Arizona track and field athletes Lisanne Hagens, Nnenya Hailey and Elvin Kibet left early Wednesday morning for Fayetteville, Ark., where they will compete in the NCAA Indoor Championships Friday and Saturday.
The trio will be competing fresh off strong performances at the MPSF Indoor Championships in Seattle two weeks ago. Hagens finished second overall in the high jump competition, Hailey set a personal record of 8.19 in the 60-meter hurdles and finished third overall and Kibet finished second in the 5K event and won the 3K event. Kibet will be competing in the 5K event this weekend.
Going into the high jump competition and her first big national event, Hagens said she feels well prepared to compete against some of the best high jumpers in the country, and the meets she has competed in this season have helped her to see how far along she is and what she needs to do to improve.
Many of the competitors have personal best clearances of 6 feet and higher, and Hagens said she believes the fierce competition will motivate her to be better. She said she hopes to break her own personal best clearance of 6 feet.
“It should be a great experience for me,” Hagens said. “I think I’m ready to [set a personal record] soon. It would be awesome to [set a personal record] at nationals.”
Hailey also comes into Fayetteville with hopes of beating her personal record of 8.19 seconds in the 60-meter hurdle event, a record she just set two weeks ago in Seattle. Hailey said she’s never competed at an event in Fayetteville before, but thinks the track may help her beat her personal record and even help her set a new school record.
Hailey fell just short of making the finals a year ago in the NCAA Indoor Championships, but hopes to make it this year in Fayetteville.
“My goal is to make the final, beat my personal record and get the school record,” Hailey said.
The Wildcats will use Thursday as a day to rest after a long day of travel and to prepare for the weekend ahead of them. The three of them said they plan on eating light, healthy meals the night before and doing shakeouts and jogs Friday morning to ensure that they are warmed up and ready to go.
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