Pole Vault

LOUISVILLE — He came so close to the legacy he wanted to leave, but Casey County senior Jordan Elllison knew there was one thing he had to do immediately after he failed to defend his Class AA state pole vault championship. Seconds after he missed clearing 12 feet, 9 inches here Thursday, he went to congratulate Covington Catholic senior Will Torbeck for his victory in the sudden death jump-off after both cleared 12-6 and then failed to make 13-0 in the five-hour competition. “I’ve always been taught since I was real little that was the right thing to do,” said Ellison about his quick congratulatory handshake and hug for Torbeck.

Manly Bryant needed a pole that was just a bit stronger, so he broke in a new pole this week in preparation for the state meet. It evidently worked, since the Boyle County vaulter set two personal marks and finished with a vault of 12 feet, 6 inches and finished second at the Class AA state track and field championships at the University of Louisville. "I just got a new pole this week and I was working on it and I did pretty good on it," he said. "It's stronger. I have another one over there that's really weak for me, and I would just blow through it. " Bryant had been consistently vaulting 11-6, so that's what he expected to get this week.

LOUISVILLE -- It was a long day for Erica Mills, but it was worth every minute of it for the Boyle County senior. She won the Class AA state pole vault championship that she barely missed winning last year by clearing 9 feet and beating two others who also cleared the same height because she had fewer misses. The competition took almost 3 1/2 hours here on a hot, sunny day that included long periods with no one vaulting because competitors left to compete in other events. "It was a very long day, but it doesn't matter now," said a happy Mills.

NICHOLASVILLE - The Central Kentucky Conference Championships bring together track and field teams from all three classes for one last regular-season meet, so many of the top athletes know they won't have to face each other at this week's regionals. But in some cases, the CKC can provide compelling confrontations that will carry over from the regular season to the postseason. Some of those matchups provided some of the best drama in Friday's meet at West Jessamine Middle School.

Erica Mills, Boyle County, track and field : She set the school and meet record in the pole vault with a vault of 9 feet at the Boyle County Invitational. Jacob Fain, Garrard County, baseball : He tossed a complete-game four-hitter in the Golden Lions' 12-2 win over Danville and went 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored.

Less than 24 hours before qualifying for state in the pole vault on Saturday, West Jessamine’s Tanner Lee signed a national letter of intent Friday afternoon to compete at Georgetown College. “It’s a good school, and they have a good track team, and I wanted to pole vault,” Lee said. Lee is one of the few athletes in the area who competes in the pole vault. He first got into it after observing how different it was and decided to try it out. “I got stuck on it and have been doing it ever since,”¿Lee said.

NICHOLASVILLE - Stacey Gash won three events Wednesday to help the Mercer County girls finish third in the R.J. Corman Railroad Group Jessamine County Relays at West Jessamine Middle School. Gash won the 100-meter hurdles, the long jump and the triple jump. Lindsey Alford won the pole vault for Mercer, which was 27 points behind champion West Jessamine. GIRLS (Mercer County results) Team scores - 1. West Jessamine 93; 2. Madison Southern 86; 3. Mercer County (MC)

The Boyle County girls broke one school record and set a meet record Saturday at the Tates Creek Invitational. The team of Kate Carman, Katie Lester, Meagan Curry and Kailie Short ran the 400-meter relay in a school-record time of 52.7 seconds, beating the old record of 53.6 set in 1983, and placed fifth. Boyle won the 3,200 relay in a meet-record time of 10 minutes, 15.61 seconds, and finished second in the 1,600 relay. Boyle's Megan Holderman set a personal-best height with her effort of 9 feet to win the pole vault.

LOUISVILLE - Shelby Stringer knew she had it in her, it was just a matter of everything falling into place. And everything fell into place for the Casey County junior Friday, as she tied the Class AA girls pole vault record of 10 feet for her first state title at the University of Louisville. “It was raining, and I kind of expected it to not be as good as it was,” said Stringer, a runner-up in this event last year. “But I actually ended up having my best vaulting all year.” She cleared 10 feet on her first try, which tied the record set by Kathryn Yates of Elizabethtown in 2003 and matched by South Oldham's Chelsea Roundtree in 2004.

LOUISVILLE - Clint Hellyer was not sure what to expect when he came out for track this season for the first time and gave the 300-meter hurdles a try. He especially wasn't expecting a state title, but the Boyle County senior ran his best race ever and took home the Class AA boys title in the event Friday at the state track and field championships at the University of Louisville. Hellyer's time of 40.14 seconds was four-tenths of a second off the school record, and he said he was glad he came out for his senior season.

Nikki Coffey wasn't going to let anyone out do her on her track. The Boyle County sophomore was part of a dominant day for the Rebels on Saturday, winning all three of her events and helping Boyle outscore runner-up Madison Southern by 66 points at the Class AA, Region 5 meet at Boyle. Coffey won the 1,600- (5;34.38) and 3,200-meter runs (12:11.63) for her two individuals wins and teamed with Logan Arnold, Hannah Robertson and Tabitha Evans to take the 3,200 relay in 10 minutes, 14.4 seconds.

LIBERTY - Micah Smith will more than likely be outsized every time he gets in the post. But it's doubtful the Casey County senior center will run up against a better athlete than himself, and that's what the 6-2, 175-pound Smith tries to use to his advantage while battling against players several inches taller and several pounds heavier than he is. “Jumping, speed, anything I can use. I'm not as big as some of these guys, especially as a...

Megan Holderman had a lot to prove to herself coming into this season. Boyle County's senior pole vaulter lost nearly a foot off her best effort last season, and she came into this season determined to back to her old form. She won the Central Kentucky Conference title on Friday with a vault of 8 feet, 6 inches to help the Rebels finish tied with Henry Clay for the team title at the CKC meet at Admiral Stadium. And she is currently tied for first in the Class AA girls rankings with a vault of 9 feet she got at the Tates Creek Invitational last month.

The Boyle County girls took first and the boys third Saturday at the Woodford County Luck O' the Irish Invitational in Versailles. The Rebels girls had a win from Natalie Settle in the 100-meter hurdles and posted wins in the 1,600 and 3,200 relays. They also had seconds from Maddie Kriz in the 1,600, Nikki Coffey in the 800, Emma Ditto in the 3,200, Settle in the 300 hurdles, Megan Holderman in the pole vault and Tabitha Evans in the triple jump. Boyle was also second in the 400 and 800 relays.

LOUISVILLE — He came so close to the legacy he wanted to leave, but Casey County senior Jordan Elllison knew there was one thing he had to do immediately after he failed to defend his Class AA state pole vault championship. Seconds after he missed clearing 12 feet, 9 inches here Thursday, he went to congratulate Covington Catholic senior Will Torbeck for his victory in the sudden death jump-off after both cleared 12-6 and then failed to make 13-0 in the five-hour competition. “I’ve always been taught since I was real little that was the right thing to do,” said Ellison about his quick congratulatory handshake and hug for Torbeck.

Less than 24 hours before qualifying for state in the pole vault on Saturday, West Jessamine’s Tanner Lee signed a national letter of intent Friday afternoon to compete at Georgetown College. “It’s a good school, and they have a good track team, and I wanted to pole vault,” Lee said. Lee is one of the few athletes in the area who competes in the pole vault. He first got into it after observing how different it was and decided to try it out. “I got stuck on it and have been doing it ever since,”¿Lee said.

East and West Jessamine won’t be lacking in representation at the Class 2A State Track and Field Championships on Thursday, as the schools combined to send 20 athletes to the meet. On Saturday, the county had five athletes and two relay teams win district championships. West Jessamine’s Abby Wiggins and Caleb McDaniel were district champions in multiple events. On the girls’ side, East Jessamine’s Danielle Lee qualified for state by winning the 100-meter dash with a time of 12.9 seconds.