The words pit and standards may sound foreign to most people, but for sophomore Shannon Lee, these words are in her everyday vocabulary. Pit stands for the mat and standards hold up the bar that she jumps over.
Lee has been high jumping ever since her best friend introduced the sport to her in middle school track.
“When I first started high jump I loved it, it felt almost natural to me,” Lee said.
Even though track is only in the spring, Lee practices and competes all year round. She says that her greatest accomplishment was when she won the Stark County meet her freshmen year.
Sophomore Katrina Scherer, a friend and fellow teammate, started jumping with Lee her freshmen year.
“She always watches my jumps and tells me what I could do to improve,” Scherer said.
Scherer also said that Lee practices very hard and she is always there for her when she needs help.
“Whenever she wasn’t at a meet, everything was chaos,” Scherer said.
She always has the supplies and support for the team.
Overall Lee says that when you clear a jump you know that all your hard work has paid off.
“After you do everything perfectly, it is the best feeling in the world,” Lee said.