|
by Nathan Arneal with videographer Lincoln Arneal Lux reaches record heights by Lincoln Arneal With the bar still sitting on the standards at 5-foot-6, Lux briefly hugged the woman running the event, and then ran to embrace her father. She also received plenty of hugs from the rest of her family before she was mobbed by her teammates. It was a joyous celebration for Lux, who took sole possession of the school’s high jump record by clearing 5-6 Thursday at the C-4 District meet at Cross County. “I finally did it,” Lux said. “I almost thought it was a dream, like ‘Did I really just do that?’ I was so excited and emotional. Really emotional.” The performance erased the longest standing North Bend field event school record. Kendra Voss set the mark in 1993 at 5-5, which Lux tied earlier this season. Now, the long jump record, set by Katie Blacketer 2001, is the only field event school record not held by a current member of the Tiger track team. Lux already had the gold medal locked up more than 15 minutes before she attempted the record, as she was the only athlete to clear 5-0. The NBC sophomore then made it over 5-2 and 5-4 on her first attempts to set the stage for 5-6. After the bar height was measured, Lux went through her normal routine and approached the bar and jumped. After landing, she looked up and saw the bar bouncing a bit but still on the standards. Lux put her hands on her mouth in disbelief. Then came the celebration. Lux said having her extended family watching, including her aunt and grandparents from California, made the event that much more special. After the emotional moment, Lux regrouped and attempted to clear 5-7, but missed all three attempts – her only misses of the day. After setting a personal best of 5-2 her freshman season, Lux has cleared at least that at every meet this season, going undefeated along the way. She’s been tantalizing close to breaking the record but has never quite put together the perfect jump. Until Thursday, that is. “It’s kind of been like a ghost and it’s haunting me,” Lux said. “I was so relieved that I got and it and didn’t have to worry about it.” Lux has attempted the record height several times earlier this year, but coach Jeff Voss, Kendra’s brother, said the difference this time was her attitude. “It just flowed for her and she came in confident today,” Voss said. “She was a little nervous earlier in the week but just came out and jumped. I am very excited for her. It is a nice weight off her shoulders. It was a big goal for her and now she can move on.” Voss said his sister was expecting the record to fall soon, and she was excited for Lux and her success. “(Kendra) peaked at the record board when she was at the school the other night so she could see her name up there one more time,” he said. “She knew it was coming and was thrilled about it.” As for Lux, she already has her sights set higher. “I really want to go 5-7 at state,” she said. “Hopefully that will get me first place.” <<Back to the front page |