Glenn Finishes as National Runner Up at NCAA Indoor Championships
“All of our kids came in to this meet right on the edge of qualifying, but they had one heck of a day today,” South Carolina head coach Curtis Frye said. “I’m so thrilled and I’m really looking forward to tomorrow. Coach Dee, and our entire staff, have done such a good job at getting this team to develop and get to this point where they can perform at their highest levels. Rachel [Glenn] jumped 5-10 in high school and came from the same school as South Carolina legend Lashinda Demus came from. She is a great competitor and they made so many great adjustments along the way today.”
Although Glenn’s finish was outstanding, the way she got there was arguably more impressive. The Long Beach, Calif., native leaped over three lifetime best bars to reach her runner-up status. Glenn came in to the national meet with 16th-best jump this season at 1.80m (5-10 3/4) and went on to crush that mark by clearing bars at 1.81m (5-11 1/4), 1.84m (6-0 1/2) and finished at 1.87m (6-1 1/2). The mark by Glenn is the fourth-best mark by any individual this indoor season and is the third-best high jump mark in school history, indoors or outdoors.
“Rachel did such an outstanding job out here today,” Associate head coach Delethea Quarles said. “She broke her personal record three times tonight by clearing 1.87m and then attempted 1.90m just missing a chance at a national championship. She is an absolutely phenomenal competitor and finishing second in the nation as a freshman is just so special. Our entire staff is so proud of her.”
“Handling this kind of pressure was so impressive coming from a freshman,” Frye said. “She was dancing the whole time. She kept herself calm and relaxed and when it was time to go up, she went and made big bars.”
💥 NATIONAL RUNNER-UP! 💥
FRESHMAN Rachel Glenn finishes in second at the 2021 @NCAATrackField Indoor Championships with the third best jump in school history (1.87m), indoors or outdoors! #ncaaTF pic.twitter.com/Mf5bQ8NOhm
— Gamecock Track & XC (@GamecockTrack) March 12, 2021
For Demsar it was also a new lifetime best to help him reach scoring status for the Gamecocks on Friday. In his first taste of the national stage Demsar posted a 7.74 to finish eighth among preliminary times to reach Saturday’s final. Demsar, who ran out of lane one, came in the meet with the 14th-best time in the country and his finalist status is the first time a Gamecock reached the final since Isaiah Moore in 2018.
“Filip was huge today,” Frye said. “Making this final when you come in as one of the last qualifiers and you can finish at worst eighth tomorrow is just phenomenal. This young man last year didn’t make the SEC final and now to see him this year in the NCAA final just shows the kind of work he put in this past year.”
On the women’s side of the 60m hurdles it was Destinee Rocker who just missed the final with a ninth-place finish. Rocker, who entered the national meet as the 16th-best time in the country, posted a 8.17 to miss the final by just 0.01 behind Southern California’s Mecca McGlaston. Despite not making the final the senior can celebrate her first All-American season, earning Second Team status for her performance in Fayetteville.
Evan Miller matched Rocker’s Second Team All-America honor with one of his own in the 200m. The junior, in his first national meet, competed in the 200m to finish in 13th. Although he was unable to post a new personal record, Miller’s 20.87 that was set in Fayetteville at the SEC Indoor Championships two weeks ago, sits him at No. 6 in indoor school history giving him great momentum as the outdoor season swiftly approaches.
Tomorrow Carolina will complete the 2021 NCAA Indoor Championships with Demsar’s final at 3:30 p.m. ET. Glenn could also compete tomorrow with the Gamecocks’ 4x400m relay team at 8:20 p.m. ET, in the three-section final. The meet tomorrow can be viewed on ESPN3 or streamed on the Watch ESPN app.
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| MARCH 11-13 • NCAA INDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS • MEN’S RESULTS | ||
| 60m Hurdles | ||
| Filip Demsar (Qualified for Finals) | 8th. 7.74 (PR) | |
| 200m | ||
| Evan Miller | 13th. 21.33 | |
| MARCH 11-13 • NCAA INDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS • WOMEN’S RESULTS | ||
| 60m Hurdles | ||
| Destinee Rocker | 9th. 8.17 | |
| 4x400m | ||
| Omovoh, Glenn, Lindley, Davis (Johnson, Frank) | Saturday at 8:20 p.m. | |
| High Jump | ||
| Rachel Glenn | 2nd. 1.87m | 6-1 1/2 (PR) | |
