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Duffy digs out silver in vault

By Ken McMillan
Times Herald-Record
kmcmillan@th-record.com

Freedom Plains – The next wave of outstanding pole vaulters from Section 9 is ready to spring forth, and Stephanie Duffy may be leading the group.
In the span of a year, the Washingtonville High student has added nearly two feet to her previous best vault. She placed 12th at last month's state Federation meet, and yesterday she won silver in the Empire State Games with a personal-best effort of 10 feet, 3¼ inches.
"I'm happy with it," Duffy said. "I would have liked to do better but that's okay."
With a handful of top pole vaulters graduating this year, Duffy figures to challenge for the sectional title next spring, especially if she meets her next goal of 11 feet.
"Steph will do more than (11 feet) next indoor season, without very much question about it," said her pole vaulting coach, Hugh Cauthers. "She should be in the top five in the state."
Duffy, of Monroe, started pole vaulting for the fun of it, but now it's getting more serious. She decided to join the indoor vault program that Cauthers and Tim St. Lawrence conduct in Warwick, and the results were remarkable as she started soaring past her previous best of 8-6.
"She has a lot of talent and she really has the courage to be a good vaulter," Cauthers said. "She's learning the technique rapidly, which is a good sign. I am not surprised she has done two feet in a year."
Clearing 10-3 is pretty good considering that's more than twice her height of 5 feet, 1 inch.
"I make up for it with my speed," said Duffy, 16, who also competes in the 100-meter dash, some relays and the long jump for Washingtonville.
Duffy is a natural at pole vaulting, Cauthers said, because of her previous training as a gymnast and diver. She competed in two previous Games as a gymnast but never medaled. She gave up gymnastics last fall because competing in three sports was too tiresome, but she still dives for the Wizards and made last fall's state diving meet as well.
"It's starting to become more like I have to work harder," Duffy said. "Maybe I will excel in this over diving."

http://www.recordonline.com/archive/200 ... 02-19.html

Wash'ville's Duffy is star on the rise

By Ken McMillan
Times Herald-Record
kmcmillan@th-record.com
West Point - Stephanie Duffy is a pole vaulter on the up-and-up.

In the span of a year, the Washingtonville junior has improved more than two feet and ranks second in the state for the indoor season.

In the Orange County Interscholastic Athletic Association championship meet yesterday, Duffy won with a personal-best leap of 11 feet, 1 inch. She nearly set the junior class record at Washingtonville at 11-6 but clipped the bar with her elbow on the way down after a successful clear by nearly six inches.

All smiles, Duffy kicked herself for the technical break.

"It's like the one thing I should have thought about," said Duffy, who turned 17 last week. "You can go through your jump and find a million things wrong. ... We will always pick out something we can change or work on.

"I am just happy that I could clear 11 (feet) again," she added. "This is not the end. Eleven is not the best I can do."

The last time Duffy cleared that height was at the National Pole Vault Summit in Reno, Nev., last month - she bettered her previous mark of 10-6. The three-day event included clinics, photo sessions with famous vaulters such as Olympian Stacey Dragila, and the competition which was held in a hotel.

"It was awesome to be around that," Duffy said, inspired by the all-pole vault, all-the-time atmosphere. "Oh my god, you will never see that many pole vaulters in your life. It's like a camp specialized for what you're in. Everyone knows exactly what you're talking about. You share a lot of similarities, even stupid things."

Make a mistake in form at the Summit, and someone was always on hand to lend some useful advice, Duffy said. That helpful attitude is something Duffy appreciates, especially among her teammates with the Hudson Valley Flying Circus pole vaulting club.

"We're all good friends," Duffy said. "That is the best part about Section 9 because it's a competition between you and the bar. I think that's what makes this sport so unique. It's not, 'Oh, I want to beat her.' ... Our coaches just push each person. The sport is not judgemental."