The Sky is the Limit for Gamecock Jumpers
After three freshmen set program top-10 indoor marks in their debuts last Saturday, South Carolina track and field has a bright future in the jump events. Jackson Marseille and Christian Lewis from the men’s team, and Rachel Glenn from the women’s team were among the headliners at the Gamecock Opener last Saturday at South Carolina’s Indoor Complex, and the trio is confident that the best is still to come.
“I’m pretty sure I can take down that indoor record before the season ends,” said Marseille, after soaring in the high jump with a leap of 2.14m (7-00.25), which was the second time he reached the seven-foot mark in his career, and the fifth best in the indoor event in South Carolina history. “I was telling everybody that I was going to clear seven feet. I couldn’t hit it in practice, but in competition, I always perform better. There’s more adrenaline. You’ve got more eyes on you, so you’re going to perform better. So, I already knew what I was going to do.”
Rachel Glenn
“I didn’t expect to go that high,” said Glenn, who matched Marseille’s top-five record with a leap of 1.80m (5-11) to win the women’s high jump event with a mark that would have qualified her for last year’s NCAA Indoor Championships. She also made the finals in the 60m hurdles race. “Since I started the season off high, I know I can end the season even better. I haven’t had many practices with high jumping because of doing running events, mostly. I had jumped that high one time before. It felt good.”
“I know there is something coming up big. For real!” added Lewis, who took third in the long jump with his leap of just over 24 and a half feet (24-6.50), which was good enough for sixth in program history. “Going into the meet, I wasn’t really sure. The last time we all competed was last February. There were a lot of jitters and anxiety going through us all. I’m really happy with the way that I started because sometimes I may not do what I wanted to, and I take a step back so then God can slingshot me forward.”
South Carolina’s track and field team had not competed in 11 months due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the trio were among those who made it worth the wait. Each found their way into track and field differently, and they all knew they had made the right choice.
Glenn didn’t start competing in the high jump until her sophomore year in high school and also began competing in the hurdles the year after.
“Basically, there’s no pressure,” Glenn said of the high jump. “I’m really natural at it, and it’s really fun for me. Before track, I was testing the waters to see what sports I was good at. I played soccer, softball, swimming, and basketball. I was a very energetic kid. Track was really just the most fun for me.”
“I started the long jump when I was around ten years old,” said Lewis. “My brother told me to come to track practice with him. I just started running around, and people were saying, ‘who is this kid?’ I started running and jumping. I realized I was good at it that next year. I went to the Junior Olympics, and I was second in the nation. I was jumping 16′-10”.
“There are a lot of things I like about my event. What I love is that I can go out there and be myself, and let my personality be shown. I can encourage my teammates and smile. I like to just go out there and have the eyes on me and put on a show for everybody out there.”
“I started high jumping my sophomore year in high school,” Marseille said. “I jumped like 6’6,” and people were telling me I could go to the Olympics. At the time, I didn’t really care for track that much. I had played football. That was a really hard decision for me. It just seemed right. With the high jump, you don’t have to depend on anybody else. It’s all about you. I could already jump high; I knew that. So, it was just about learning the technicalities of it and seeing myself improve. That’s one of the best parts about it. The biggest challenge is just going higher. I just aim for consistency until I get over that next height.”
“If you’re not thinking about anything, you’re not worrying about anything.”
– Christian Lewis
The trio is similar in that their mental approach during their event is critical.
Christian Lewis
“I block everybody out. I just focus on my steps and make sure everything is perfect,” Marseille said. “It feels good because everyone starts screaming. Once you hit the mat, you look up and see the pole is still on. It feels good!”
“I think you’re at your best when your mind is completely blank,” Glenn said. “Once you stop thinking about it, you’re jumping for fun.”
“Jump events are really mental,” Lewis agreed. “Sometimes your mind can be everywhere, but sometimes your mind is completely blank. The times that are best are when your mind is completely blank. If you’re not thinking about anything, you’re not worrying about anything. You just go out there, have fun, and trust your coaching.”
Speaking of coaching; while the student-athletes already had talent when they arrived on campus, they are thankful for the guidance of event coach/assistant head coach Delethea Quarles and the rest of the staff in helping them reach new heights.
“They’ve helped a whole lot,” Lewis said. “I was used to being so athletically talented that I could just get out there and run and jump. I’ve learned a whole lot of technical things and mental things. They help me get over a lot of barriers. I just keep learning fast. Coach Dee keeps telling me to be patient, have fun with it, pray and have faith and it will lead to great things for all of us.”
“In high school, I ran a lot of events, so it was stressful,” Glenn said. “They’ve really helped me with my mental state.”
“They’ve made me a lot more confident, for sure,” Marseille said. “When I go into the event, I know what I’m going to do. It’s very technical. Every step counts. I didn’t know that in high school. I was just going off my abilities, but Coach Dee showed me that every step counts. I work on that every day.”
