Competition went on a hiatus during the Covid-19 pandemic, but the women's pole vaulters on Eastern Washington University's women's track and field team have made up for lost time with a No. 8 ranking this week in all of NCAA Division I.
 
The Eagles feature five vaulters with efforts of over 12-feet this season, an average of 13-2 to rank EWU eighth this week in the Event Squad Rankings posted weekly by the US Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCA). Eastern has ranked as high as seventh this season.
 
Under the direction of pole vault coach Eric Allison, the squad includes senior Morgan Fossen with a 13-8 1/2 effort at a meet at Whitworth on April 2 which is tops on the team and 26th in the nation. Freshman Savannah Schultz has an effort of 13-7 3/4 at another meet at Whitworth on April 17 to rank 31st in NCAA Division I, and last week in Phoenix, Ariz., junior Katrina Terry cleared 13-3 1/2.
 
That trio is ranked 1-2-3 in the Big Sky Conference rankings. The national rankings utilize a fourth athlete, and junior Hally Ruff and sophomore Rosalie Folger-Vent both have marks of 12-0 this season, currently ninth in the league.
 
"This is by far our best group of vaulters during my tenure at Eastern," said Eastern women's head coach Marcia Mecklenburg. "What is really cool is that of the three vaulters who have gone over 13 feet, you don't know from one week to the next week which athlete is going to come out on top. Then to top it off we have two others who are knocking on the door with some good vaults."
 
The performance by Fossen, who is from Medford, Ore,, ranks second in school history behind the record of 14-0 set by EWU indoor All-American Keisa Monterola in 2012. Schultz is now third and Terry is seventh with their personal-best performances this season.
 
"We have a good group of athletes that all get along well and work really hard together," said Allison, who is his 21st year assisting Eastern. "The women push each other every day in practice and they are a really fun group to work with. They've all had some technical difficulties they've had to overcome in order to improve and they've done a great job of making changes.
 
"I'm excited to see their progress continue," he continued. "I think any or all of them has a chance to break our school and the Big Sky Conference record.  Savannah and Morgan have already taken attempts at it."
 
Eastern's past success in the women's pole vault since 2001 under Allison include five women's outdoor titles and five indoors, as well as a combined 33 All-Big Sky honors won by EWU athletes with a top three finish at conference championship meets.
 
Allison's men's competitors include sophomore Zach Klobutcher, who had a career-best mark of 16-9 1/4 this season to rank second in school history behind the record of 17-6 1/2. His mark is the second-best in the league thus far, and sophomore Brayden Freitag is currently fifth with a best mark of 15-7 1/4. His father, Todd Freitag, ranks sixth all-time at EWU with a best mark of 16-7 in 1988.
 
 "I can't speak highly enough of Eric," said Meckleburg. "He has coached our vaulters for more than 20 years for next to nothing, and each year it seems like they are stronger then the last. I am so excited to see how they do as we heading into the Big Sky Conference Championships, NCAA West Regionals, and NCAA National Championships."
 
At the last outdoor championships in 2019 (there was no meet in 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic), Eastern had a 1-2-3 sweep -- the first time that has happened in any event for the EWU women's team. The Eagles have won four of the last seven women's Big Sky pole vault titles, all by different student-athletes.
 
As a freshman indoors in 2020 before the pandemic wiped out the outdoor season, Schultz second at the conference championships with a mark of 12-10 3/4. Terry had a third-place finish the previous spring in 2019 with an outdoor mark of 12-6 3/4.
 
And Allison's vaulters did all that while navigating practice and facility limitations created by the pandemic, including the elimination of EWU's outdoor vaulting area at Roos Field because of the installation of new red turf. The runway is expected to be replaced by raised runways the team will eventually utilize, but in the meantime uses EWU's Thorpe Fieldhouse to practice.
 
"The athletes have done great this season with all of the hardships of missing last year's outdoor season, plus not having an indoor season," said Allison. "They all trained hard when they were home and they came out ready to make up for lost time.
 
"As for everybody in these times, this year has been a challenge."
 
The pole vaulters and the rest of EWU's track and field teams compete this Friday (April 30) and Saturday (May 1) at Oregon State University for the OSU High Performance Meet. The Eagles will conclude the regular season at the Whitworth Twilight on Wednesday, May 5, then compete in Ogden, Utah, at the Big Sky Conference Championships May 12-15.
 
"This group really loves competing," added Allison. "They get fired up when they have to be at their best to beat an opponent. I'm looking forward to seeing what all of the vaulters can do the rest of the season, including Zach and Brayden on the men's side. We're all looking forward to the Big Sky Championships."
 
 

EWU Pole Vault Accomplishments (through 2019-20 academic year)

 Since 2001 under head pole vault coach Eric Allison (volunteer assistant Mike Mikos since 2005) . . .

• 15 Big Sky Conference champions indoors and outdoors. The breakdown is five women indoors, five women outdoors, two men indoors and three men outdoors.
• 51 Big Sky Conference All-Conference performers (top 3 finish) for men and women. The breakdown is 18 women outdoors, 15 women indoors, 10 men indoors and eight men outdoors.
• Eastern women's pole vaulters have recorded all of the top 10 performances on the EWU all-time list both indoors and outdoors. Included are school records held outdoors (Keisa Monterola, 14-0 in 2012) and indoors (Monterola, 14-4 in 2012), with three different athletes setting the record indoors and two outdoors since 2001.
• For the ­­men, seven of the top 10 all-time EWU performances outdoors have been recorded since 2001, and 11 of the top 14 indoors (eight of the top nine). Included are school records held outdoors (Larry Still, 17-6 1/2 in 2019) and indoors (Still, 17-0 3/4 in 2016), with four different athletes setting the record outdoors and two indoors since 2001.
• Eastern owns five of the top 10 positions on the Big Sky Conference women's indoor all-time list, and three of the top 10 outdoors.
• The Eagles have won four of the last seven women's Big Sky pole vault titles, all by different student-athletes – Samantha Raines (outdoors 2019), Elizabeth Prouty (indoors 2018), Erin Clark (outdoors 2017) and Anandae Clark (indoors 2017). At the outdoors championships in 2019 (there was no meet in 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic), Eastern had a 1-2-3 sweep -- the first time that has happened in any event for the EWU women's team.
• In the 2020 indoor championships, Eastern didn't win a title but took the next two all-conference places for both the men and women. Savannah Schultz and Samantha Raines placed second and third, respectively, with identical marks of 12-10 3/4 after both had career-best marks during the year of 13-5 1/4 to rank sixth all-time in school history. For the men, Grant Shurtliff finished second in the Big Sky (16-5 1/2) and Aaron Pullin was third (15-11 3/4). Shurtliff had a career best to rank as the third-best all-time at Eastern, and Pullin's mark was a personal record and is seventh in school history.
• Eastern's 1-2-3 finish during the 2018-19 season outdoors included a championship by Samantha Raines (13-4 1/2), a runner-up finish by Elizabeth Prouty (13-2 1/2) and third place by Katrina Terry (12-6 3/4). In addition, Raines was second indoors (13-2 1/2) and Prouty was third (13-0 3/4). The men featured an outdoor title by Larry Still (16-5 1/2), with Bailey Aiello finishing third both indoors (15-4 1/4) and outdoors (15-9 3/4).
• During the 2017-18 indoor season for just the second time in school history, EWU won both the men's and women's title in the same meet, including Elizabeth Prouty (13-3) and Larry Still (16-8 1/4). In the outdoor season, Elizabeth Prouty and Macey Weitz both tied for third in the Big Sky Outdoor Championships. Eastern also swept the men's and women's titles in 2005 outdoors (Mike Erickson and Sarah Hegna).
• In the 2016-17 season, he coached Erin Clark to a Big Sky Conference indoor title in the pole vault with a winning mark of 13-0 3/4. Allison also coached Anandae Clark to an indoor conference title. The team had three placers out of the eight for the women at the Indoor Conference Championships.
• In 2015-16, Larry Still became the first and only freshman to win both the Big Sky indoor and outdoor titles. He went on to win the indoor championship in 2018 and the outdoor title in 2019. Erin Clark was second at the outdoor championships as the women's team secured four out of the eight scoring places.
• In 2014-15, Anandae Clark finished second and Courtney Bray was third in the pole vault at the Indoor Conference Championships. In 2014, Bray won the outdoor championships and finished fourth in the indoor championships as well.
• In 2012, Keisa Monterola became an All-American by finishing fifth at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships. She owns EWU and Big Sky records with a 14-4 effort indoors, and is No. 2 in the league outdoors with a school-record performance of 14-0. She also owns the Big Sky Championship record of 14-4 indoors, and held the championship record outdoors (13-7 1/4) for three years. Monterola also set national records in Venezuela both indoors and outdoors.
• Robin Taylor also cleared 13-7 1/4 at the Big Sky Championships as the 2012 runner-up outdoors, and shared the record with Monterola for three years. 
• In 2005, Eastern's trio of "Mikes" swept the podium spots -- Mike Erickson champion (16-7 1/4), Mike Krings runner-up (16-0 3/4) and Mike Uhlenkott third (16-0 3/4).
• Prior to 2001, the only other EWU athlete to win a Big Sky pole vault title was Todd Freitag in 1988 at the indoor championships, giving EWU a total of 16 all-time Big Sky titles won. He was also All-Big Sky outdoors in both 1988 and 1989, giving EWU a total of 54 all-time All-Big Sky performers in the pole vault. Interestingly, Freitag's son Brayden Freitag is a freshman pole vaulter on EWU's 2019-20 squad.

 
  
Women's All-Americans/Indoors
2012 - Keisa Monterola - 14-1 1/4 - 5th – Pole Vault
 
 
Big Sky Conference Championships Won
 
Women
4 – Keisa Monterola – Indoors: Pole Vault (2014), Pole Vault (2012); Outdoors: Pole Vault (2013), Pole Vault (2012).
1 – Elizabeth Prouty – Indoors: Pole Vault (2018); Outdoors: None.
1 – Anandae Clark – Indoors: Pole Vault (2017); Outdoors: None.
1 – Sarah Hegna – Indoors: Pole Vault (2005); Outdoors: None.
1 – Samantha Raines – Indoors: None; Outdoors: Pole Vault (2019).
1 – Erin Clark – Indoors: None; Outdoors: Pole Vault (2017).
1 – Courtney Bray – Indoors: None; Outdoors: Pole Vault (2014).
 
Male
4 – Larry Still – Indoors: Pole Vault (2018), Pole Vault (2016); Outdoors: Pole Vault (2019), Pole Vault (2016).
1 – Mike Erickson – Indoors: None; Outdoors: Pole Vault (2005).
***1 – Todd Freitag– Indoors: None; Outdoors: Pole Vault (1988).
***Won title prior to Eric Allison arriving as pole vault coach
 
 

ALL-BIG SKY CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS & ALL-BIG SKY PERFORMERS (Top 3 Finish)
 
Women's Indoor Pole Vault
2020 - Savannah Schultz - 2nd - 12-10 3/4
2020 - Samantha Raines - 3rd - 12-10 3/4
2019 - Samantha Raines - 2nd - 13-2 1/2
2019 - Elizabeth Prouty - 3rd - 13-0 3/4
2018 - Elizabeth Prouty - CHAMPION - 13-3
2017 - Anandae Clark - CHAMPION - 13-7
2015 - Anandae Clark - 2nd - 13-0 3/4
2015 - Courtney Bray - 3rd - 12-8 3/4
2014 - Keisa Monterola - CHAMPION - 13-5 3/4
2012 - Keisa Monterola - CHAMPION - *14-2
2009 - Chelsi Friese - 2nd - 12-11 1/2
2007 - Sarah Hegna - 2nd - 12-9
2006 - Sarah Hegna - 2nd - 12-10
2005 - Sarah Hegna - CHAMPION - 12-7 1/2
2001 - Autumn Deda - 3rd - 11-11 3/4
*Big Sky Championship Record (entering 2020-21 indoor season)
 
Men's Indoor Pole Vault
2020 - Grant Shurtliff - 2nd - 16-5 1/2
2020 - Aaron Pullin - 3rd - 15-11 3/4
2019 - Bailey Aiello - 3rd - 15-4 1/4
2018 - Larry Still - CHAMPION - 16-8 1/4
2018 - Aaron Pullin - 3rd - 15-8 1/2
2016 - Larry Still - CHAMPION - 17-0 3/4
2016 - Nick Stearns - 3rd - 16-4 3/4
2012 - Nick Stearns - 3rd - 15-11
2010 - Ben Cogdill - 2nd  - 16-6
2009 - Ben Cogdill - 3rd - 15-11
1988 - Todd Freitag - CHAMPION - 16-2 – Prior to Eric Allison arriving as pole vault coach
 
Women's Outdoor Pole Vault
2019 - Samantha Raines - CHAMPION - 13-4 1/2 – First EWU Women's 1-2-3 Sweep in School History
2019 - Elizabeth Prouty - 2nd - 13-2 1/2
2019 - Katrina Terry - 3rd - 12-6 3/4
2018 - Macey Weitz - 3rd - 12-8 1/4
2018 - Elizabeth Prouty - 3rd - 12-8 1/4
2017 - Erin Clark - CHAMPION - 13-0 3/4
2016 - Erin Clark - 2nd - 12-9 1/2
2016 - Anandae Clark - 3rd - 12-9 1/2
2014 - Courtney Bray - CHAMPION - 13-5 3/4
2013 - Keisa Monterola - CHAMPION - 13-3 1/2
2013 - Robin Taylor - 2nd - 12-11 1/2
2012 - Keisa Monterola - CHAMPION - 13-7 1/4
2012 - Robin Taylor - 2nd - 13-7 1/4
2007 - Sarah Hegna - 2nd - 12-5 1/2
2006 - Sarah Hegna - 2nd - 12-5 1/2
2005 - Sarah Hegna - 3rd - 12-5 1/2
2003 - Emily Roberts - 2nd - 12-8
2002 - Emily Roberts - 3rd - 12-1 1/2
 
Men's Outdoor Pole Vault
2019 - Larry Still - CHAMPION - 16-5 1/2
2019 - Bailey Aiello - 3rd - 15-9 3/4
2016 - Larry Still - CHAMPION - 17-0 3/4
2014 - Nick Stearns - 2nd - 16-8 3/4
2013 - Nick Stearns - 2nd  - 16-3 1/2
2005 - Mike Erickson - CHAMPION - 16-7 1/4 – Only EWU Men's 1-2-3 Sweep Outdoors in School History
2005 - Mike Krings - 2nd - 16-0 3/4
2005 - Mike Uhlenkott - 3rd - 16-0 3/4
1989 - Todd Frietag - 3rd - 15-9 – Prior to Eric Allison arriving as pole vault coach
1988 - Todd Frietag - 3rd - 16-0 3/4 – Prior to Eric Allison arriving as pole vault coach