Taylor Brown nearly earned All-American honors on Saturday.
The Jamestown College sophomore high jumper from Cavalier, N.D., finished in a 4-way tie for 10th at the NAIA national indoor meet in Geneva, Ohio.
Brown cleared the opening height of 5-foot-3 on her first attempt, something four of the 21 competitors could not do. Brown followed with three tries at 5-5, got close, but could not clear it. Had she made it on her first attempt she would have tied for fifth. The top eight finishers earn All-American honors.
"I am very proud of how calm and collected Taylor was during the competition," JC women's coach Jim Clark said. "She has only cleared 5-3 a couple of times previously in her career and to get it on the opening height plays games with your mind.
"She cleared it on a warm-up attempt and got over it again right away in the competition."
Brown and teammate Nikki Iverson were the lone JC athletes to qualify. Iverson, a sophomore from Jamestown, was 16th in the pentathlon Friday.
"Taylor and Nikki are two exceptional young ladies and it was a real pleasure to accompany them and watch them work in their first NAIA meet," Clark said. "Both were talking about outdoor track on the way home, so that is a good sign."
Akela Jones, a freshman from Oklahoma Baptist won the high jump, clearing 5-8 3/4. Runner-up Ashleigh Nalty of Missouri Baptist got over 5-7.
Courtesy of Jamestown Sun Staff, 3/4/13
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Nikki Iverson was one of 16 women in the NAIA Nation that competed in the National Track Meet in Geneva, Ohio.
Thirty-three women met the qualifying mark of 2700 points in the pentathlon. However, only the top 16 were invited to the Spire Institute in Geneva for the right to compete at Nationals.
Briana Vander Woude of Dordt came in as the top ranked contender and she did not disappoint. Vander Woude led from start to finish, finishing first in first two events (60 hurdles and high jump). Vander Woude placed third in the shot put, third in the long jump, and third in the 800. Vander Woude came in with a top qualifying score of 3652 and blew away the competition with 3751 points. Her next closest competitor, Jillian Ourada of Doane, scored 3638 points to place second.
Nikki Iverson started slow, but got better as the event went on. Iverson placed 16th in the first two events (60 hurdles and high jump). Then she improved to 13th in the shot put, tenth in the long jump, and then finished fourth in the final event, the 800. Overall, the tough start put Iverson in a hole and she ended up sixteenth overall among a quality field.
"Nikki had a tough time today, but kept battling through to the end finished strong with a good 800," JC coach Jim Clark said. "Nothing seemed to click today — maybe some of it was nerves — but it was a valuable experience and Nikki knows that she can compete here when at the top of her game."
Iverson's marks and points were as follows: 10.21 hurdles (673), 4'4.25" high jump (439), 28'0.75" shot put (435), 15'10.5" long jump (516), and 2:29:51 in the 800 (699).
Jimmie teammate Taylor Brown will compete in the high jump on Saturday at 12:30 CST.
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NAIA National Track Preview Article
Courtesy of Dave Selvig, Jamestown Sun, 2/28/13
It's no accident Nikki Iverson and Taylor Brown will be spending the weekend in Ohio, said coach Jim Clark.
The two Jimmie track and field athletes qualified for nationals, which begin today at the Spire in Geneva, Ohio.
"They are both easy people to work with and they have both put in their time and worked hard to earn this trip," said Clark, the head women's track and field coach.
Iverson is in her first season as a multi-eventer, but it hardly shows.
The former state champion for the Blue Jays posted a season-best 2,996 points on Feb. 14, the 15th-best mark in the NAIA.
"Nikki is someone who you have to rein in from time to time or she will work too hard," Clark said. "That is a good trait for a pentathlete because it does require a lot of extra work that most track athletes don't have to do."
The pentathlon begins today at noon. Iverson's best marks to date are 4-9 (high jump), 16-8 1/2 (long jump), 29-2 (triple jump), 2:24.32 (800) and 9.91 (60 hurdles).
Brown came out of the gates jumping.
The sophomore from Cavalier, N.D., got over 5-3 3/4 to hit the NAIA standard in her first try Jan. 19.
"It takes a lot of work to improve by even one inch in the high jump, so I am happy for Taylor because she gets her work done and does extra," Clark said.
The high jump is one of the final events of the meet, beginning at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday. Placing will be tough for Brown as she enters 16th.
Both athletes also excel academically.
Iverson carries a 3.80 GPA in Physical Education. Brown is studying Business Administration with a 3.57 GPA.
