EMU women’s track and field star leaps 14-feet 1.75-inches (4.31 meters) at 310 Outdoor Pole Vault Classic. BOLTON, Ontario (EMUEagles.com) – Eastern Michigan University pole vaulter Alysha Newman (Delaware, Ontario-Mother Teresa) has once again set a Canadian Junior National Record, leaping 14-feet 1.75-inches (4.31 meters) to claim victory at the 310 Outdoor Pole Vault Classic in Bolton, Ontario, July 6. Newman vaulted past the competition as her closest competitor jumped 12-feet 9.50-inches (3.90 meters). If she were to have recorded this mark during the season, she would have set a new EMU outdoor record, breaking the current record of 13-feet 11.25-inches set by Jessica Hemmingway in 2011. The Delaware, Ontario native is familiar with Canadian Junior National records. During the indoor season, she set a new Canadian Junior National indoor record with a leap of 13-feet 10.50-inches to win the Mid-American Conference pole vault title on Bob Parks Track, Feb. 22. The mark also set a new EMU indoor record. Newman continued her success in the outdoor season, vaulting 13-feet 9.25-inches (4.20 meters) to win the Sea Ray Relays, April 12, tying the Canadian Junior National outdoor record that she just broke over the weekend. The jump currently positions Newman just behind Hemmingway in the EMU record books. Next up for Newman is a chance to represent her country at the Pan American Junior Championships, Aug. 23-25, in Colombia. If the soon-to-be EMU sophomore finishes in the top two at this weekend’s Canadian Junior Track and Field Championships, July 12-14, she will clinch her spot on Team Canada. Newman will begin her stage of the competition on the meet’s final day, July 14. more
