UA track and field
Arkansas pole vaulter Bailee McCorkle cleared a personal-best 14 feet Friday night to finish second at the Razorback Invitational.
FAYETTEVILLE — Add another 14-foot pole vaulter to the University of Arkansas women’s track and field program.
Bailee McCorkle, a redshirt sophomore walk-on from Greenwood, cleared a personal-best 14 feet to take second behind Georgia senior Kayla Smith’s winning height of 14-4 at the Razorback Invitational on Friday night at the Randal Tyson Track Center.
“Very shocked, but all the hard work is paying off,” said McCorkle, whose previous best was 13-71/2 two weeks ago to open the season. “It’s been a long time coming and a lot of hard work lifting weights, sprinting and jumping.”
McCorkle missed three attempts at 14-2, but Arkansas field events coach Bryan Compton said better marks are ahead.
“Bailee’s got to get on some bigger poles and clean up some things, but she’s strong enough and fast enough to jump higher,” Compton said. “But now it’s going to be improving inch by inch.”
Georgia got a sweep in the vault when freshman Haze Farmer, who is from Hot Springs and attended Lake Hamilton High School, cleared 17-41/2 to win the men’s competition. He missed three attempts at 17-9.
“It’s especially nice to win back home,” Farmer said. “I loved it.”
Farmer, a two-time Arkansas high school state champion whose personal-best is 17-7, said he was recruited by the Razorbacks.
“It would have been nice to stay home, and nothing against Arkansas,” Farmer said. “But when I took my visit to Georgia, I knew it was the best place for me.”
Arkansas senior Laquan Nairn had a personal-best 26-01/4 to take second in the long jump, which LSU senior Rayvon Grey won at 26-61/2 .
Oregon won the men’s distance medley relay in a collegiate record 9:24.52 to beat Texas (9:36.16) and Arkansas’ thirdplace team of Kieran Taylor, Jalen Brown, Hunter Woodhall and Cameron Griffith (9:40.15).
“I know we can run a lot faster, and we’re going to have to run it again at the end of the month,” said Razorbacks men’s Coach Chris Bucknam, who estimated it might take a 9:28 to qualify for the NCAA meet. “Oregon just ran the collegiate record, so it’s kind of hard to stick your nose in there when they’re running that fast.”
Stanford won the women’s distance medley relay in 10:55.89 with Arkansas’ team of Carina Viljoen, Morgan Burks-Magee, Krissy Gear and Katie Izzo second in 10:57.08.
“For it to be this early and to run that fast, it just shows how good our training has been,” Razorbacks women’s Coach Lance Harter said. “That’s probably going to get us in the national meet, so maybe we don’t have to go try to chase the mark.”
Arkansas sophomore G’Auna Edwards finished fifth in the pentathlon with a personal-best 4,004 points. Kansas State senior Lauren Taubert won with 4,352 points.
McCorkle said she turned down scholarship offers, including Baylor and Wichita State, to walk on at Arkansas.
Being able to train with Sandi Morris and twins Lexi Jacobus and Tori Hoggard — who all won NCAA pole vault titles for the Razorbacks — was a big part of the attraction to compete at Arkansas.
“It was just a great opportunity I couldn’t pass up,” McCorkle said. “Plus, Arkansas is home for me and I love it here.”
Jacobus and Hoggard graduated last year.
“The past two years, they really pushed me,” McCorkle said. “Now it’s my time.”