TRACK AND FIELD: Inika McPherson takes second in USATF high jump
Published 3:31 pm Sunday, July 28, 2019
- Inika McPherson, originally from Port Arthur, prepares an attempt during the women's high jump final at the World Athletics Championships in London on Aug. 12, 2017. (Matthias Schrader/AP Photo)
Inika McPherson set a season best Saturday in the USA Track and Field Outdoor Championships in Des Moines, Iowa.
The Port Arthur native jumped 1.94 meters, or 6 feet, 4 1/4 inches, to earn a second straight silver medal in the high jump and also match the qualifying standard for the IAAF World Championships in Doha, Qatar, Sept. 27-Oct. 6. Vashti Cunningham repeated as champion with a 1.96-meter (6 feet, 5 inches) jump and scratched only at 2.01 meters (6-7).
McPherson did not clear 1.96 at all after jumping 1.94 on her first attempt and making 1.92 (6-3½) on her second try. She and Cunningham were the only two athletes to try 1.96 after third-place Ty Butts, who set a personal best 1.92, scratched out at 1.94.
In May, McPherson won the Tom Tellez Invitational in Houston with a 1.83 (6-0) jump. She set a career best of 2 meters (6-6.75) in winning the 2014 USATF Outdoor title and finished third in the 2016 and 2017 championships. McPherson was also second in 2013.
About I.C. Murrell
I.C. Murrell was promoted to editor of The News, effective Oct. 14, 2019. He previously served as sports editor since August 2015 and has won or shared eight first-place awards from state newspaper associations and corporations. He was born in Memphis, Tennessee, grew up mostly in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, and graduated from the University of Arkansas at Monticello.
More by I.C.
