Nebraska junior Zac Holoch decided to take a risk at the NCAA Track & Field Championships Midwest Regional last weekend.
Instead of going in at the meet’s opening height of 16-1 1/4 to secure a cleared height and get a jump under his belt, he decided he was going to pass on the first height and go in at 16-7 1/4. If he cleared it, Holoch would set a new personal record.
The risk paid off for the Husker junior as he soared over the bar on his first attempt of the competition.
“A lot of people were surprised that i waited to go in,” Holoch said. “I made it on my first attempt and it was a pretty good jump so i was happy with it.”
Holoch had jumped 16-6 3/4 just a few weeks earlier at the Big 12 meet in Boulder, Colo., taking home eighth place in the conference. His jump in Lincoln last weekend earned him 10th place in the region.
“This spring we haven’t really had the best weather conditions,” Holoch said. “At regionals the conditions were almost perfect. There wasn’t much wind, everything felt good and it was nice to be jumping at home.”
The bar moved up to 17-1 and Holoch couldn’t quite clear it. Had he cleared it on his first attempt he would have tied for fifth and gone into a jump-off with two other vaulters for a trip to nationals.
“The bar went to 17-1 and I had three pretty good looks at it,” Holoch said. “I still can’t get over that barrier.”
Holoch’s 10th place finish was best among Husker vaulters at the regional meet. With his success during the 2008 campaign, don’t be surprised to see Holoch clearing 17-1 or 17-5 at regionals next year en route to nationals.