The state’s best will collide at the PCTA Field House on Saturday for the RIIL Indoor Track & Field Championships. Who are some of the top athletes that will be competing this weekend? Here we feature the girls’ jumping events, which includes the long jump, high jump and pole vault.
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LONG JUMP
This is one of four events Mount Hope’s Thea Jackson will compete in at the State Meet, and we expect it to be part of a big day for the Huskies senior. Jackson sent a message to the rest of the field at last Saturday’s Last Chance Qualifier, improving her state-leading mark by nearly a foot with an indoor best of 16 feet, 10.5 inches.
The Mount Hope standout, who captured the outdoor crown last spring, consistently brings her ‘A’ game when championship season arrives, and we don’t expect that to change this weekend.
But while we do put Jackson as the favorite, it certainly won’t be easy.
Several challengers are knocking on the door of 18 feet this season, and Saturday could be the day one (or more) of them breaks through. Among them are Portsmouth’s Loosaper Tate (17-11.5), Exeter/West Greenwich’s Nini Olawuyi (17-9.5), Mount Hope’s Jordan Cicchinelli (17-8.75), and Classical’s Precious Adefusi (17-8.5). Olawuyi, the state runner-up at both the indoor and outdoor meets, exceeded 18 feet several times last spring with an all-time best of 18-9
The question is: if one of Jackson’s rivals clears the 18-foot barrier, will it be enough to take her down? Based on what we’ve seen from the Huskies star throughout her career, we’re anticipating another big jump — perhaps even farther than what she produced at Last Chance.
HIGH JUMP
Here’s another event where Jackson enters as the No. 1 seed. She has been the state’s top high jumper for most of the season and soared to a career-best 5-6 to claim individual honors at the Headley Division Championships. She also earned key victories at the Nor’Easter at the Track on Jan. 10 with a clearance of 5-5.25 and two weeks ago at the Class B Championships, where she won at 5-5.
But don’t forget about Olawuyi. After all, she is the defending champion. The Scarlet Knights senior matched her all-time best of 5-4 in winning the RITCA Invitational on Jan. 3 and, like Jackson, remains unbeaten against in-state competition this season.
Eleven athletes in this field has seeds at five feet or higher. Among them are Barrington’s Helena Hyde and East Greenwich’s Sydney Spitzer, who both have done 5-2 this season.
POLE VAULT
The overwhelming favorite in this event is Ponaganset’s Amber Shaw, who tied the state record earlier this winter by clearing 12 feet to win the Yale Track Classic. That performance stands nearly four feet higher than her closest rival.
The top storyline surrounding Shaw is whether she can become the sole record-holder with a new PR this weekend. The Chieftain senior has cleared 11-6 or higher six times this season, making her a near lock to claim the inaugural indoor title on Saturday.
The real intrigue may be in the battle for the remaining podium spots. The next five athletes are all seeded at 8-6 — Barrington’s Siena Leland, La Salle’s Camryn Bromage, Lincoln’s Aislinn Henry, and North Kingstown’s Samantha Vance and Abigail O’Neil.
Photo by Sterling Vernon @rhodeandtrack
