The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

VERSATILE athletics star Charisma Taylor will make a move from the PAC-12 to the South-eastern Conference for her upcoming junior season.

Taylor, who spent the last two years with the Wash-ington State Cougars, will transfer to join the Tennes-see Lady Volunteers track and field programme for the upcoming season.

Taylor will join a Vol-unteers programme that won three SEC individual championships, eight SEC event medals, set four school records, three fresh-man records and 24 top-10 programme marks during the indoor season alone in a pandemic shortened NCAA Indoor season.

In her shortened soph-omore season with the Cougars, she made her big-gest impact in several jump events and was named an NCAA Division I Track and Field All-American by the United States Track and Field and Cross Coun-try Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

Her season was high-lighted by winning the women’s triple jump at the MPSF Indoor Track and Field Championships Feb-ruary 28-29 with a leap of 13.29m (43-7 1/4). She was also fourth in the 60m hur-dles in 8.29 seconds.

She also produced her lifetime best in the triple jump of 13.48m (44-2 3/4) at the Don Kirby Elite Invitational.

She is currently Wash-ington State indoor record holder in the 60-metre hurdles (8.19), the all-time triple jump leader at 43 feet, 7 1/4 inches (13.29m), and holds two WSU fresh-man records in the 60m hurdles and in the triple jump. She also ranks 10th all-time in WSU history in the long jump.

As a freshman, Taylor burst onto the WSU track and field scene during her first year with the Cougs, posting multiple all-time records. She ranked sixth overall in the NCAA in the triple jump, and also ranked 25th in the nation in the 60-metre hurdles. She also did her personal best of 6.03m (19-9 1/2) in the long jump at the WSU Indoor Track and Field Meet.

At the WSU Cougar Indoor last year as well, she did her PR of 7.65 in the 60m; she ran 13.79 for her PR in the 100m hurdles at the Cougar Invite and she posted her PF of 25.34 in the 200m at the Bronco Invite.

The former Queen’s College Comet went on to compete for Spire Institute in Ohio before making the transition to the collegiate level.

The 2018 Under-20 World Championship qualifier in the triple jump recently competed at the event last weekend as track and field returned to the Thomas A Robinson Stadium in the BAAAs Odd Distance meet. She won both Open women’s long and triple jumps and placed second in the 150m.

In the triple jump, Taylor, representing Leap of Faith, cleared 12.81m (42-0 1/2) and captured the long jump with a leap of 5.59m (18-4 1/4). “On the whole, I think I did very well. It’s still early. It’s December, but I feel I’m in a good position for the season. There’s still some things I need to work on, but it was a good meet. I still have some things to work on,” Taylor told The Tribune.