'It's an honor': Coastal Christian's Hannah Grace sets nation-leading pole vault mark
Coastal Christian's Hannah Grace isn't slowing down anytime soon.
After setting North Carolina girls indoor and outdoor pole vaulting records as a sophomore last spring, she's now the country's leader in the indoor pole vault.
Reaching a height of 14 feet, two inches (a jump from her personal best of 13-2.5 last winter) at the UCS Spirit National Pole Vault Summit in Reno, Nevada, on Jan. 14, Grace became one of only three high school female athletes ever to reach the mark in their junior year.
"I knew it would come soon," Grace said of reaching 14 feet. "What I did not expect was to reach 14-2 at this meet. That was kind of the cherry on top: a double PR."
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Grace dipped into the nation's top 10 female high school athletes for outdoor pole vaulting last year, leading all sophomores. This spring, she'll sit at No. 4 in the country, according to track and field record keeper NC Milesplit.
"I definitely could not do it without the peace that comes from God in my competitions," she said. "It's an honor to be among those top vaulters, and it's exciting (because) I love the sport."
The Centurians' standout joins Washington sisters Amanda and Hannah Moll as the only juniors ever to reach 14-2 in indoor pole vaulting. The Moll sisters graduated last spring and hold the all-time records for indoor and outdoor pole vaults.
With the graduation of seven of the country's top 10 girls pole vaulters last spring, Grace could very well become the nation's top competitor at the high school level in her outdoor season this spring. She currently sits at 39th all-time for outdoor and is tied for ninth in indoor.
The junior told the StarNews last year that reaching 15 feet and breaking the all-time high school girls' pole vault record wasn't a goal for this season. While that perspective hasn't changed, the possibility of breaking the record now seems even greater.
"It's definitely more in my sight now," she said. "It's more foreseeable, but right now, we're looking forward to 14-6."
As the accolades pour in, Grace hopes to inspire more high school girls athletes in North Carolina to pick up the sport and dominate.
"Hopefully, I can lead the way for more girls to be going 14 in North Carolina," she said. "It's an honor to be among the great vaulters who that have gone through high school."
This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Coastal Christian's Hannah Grace sets nation-leading pole vault mark
