Harvard's highstepping junior Mel Embree copped All-American honors this past weekend as he flopped himself into a sixth place high jump finish at the National Intercollegiate rack-championships in Provo, Utah.
Embree leapt over a field of 46 to be one of the final 12 qualifiers. His qualifying height was 7ft. 1 in. but that was as high as he was to go, as a torrential downpour washed out his chances at the title.
"I felt great going into the finals," he said yesterday, "It was a good meet and I think I was ready to jump Ft. 4 in."
However after all jumpers had cleared 6 ft. 10 in the rains came, dropping the temperature almost 20 degrees. When the meet resumed an hour and a half later "everyone," according to Embree "was just terrible."
Well not quite everyone, as Warren Shanklin from Northeast Louisiana, soared to a career best by leaping 7 ft. 1 in for the title.
I've Got A Hammer
Steve Niemi, Harvard's only other competitor at the meet hammered his way to a tenth place finish in the you guessed it, hammer throw.
Niemi's throw of 192 ft 8 in was his lifetime best. Cross-river rival Boris Djerassi of-Northeastern was the eventual winner of the event.
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