Charley qualifies for NCAA Championships -- again

May 30, 2015

Event: NCAA EAST REGIONALS
Day, Date: Thursday-Saturday, May 28-30
Host: University of North Florida (Jacksonville, Fla.)
Site: Hodges Stadium Track & Field facility
Stadium Capacity: 9,400
Meet Home Page: HERE
Live results: HERE

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Simone Charley is making a habit of visiting Eugene, Oregon.

Vanderbilt’s All-American triple jumper will be headed there again in about two weeks to compete in the NCAA Outdoor Championships. She qualified for the national meet on Saturday with a seventh-place finish at the NCAA East Regionals in Jacksonville, Fla. It is the second straight year she has advanced to Eugene for the outdoor national meet, and she also competed in Eugene at last year’s USATF Junior Championships.  

Charley posted her best mark of Saturday’s competition on her first attempt with a leap of 42-4. 

“It was a three-jump format, and that really put some pressure on the athletes,” said head coach Steve Keith. “(Assistant coach Clark Humphreys) deserves a lot of credit, because he and Simone really had a great approach. (Humphreys) really had her warmed up and ready to go, and she was able to hit a big one on her first jump. … It was great to see her come through and get back to nationals.”

Charley was one of six atheltes from the SEC to finish among the top 12 and earn their spots in Eugene. Charley will be making her third overall appearance at the NCAA Championships. (She qualified for the Indoor Championships in Fayetville, Ark., in March.)

Charley, who also stars for the VU soccer team, broke her own school record in the triple jump at last week at the SEC Championships, where she finished fourth with a leap of 43-7. Last season, she finished ninth at the NCAA Championships and earned Second Team All-American status.

Her performance on Saturday came in the first of four events in which Vanderbilt was represented. Here’s a look at how things unfolded for the Commodores on the final day of the Regional: 

BARRON COMPETES IN 1500 FINALS
Sara Barron finished 19th in the finals of the 1500 with a time of 4:26.08 on Saturday. Barron earned her spot in the finals by using a frantic late push in the preliminaries on Thursday, when she was boxed in for much of the race but surged past several runners down the stretch and posted a time of 4:25.25. Barron’s race on Saturday capped an impressive season — and postseason — for the junior, who scored four points for the Commodores with a fifth-place finish in the 1500 at 4:22.51 at last week’s SEC Championships.
Quoating head coach Steve Keith: “This week was big for Sara. For her to get to the finals was an important part of the process for her.”

AIMING HIGH
Vanderbilt senior Ellie Tidman represented the Commodores in the high jump on Saturday. Tidman, who cleared 5-5 (1.65m), was not among the top-12 finishers who advanced to Eugene in the event.

CLOSING IT OUT
Vanderbilt’s 4×400 team closed out the action for Vanderbilt at the meet on Saturday night, finishing 20th with a time of 3:35.97. The team — comprised of Faith Washington, Courtney Clayton, Skyler Carpenter and Erin Edmond — broke their own school record at last week’s SEC Championships with a time of 3:34.74 and finished fifth. 
Quoating head coach Steve Keith: “When you get to this level, it’s the big leagues, and you have to be at your best. … And our girls competed hard against an elite field.”

IMPORTANT STEP
Vanderbilt will leave Jacksonville with plenty of positives. The Commodores had representatives in eight total events this week, the most in team history. And although Charley was lone the Commodore who advanced to the Championships, the team gained vaulable experience by competing against the best in the nation. 
Quoating head coach Steve Keith: “All in all, we are a young program, and the things we learned this week are invaluable. I am super happy with the way the team competed and the effort they gave. This whole thing is a process, and it doesn’t happen overnight. But we are moving in the right direction, and we will be an even better team next year.”

HARD LUCK
Vanderbilt endured a pair of bad breaks during the week. Courtney Clayton, competing in the 800 on Thursday, was knocked down early in the race and dropped out of contention. Vanderbilt protested the race, but officials denied the appeal. On Friday, Faith Washington was primed for a strong finish in the 400-Hurdles but stumbled on the final hurdle.