 2005

Results

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Michigan State redshirt junior Mickie Rzepka (Novi, Mich.) advanced to the finals of the pole vault competition Thursday night at the 2005 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Sacramento. Rzepka is one of 14 competitors that will move on from the qualifying round into the finals.

Rzepka broke her own school record by clearing 4.10m (13-5 1/4), besting her previous record of 4.00m (13-1 1/2) set May 13 at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships. Rzepka missed on her first attempt at the opening height of 3.75m, but did not miss the rest of the night. Two of the 28 competitors were eliminated on the opening height, while two more went out at the second height of 3.90m.

Five vaulters were eliminated at the next height of 4.00m, dropping the field to 19. Only 11 of the 19 managed to clear 4.10m, ending the qualifying round with those 11 plus three others who tied for 12th with just one miss at the first three heights advancing.

Rzepka's run to the finals with just one miss was the third best performance of the night. Only Arkansas' Stacie Manuel and Kansas' Amy Linnen did not miss a jump, while all others had at least two miscues.

Saturday's finals are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. Pacific (9 p.m. Eastern).

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http://www.signonsandiego.com/sports/az ... atrak.html

SDSU's Balentine advances in pole vault



By Steve Brand
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
June 10, 2005

SACRAMENTO – When Shayla Balentine missed her second try in the pole vault at 13 feet, 1½ inches, facing elimination from the NCAA Division I Track and Field Championships yesterday, she had a little chat with herself.

It wasn't a rant, it wasn't a rave, it was a verbal Valium.


"I told myself 'relaaaax, you know you can do this,' " said the San Diego State senior who soared over that height on her third attempt and then was equally impressive clearing 13-5¾ on her first try.

With the higher mark, she advanced to tomorrow's championships and when defending champion Chelsea Johnson of UCLA was unable to qualify, Balentine became the slight favorite with her seasonal best of 14-feet, ½-inch.

On a day when the weather returned to its more seasonal warmth, producing world-best times by Arkansas' Tyson Gay in the men's 200 at 19.93 seconds and Texas Tech in the men's 4x400 relay at 3:01.69, Balentine had her own reason to celebrate.

But it almost didn't happen. That it did was a testament to her mental toughness, maturity and trust in her coach, Rich Fox.

"Sometimes when you miss a low height twice, it's because your adrenaline is pumping," said Balentine, who didn't start pole vaulting until her senior year at Morro Bay High, where she won the California state title at 13-8.

"So, you think how you can jump way higher, you think practice, you think of the times you've cleared it. And you trust your coach."

And what sage advice did Fox relay to his vaulter?

"I told her to run, run faster and then run even faster," Fox said. "She was trying too hard to be technical. I told her to just bring the heat, I knew once she got on the pole with speed she wouldn't have any trouble."

She didn't. Not on that third attempt, nor at the next height. And Balentine is confident that she can go much higher.

She started the season hoping for a 15-foot vault and she still believes she can go that high if that's what it takes. But she also admits she doesn't think about the height.

"I don't worry about that," the 5-foot-6 Balentine said. "If I just run fast and clear the bar, it doesn't matter. In fact, I block out the height. I believe I'm the mentally toughest vaulter in the field. When things go wrong, I just take deep breaths to control my mind – there isn't a lot you can do out there.

"I could easily have cracked and given up any time the last three years. There is no younger vaulter, experience-wise, here than I am – I'm a young un' – and it takes time to really learn an event."

Now Balentine is poised to make a serious run at an NCAA title.

"I'm going to PR in the final and I'll clear whatever it takes to win," she said. "Stacy Dragila says you have to have fun and I'm having fun."

Finally.

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http://www.cdapress.com/articles/2005/0 ... orts03.txt

WSU's Diles advances in pole vault; Vandals stumble
Posted: Friday, Jun 10, 2005 - 08:19:07 am PDT


NCAA Track

From news services

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Washington State pole vaulter Tamara Diles was the lone Cougar to advance from Thursday's qualifying rounds during the second day of the NCAA Division I Track and Field Championships at Hornet Stadium.

Diles, a junior from Bellevue, Wash., cleared 13 feet, 5 1/4 inches, joining 10 others at that height to advance to the Saturday night finals. Diles joins WSU men's pole vaulter Tyson Byers as the only Cougars to advance to finals of their events.

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The UCLA women saw their hopes for a repeat team title fade when defending champion Chelsea Johnson passed on her first two heights, then missed three times at 13-1 1/2 in the qualifying round of the pole vault. Johnson set the collegiate record at 15-0 last year.

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Also making a significant contribution in the field is junior pole vaulter Cheryl Terrio. Terrio, who made her first NCAA appearance Thursday, made her trip to Sacramento with while. Vaulting a height of 13'1 ½, Terrio qualifed for Saturday's pole vault final and a chance to earn her first All-America honors.

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http://www.sltrib.com/sports/ci_2796131

NCAA Track: Cougars' Pratt wins pole vault
Combined News Services



BYU's Robison Pratt heads toward the winning jump of just over 18 feet at the NCAA championships Friday. (Jaren Wilkey/Courtesy of BYU )

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Brigham Young's Robison Pratt won the men's pole vault at the NCAA championships Friday night.
Pratt cleared 18 feet, one-half inch to win the first NCAA men's outdoor title for a BYU athlete since 1999.
"I started out kind of sluggish, missing my first attempt at a lower height," Pratt said. "I got nervous, but it made me more focused for the next attempt. I managed to pull out a close second attempt, and it got better throughout the competition."
Teammate Trent Powell finished seventh at 17-4 1/2 and earned All-America honors

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Mike Palmer Finishes 13th In Pole Vault At NCAA Championships
Spartan senior unsuccessful in bid for All-American honors.


June 10, 2005

Results


SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Michigan State senior Mike Palmer (Shepherd, Mich.) finished in 13th place in the pole vault at the 2005 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships Friday night.

Palmer had a rough final night of competition, failing to clear the bar on any of his attempts. After clearing 5.15m (16-10 3/4) on his second try during the Wednesday's qualifying round, Palmer was unsuccessful in his first two attempts Friday at that height, which served as the opening height. He passed on his third and final attempt at 5.15m, and was given one try at the next height of 5.30m, which he did not clear.

BYU's Robison Pratt won the competition with a height of 5.50m (18-0 1/2).

Palmer and Mark Langlois were MSU's two representatives at the NCAA Championships. Langlois also competed in the pole vault but was eliminated in the qualifying round.