Katrina Biermann continues soaring pace (Truman State)

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Biermann continues soaring pace
Jocelyn Nebel

Issue date: 3/4/10 Section: Sports
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Senior jumper Katrina Biermann has jumped her way to school records and provisional marks during the past three years, and this year, she continues to better herself.

"I think both of us would say she's matured a lot," assistant coach Tim Schwegler said.

Biermann began her jumping career in middle school when she joined an after-school track program to see her friends more often. She started as a runner but eventually began jumping because she began to feel comfortable in the triple jump.

She was recruited in high school to become a pole vaulter. Biermann said she had participated in gymnastics for many years and that her coach told her that great gymnasts made great pole vaulters.

"I was pretty much just forced into pole vaulting, but I'm thankful that Coach Washburn, my high school coach, did that for me," Biermann said.

Biermann said combining relays with her jumping became too time consuming, so she decided to focus on the triple jump and pole vault during her last two years in high school. Her highest vault was only 10 feet at the time, but that changed when she entered college.

"I came to Truman to talk to coach [John]Cochrane and the pole vault coach and some of the athletes," Biermann said. "One of the pole vaulters, Kristen Klesh … was really an inspiration for me to keep vaulting because she was like me in high school where she didn't do much in high school but she got to be really good her freshman year. She became one of my close friends."

Biermann continued to improve her technique in college despite some struggles with jumping her freshman year.

"My freshman year I had some frustrations with pole vaulting," Biermann said. "There's a point where I got so frustrated that I thought about not vaulting."

Despite her frustration during the indoor season, Biermann competed in the outdoor season and her jumps began to soar. Schwegler coached her in the pole vault her sophomore year and she broke her first school record. At the UCM Classic, Biermann jumped 11-11.75 feet to break Kristi Morton's 2001 indoor record of 11-08.00 feet. This jump was nearly a two-foot improvement from her best jump in high school. Biermann also broke the outdoor pole vault record her sophomore year.

"I think the biggest difference [is] she has a lot of confidence, just on her own she has a lot of confidence," Schwegler said.

Biermann's junior year was filled with bigger jumps. During the indoor season, Biermann made provisional marks in both the triple jump and pole vault. Her provisional mark in the triple jump improved three times and ended up at 38-02.25 feet. Her pole vault of 12-04.00 broke her own record.

Unfortunately for Biermann, her best jumps during the season were overshadowed by an unsatisfactory competition at the 2009 conference meet. Biermann placed sixth in the triple jump and fourth in the pole vault, but she only qualified for the national meet in the pole vault. She finished with All-American honors at the indoor meet and finished eighth.

During the outdoor season last year, Biermann refocused her efforts on the pole vault and excelled. Her provisional mark for the pole vault improved four times and ended at 12-08.00 feet, a new school record and a personal improvement from the year before by more than eight inches. She went on to take first at the conference meet.

She also made provisional marks in the triple jump and improved her provisional mark by nearly a foot, finishing at 38-11.75 feet. Biermann qualified for the national meet in the pole vault and finished sixth, earning All-American honors for the second time.

"She's a really hard worker, and she's battled injuries since I've known her, but she still goes out every day, every practice and still gives 100 percent," senior Amber Clayton said. "It definitely shows in her performance at track meets."

This past indoor season, Biermann continued to grow and improve her jumps.

"She doesn't second guess," head coach John Cochrane said. "In terms of triple jumping too, she has learned a lot about it and she's tougher than she was. One of the things she used to do was melt down."

Biermann said her less-than-stellar performance at the 2009 indoor conference meet helped push her to do her best in her events this year. She received a second chance during the indoor season this year when she qualified automatically in both pole vault and triple jump. Her jump of 13-00.25 feet in the pole vault became her first MIAA conference record.

"[Jumping 13 feet has] been my goal since freshman year," Biermann said. "That's probably one of the best feelings I've had since coming here and competing."

Last weekend Biermann won both the triple jump and pole vault at the MIAA indoor conference meet. This is the first time she has qualified for the indoor national meet.

"I think she's going to do well," Schwegler said. "She has a lot of confidence right now. After last year, I think she's really come of age."