From gymnastics to pole vault for Korie Bennett (NC)

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From gymnastics to pole vault for Swansboro's Bennett
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Junior won the ECC title
April 15, 2011 8:22 AM
Chris Miller
The Daily News
SWANSBORO — Korie Bennett is a gymnast at heart.

But the 16-year-old junior pole vaulter is one of the important pieces for the Swansboro High girls’ track and field team in just her second season in the sport.

The roots of Bennett’s success in the pole vault go back to when at 7 her mother told her to choose a sport.

“I tried cheerleading and it wasn’t for me,” Bennett said Thursday afternoon during the East Central 2-A Conference girls’ track championships in Swansboro. “I then went to recreational (gymnastics) class and I fell in love with it.”

Bennett performed as a gymnast for eight years. She said the bars were her best event.

“That’s probably why I’m good at the pole vault now,” Bennett said. “It helps that I have upper-body strength and that I know my body in space.”

But Bennett didn’t originally plan to take up track at Swansboro, much less any high school sport. However, her friends convinced her to try out for track before her sophomore year because of her gymnastic talents.

“Everyone said I should do track even though I wasn’t much of a runner,” the energetic Bennett said with a laugh. “And (Swansboro coach John Liles) brought me out here and asked if I could do a push-up and pull-up, and I said, ‘Yes, of course.’”

Liles then asked Bennett to try pole vault, an event many shy away from because of the event’s danger.

“I fell in love with it right away,” Bennett said.

Fast forward to the present and Bennett is one of the key cogs for the Pirates, who earned the ECC title Thursday with 204 points, 70 ahead of second-place Croatan. The pole vault is her specialty and she has improved on it in just a short period of time.

“She has gone from 7-foot-6 to 8-6,” Liles said. “She has hit 9-6 in practice.”

In the conference championships, Bennett matched her personal best of 8-6 she set during a regular-season meet last month. The pole vault is difficult because it requires athletes to be physically and mentally strong, Bennett said.

“The pole vault is not all about strength. It’s more about form and knowing where you are,” she said. “Your run is really the most important part because you have to think about how you land and step. It’s all about attitude.”

That includes being confident and not being afraid to land the wrong way.

“People are very nervous (about the event), but you can’t let nerves get in the way,” said Bennett, who credits pole vault coach David Dreyer for her success. “You have to think, ‘I can do this. I can get over this height.’”

Bennett hopes to break 9 feet in the East Regionals next month in Swansboro and 9-6 in the state championships. Swansboro’s K.C. Watson won the state 2-A title in the pole vault last year at 9-3.

“It does (motivate Bennett), especially when K.C. comes back to visit,” Bennett said. “She gives me pointers and tips, and she is rooting for me to do my best and beat her score.”

And while the plan is for her to only compete in the pole vault during states, it hasn’t been the only event Bennett has done this season.

She entered the conference championships seeded second in the 100-meter hurdles and fourth in the 300 hurdles. On Thursday she finished second in the 100 hurdles with a personal-best 17.7 seconds and third in the 300 hurdles at 53.7.

When needed, Bennett also participates in relays.

She was asked Thursday to run a leg in the 4x100 relay. Bennett had never before run in the 4x100, which ended third in the conference championships.

“I said, ‘Korie, I need you to run this,’ and with no hesitation she said, ‘OK,’” Liles said. “Korie brings leadership to this team and she is an example (for others to follow). She is an all-American girl and a great kid.”

Bennett said it can be tough balancing multiple events.

“I try my best in everything I do,” she said. “The only time is gets tricky is if we do field and track events at the same time.”

But Bennett will just focus on the pole vault in preparation for the state competition. That, Liles said, could make things easier in her attempt at a title.

“Korie has blossomed. We want her to be our next state champion,” Liles said. “We are hoping everything goes right.”