Hahn Qualifies for NCAA Championships in High Jump; Lone Commodore to Participate In Upcoming National Meet 6/1/03

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Josie Hahn, who qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships two weeks ago with a personal-best performance in the heptathlon, also will compete in the high jump after finishing tied for third in the event Saturday at the NCAA Mideast Regionals staged at Ohio State University.

Competing in poor weather conditions, Hahn used a clearance of 5’7.25” to earn the third-place tie. Hahn advanced to the NCAA Outdoor Championships, scheduled for June 11-14 in Sacramento, Calif., based on fewest misses during the competition that consumed four hours.

“I’m very proud of Josie. She qualified because of her technique, consistency and mental toughness,” Head Coach Lori Shepard said. “Though Josie has jumped higher, she jumped exceptionally well considering the weather was not at all favorable for the competitors.”

Hahn, a sophomore from Clinton, Tenn., will become the first Commodore track and field athlete in three years to compete at the national championships. The last Vanderbilt athlete to compete at the NCAAs was 400-meter hurdler Amanda Helberg in 2000.

Hahn was one of three Vanderbilt athletes competing at the first annual NCAA Mideast Regionals. On Friday, freshman Amanda Mullins-Hall ran 13.61 in the 100-meter hurdle preliminaries, but did not advance to the finals. Junior Vensherrie Campbell failed to qualify in two throwing events Saturday, finishing 15th overall in the discus with a 143’2” effort and 28th in the hammer with a 160’1” toss.

Hahn, who set the Vanderbilt outdoor high jump mark last summer, was one of 17 competitors to clear 5’7.25” Saturday. Two jumpers, Michigan’s Stephanie Linz and Arkansas’ Jessica Johnson, were able to leap the ensuing height, 5’9.25”, with Linz eventually winning with a successful jump of 5’10.5”. Hahn earned the third place tie by clearing each height to 5’7.25” on her first attempt.

Hahn was assured of competing in the national championships before she participated in the high jump. She qualified May 15 on the strength of a 5,327-point, second-place performance in the heptathlon at the Southeastern Conference Outdoor Championships. The grueling heptathlon was not contested at the NCAA regionals.

Track and field provided Vanderbilt’s lone national champion. In 1997, Ryan Tolbert captured the NCAA 400-hurdles with a time of 54.54 after finishing second in the event one year earlier.