Laura Williams article (OH)

[rainbowgirl28]

http://www.columbusdispatch.com/prep/pr ... E4-00.html

Pole vaulter got early jump
Pleasant’s Williams liked to leap over hay bales as youngster
Tuesday, May 09, 2006
Steve Blackledge
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

FRED SQUILLANTE DISPATCH PHOTOS
Laura Williams’ goal is to break the state outdoor record of 12 feet, 8 inches in the pole vault. On Saturday, she set the Division II mark with a leap of 12 feet.

Laura Williams, always craving a challenge, wants to compete in the heptathlon at Indiana.


As a young girl, Laura Williams didn’t have much use for dolls. She felt much more at home hurling herself over hay bales out in the barn.

"We had those big round bales all lined up and she’d launch herself across the top of them," said Kathleen Williams, Laura’s mother. "As she got a little older, she’d hoist the goat up there with her."

That said, it came as no surprise in 2000 when Williams told her parents and middle-school track coaches that she wanted to take up the pole vault. That was one year before the Ohio High School Athletic Association made it an official event.

"Everyone was afraid I’d get hurt, so I didn’t get to try it until eighth grade and even then there were only a few meets that I got to vault in," said Williams, a senior at Marion Pleasant who has signed with Indiana. "I thought I did all right. I went (8 feet, 4 inches). It was so exciting going so high up in the air."

From there, it was a smooth liftoff for Williams, who soon added the high jump, long jump and 100-meter hurdles to her plate.

At the Central District Indoor championships in March, Williams set a Division II state record by soaring 12 feet, 1 /4 inch. None of the boys in the division went that high. She also won the state indoor title (11-6).

"To tell you the truth, it was not a perfect attempt," she said. "I hit the bar a little bit and was real lucky it didn’t come down. It felt great setting the state record, but I know I can do a lot better."

On Saturday, she broke the Division II state outdoor record by some five inches with a leap of 12-0 at the Mount Gilead Invitational. But with league, district, regional and state competition looming in the upcoming weeks, Williams has much higher expectations.

"My goal is to break the Division I (outdoor) record of 12-8 (by Erin Ferut of Medina in 2004) so I can go out saying I was the best ever," Williams said. "I just got a new pole and I’m still ironing out some things in my technique. The whole idea is to hit your peak for the big meets."

In 2005, she entered the Division II regional at Lexington with one of the state’s top marks of 10-6 but failed to clear the opening height.

"Sad as that was for me, after I pouted and beat myself up over that for a few days, I decided to use it as motivation for my senior year," Williams said. "It might have been a blessing in disguise."

A gymnast from age 8, Williams made a smooth and natural transition to pole-vaulting. The upper-body strength, flexibility and agility acquired in gymnastics prove invaluable in the event. A daredevil streak doesn’t hurt, either.

"I was never afraid of heights or getting hurt," she said. "Anybody will tell you that."

Kathleen and Dwight Williams knew all along that their daughter was no shrinking violet.

"When she was a baby, I had to watch her real close or else she’d be out the door going who knows where," Kathleen Williams said. "As a toddler, I could tell she was very well coordinated. She could run on both feet right away. She learned to ride a bike at 4 with no training wheels. She always was self-motivated as far as doing things."

Williams’ passion is pole-vaulting, and that is there where she spends much of her practice time. But she’s just as prolific in the high jump, placing second in the state as a sophomore (5-5) and eighth last year (5-2). She is tied for the state lead at 5-6 this spring. In addition, she has long-jumped 16-6, triple-jumped 32-11 and run 16.4 seconds in the 100 hurdles.

"Laura’s such a great athlete, she could also be really good in the 200 dash or the 300 hurdles, but you’re limited to four events and she keeps pretty busy running back and forth between the field events," Pleasant coach Rich Nelson said. "Those events require such concentration, you’d think it would be tough on Laura, but she sort of likes the continual runaround. That way, there’s not enough time to dwell on things from the other events."

Williams said, "I see it as kind of a challenge to do all of those events at once. I don’t like sitting around and waiting."

Speaking of challenges, the idea of trying the heptathlon at Indiana has piqued Williams’ interest, even though at 5 feet 6, 130 pounds she doesn’t fit the prototype.

"They want me to start out focusing on the pole vault and high jump my first year, but after that the heptathlon might be a possibility," she said. "I’d have to learn some new events and get a lot stronger. It’s definitely appealing to me because it’s something new. ... another challenge to go after."