High School/Prep: Earned four varsity letters in track and cross country at Hutchison High School under coach Orlando McKay … Named Most Valuable Athlete of track team (freshman, sophomore, senior years) and cross country team (sophomore, senior years) and received the Coaches Award in cross country during junior year … Named to the Commercial Appeal All-Metro track team three years in high school … Set the school record in the 400 meter dash and the 4×400 meter relay … Member of the National Honor Society.

Personal: Mary Elisabeth Black Tipton … Born on October 14, 1991 … Parents are Deborah Dunklin Tipton and Dr. Robert Tipton … Both parents graduated from Vanderbilt … Has an older brother, Robert, who attends High Point University … Chose Vanderbilt over SMU, Washington and Lee, Rhodes College, Arkansas and Georgia.