State Champion, Vandy Signee Remains Dedicated To Her Pursuit Of Florida's Highest Bar

By Todd Grasley of DyeStat

In eighth grade, Laine Roberts jumped the Florida middle school state pole vault record of 10 feet, 8 inches.

As she entered high school in the fall of 2016, the next goal on the list became evident: the state's all-time prep record (13-3 by Nati Sheppard from Ransom Everglades in 2015). 

The record has proven elusive during a four-year span with two state championships, a handful of injuries, and a senior season shortened by COVID-19.

In her sophomore season at The Bolles School in Jacksonville, Roberts finished first or second in all of her meets including a win at the prestigious Pepsi Florida Relays and her first state title with a clearance of 12-7 (3.85m).

“I jumped a PR and school record of 12-7,” she said. “We decided to skip 13 feet and go straight to attempting the state record.”

She missed all three attempts. 

A month and a half later she finished third at New Balance Nationals Outdoor.

There was improvement in 2019, her junior year. At the Bolles Relays, on her home track, Roberts cleared a new personal best of 12-10.75 (3.93m). The mark was impressive considering she had injured both ankles during the previous fall, which caused her to take a short break from training. 

“When I cleared that, I felt like I was finally back at the point that I had been,” she said. “I felt I had the potential to break the state record.”

State Meet Mishap

Roberts recorded her second consecutive Pepsi Florida Relays title two weeks later and swept the postseason, including her second pole vault state championship. With the state victory in her back pocket, she attempted a new PR, intent on closing the gap on the record.

“We didn’t want to do what we had done the year before which was go straight to the state record,” coach Eli Sunquist explained. “We picked a spot in between which would be a new personal best.”

The junior missed her first attempt, which prompted the officials to convene. They thought Roberts was attempting the record, which was incorrectly listed, and in turn, decided to reset the bar. That’s when an otherwise joyous moment took a drastic turn.

“The officials left the standards at zero after measuring the bar, causing her to crash into the crossbar, landing in the box, and fracturing her back,” Sunquist noted.

Once again, thoughts on the record were deferred.

“Being unable to even finish that meet because of something that felt mostly out of my control was incredibly frustrating for me because I felt that the whole season I had been building up to and on the verge of breaking the record,” Roberts said. 

It was the first time she had ever wept at a track meet.

“The combination of the pain, shock and disappointment really got to me, but I was extremely grateful for the support of my teammates, coaches and family that day, who I think were all about as shocked as I was,” Roberts said.

Initial Diagnosis

The first doctor Roberts saw said she didn’t break any bones and suggested that she could compete in sports at her own comfort level. She did just that and participated in New Balance Nationals Outdoor where she finished 23rd.

“I actually didn’t even know that my back was fractured until about six months after it happened because it didn’t show on the X-ray that I got the day following the state meet,” she said.

In October, she returned to the doctor because she was still having lots of back pain. An MRI revealed she had been vaulting on a fractured vertebra. She’d be sidelined for the next few months, relegated to physical therapy and light running.

“I couldn’t vault, but I did everything else that I could to be as ready as possible for the upcoming season.”

Revenge Season

After months of rehab, Roberts was able to start back up with vaulting at the same time her teammates were set to compete in the first meet of the 2020 season. While she was relieved to be able to get back into a routine, she also realized she was far behind where she needed to be at that point in the season, and needed to work twice as hard in practice to get back to her old form.

“I approached the few meets that we were able to have with that mentality that I had to make a comeback and rebuild towards the state record,” she said. “I felt that the opportunity to beat the state record had been taken from me the year before, which made me feel like I needed to beat it even more.”

In Ferbruary, at her first outdoor meet, Roberts jumped 12-6 from a short approach and barely missed matching the state record of 13-3.

Three weeks later her season was over, courtesy of the Coronavirus.

“It took a while to kick in but once it did, I was really upset," she said. “Pole vaulting has been the biggest part of my life for the past six years and to not be able to finish my last season or have that last chance at the record felt like a huge loss, especially since I felt that opportunity had been taken from me the year before.”

One Last Obstacle

While Roberts has signed with Vanderbilt University to continue her pole vaulting career, she isn’t moving onto the next chapter just yet. With her school and training facility being closed due to COVID-19, Roberts and her family took matters into their own hands.

“It felt like a very quick scramble to figure out how we were going to be able to still vault,” she said. "Fortunately, Eli bought a third pit intended for use with the ramp he built, but since the school was closed to us, we moved it into my backyard instead. The pieces quickly came together after this, as we assembled the pit and runway, got poles, bungees, and a new set of standards."

Now, she is back in the game, jumping three days a week. While the training is similar, it’s definitely a different feel than what she was used to on her normal track. But the goal remains the same.

“The most important thing for me is to remember that I am working towards the same goal even if it is a different setting,” she said. "Vaulting in my own backyard and running sprints by myself up and down my street definitely feels far less competitive than practicing on an actual track where we compete.”

Sunquist remains steadfast in his pursuit to find a meet that will host his athlete and give her the opportunity to check off that final box. Even if the record doesn’t count as an “official” state record, with all that she’s had to go through to have another chance at it, a clearance over a bar higher than 13-3 would be huge.

“So much has gone into my high school vaulting career,” she said. “I am so grateful for the incredible opportunities and support that I have had and to be able to beat the state record would be the perfect ending. Like any pole vaulter, I have faced many disappointments, as that is part of the sport, but each and every one makes the victories, big and small, much more meaningful.”