NORMAL, Ill. – Senior high jumper Kameesha Smith will become the first Illinois State women's field athlete to compete at the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships for the Redbirds since 2013 when she high jumps on Friday, March 12 at 4:30 p.m. at the Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
Smith has dominated her competition throughout the last two indoor seasons, going undefeated in all high jump competitions since the 2019 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships where she placed 12th overall, earning Second Team All-America honors. Since June 2019, Smith has won two Missouri Valley Conference indoor titles in the high jump and has also broken a 29-year-old school record twice this season.
The South Holland, Illinois native, has only high jumped three times this season, clearing a personal-best mark at each meet she competed in the high jump at. Smith opened the season at the Don DeNoon Dual in Carbondale, Illinois, clearing 1.80 meters (5-10.75 ft.) for the first time in her career. She then went on to break the Illinois State indoor high jump record for the first time this season at the Grand Valley State University Big Meet with another personal-best clearance at 1.82 meters (5-11.5 ft.).
Smith nearly broke a Valley record at the 2021 MVC Indoor Track & Field Championships, just clipping 1.87 meters with her feet. Even without the Valley record, Smith was able to reinforce her chances to compete at the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships, winning the MVC indoor title in the high jump for the second-consecutive year with a clearance of 1.83 meters (6-0 ft.). Smith's mark not only broke the school record again, but also moved her up to No. 5 on the NCAA indoor list.
Tomorrow, Smith will face 15 competitors from 12 different schools, including Villanova, Texas State, Cincinnati, South Carolina, USC, Texas A&M, Kansas, Georgia, LSU, Purdue, Arizona and Stephen F. Austin. She is one of only two seniors in the 16-person field and enters tomorrow's competition tied with three others for fifth.
Fans can watch Smith jump on ESPN3 ($), follow results here or get updates on Twitter and Instagram (@redbird_trackxc).
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