Lindsay Regan vaults to victory @ NSIC.
"Lindsay was all over the place. She was coming off two days of jumping after winning the NSIC in NYC. Sometimes she ran well, other times......... not so well. She had two misses at her opening bar, (outside on her first and way under on her second) but she stayed "loosey goosey" and got it together. 11-7.75 went well and 12-1.5 was ok. She struggled at 12-5.5 but put good height on her third attempt. At 12-9.5 she was over both times, but just like the jumps at NSIC, she would just take it off with her elbows. The third attempt wasn't much different, a brush with the elbow but not enough to knock it off. At 13-1.5 she gave it a serious look on her first and was not bad on her second. I figured she needed something to change, so we changed poles (and brands), but she crushed it. That was her 15th jump of the competition. Danielle O'Reilly, her competition, and the NIC champ and US record-holder, was very solid, only missing her first bar (off a short run and pole), and never gave anyone who faltered a chance.
For any vaulters who are interested; Lindsay is about 5-6, 114lbs and was jumping on a 13'- 145 holding 12' 1" running from a 7 left approach. (roughly 22" over her grip)."
The PennTrackXC interview from Saturday, March 13 @ NSIC Lindsay Regan, Easton, winner of the girls' Pole Vault, who cleared 12-05.2 along with two other competitors, but won on fewer misses, having cleared every height on her first attempt to the winning one.
PennTrackXC: Was winning a national championship even in your thoughts coming to this meet?
Regan: Not really, because there are so many other good girls here, like Anna McFarlane. I jumped against her last year at Nike Indoors, but never expected to be up to her standards. She's such a good jumper. I really look up to her, and she's so nice. All the girls here are so good.
PennTrackXC: Clearing heights on the first attempt is obviously the ideal way to do it, and you didn't miss on four attempts.
Regan: It's so much nicer when you don't miss, because then you don't get tired.
PennTrackXC: What was the height the final three of you missed on?
Regan: It was 12-09 and something. I got on a new pole we just bought. It was a 13-145, so I was a little bit scared of that. But my second jump was probably my best jump. But my others ones were not that good. I was really tired by that point.
PennTrackXC: Everything was good with your steps and approach, and everything has come together?
Regan: Pretty much. There's little stuff that I can work on, but it's good enough for now. Hopefully I can get up to 13 tomorrow (at NIC).
PennTrackXC: Where you'll be competing against the national record holder Danielle O'Reilly of Shawnee, NJ.
Regan: She hasn't jumped well against us. Maybe it's a sister thing. Every time I've competed she either hasn't been there or hasn't jumped well.
PennTrackXC: You were so close at the PA State
Championships to getting the sophomore record of 13-00.25. Is that in your thinking?
Regan: The record doesn't phase me. It just pushes me to do better, because you have your good days and your off days, and you never know what it's going to be.