JOPLIN, Mo. -- With one week to go before the conference meet, Jordan Henry locked up a spot in the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships with a career-best performance in the pole vault Friday at Missouri Southern.
Henry, a junior who finished as the national runner-up during the indoor season in the event, cleared 16-8 at the Bill Williams/Bob Laptad Open to go beyond the automatic qualifying standard and earn a spot in the national meet next month in Pomona, Calif. His mark, wihch also set the Missouri S&T school record, has been topped by only two individuals in DIvision II this season heading into the weekend.
Henry was one of three Miners to finish among the top 10 in the pole vault Friday. Peter Hollenbeck was fifth with a clearance of 15-11 and Jared Anders, who has already provisionally qualified, was 10th with a mark of 15-5 3/4.
The Miners got third place finishes from Thomas Green in the 1,500-meters in 4:07.71 and Brandon Etzold in the 800-meters with a mark of 1:55.54, the same event where Paul Roland took eighth in 2:00.48.
Ian Packard was fourth in the 400-meters with a time of 50.22 seconds, while Brian Kluge had a time of 52.82 in that event.
The women's team had five competitors in Joplin Friday, with three of them placing in the pole vault. Taylor Hahn and Jamie Statler both cleared the 11-6 1/4 mark to finish sixth and seventh, respectively, while Leah Moreland was eighth with a mark of 11-0 1/4. Kierra Handley finished sixth in the 800-meters with a time of 2:20.63.
Missouri S&T will have two individuals -- Joffroi Holcombe and Brendan Smith -- taking part in the Hillsdale Invitational Saturday in Michigan, then the teams will gear up for the GLVC Outdoor Championships that begins Friday at Southern Illinois Edwardsville.
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