Jen Grayson leaps to crown in high-jump competition

The Maplewood junior won the Division III high jump competition.
By KURT SNYDER
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
COLUMBUS -- The state meet is not just another meet for Maplewood high jumper Jen Grayson. But that has nothing to do with the height of the bar or the other competitors.
"Everything's different at the state meet," Grayson said.
But Grayson overcame a change in her warm-up routine and dealt with the noise of the state meet crowd to win the Division III high jump championship with a jump of 5-6 Saturday at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium. The junior finished third in the event last year.
Grayson usually goes through extensive warm-ups using the hurdles on the track. But because of running events from other divisions coinciding with her event, she had to warm up in the parking lot.
Then during the competition, Grayson had to combat the noise generated by fans watching the running events and the nearby speakers, which blared the announcers.
"It got really noisy; everyone just kept yelling," she said. "Then that lady was announcing the Division I and II championships. We were like plugging our ears because the speakers are right by the pit."
Coach's view
Maplewood assistant coach Mark Yoder said the routine changes, but everybody has to deal with it. He said Grayson may have dealt with it better than most.
"Her routine changed a little bit," Yoder said. "We brought our own hurdles from home.
"I think everybody's changed, but I think she handled it very well," he said.
Grayson had the edge on three other competitors at the 5-6 mark because of fewer misses, but she put the championship away when she cleared the winning height.
The bar was then pushed to 5-71/2 so that she could try to break the state record, but she could not clear the height.
"I knew I had to pop one off," she said of the jump at 5-6. "It was hot; it was so noisy, but I knew I had to secure it."
Grayson said she would have liked to set the record, but she is satisfied with the title.
"I had two goals -- to win state and set the record," she said. "But I only got one of those, and that's fine with me."
Staying alive
Even before the bar reached the 5-5 height, the pack did not drop off. Eleven competitors jumped at least 5-3. Even though she had to wait for more competitors to jump, Grayson said she actually felt more confident by the success of the rest of the field.
"It helps me to see people make it over because then I think if they can do it, so can I," she said.
Grayson also competed in both hurdle events Saturday. She finished sixth in the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 15.35, and she followed it up with a fourth-place finish in the 300-meter hurdles with a time of 46.12.