In order for senior Julie Siebert-Johnson to secure a spot at the 2003 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, she has to have a strong finish to the season.
So far, she's done just that.
The first-team all-Ivy nominee placed third at the College Women's Javelin Championships at the Penn Relays and first at the Heptagonal Championships.
Last weekend, Siebert-Johnson earned another first-place finish at the ECAC Championships, recording a throw of 45.38 meters. Rutgers' Jennifer Austin placed second with a throw of 45.26 meters.
The Penn women's track team recorded two top-five finishes at the ECACs, as sophomore Samantha Crook finished fourth in the pole vault competition.
"It hasn't been really good weather so it's been really hard to vault," Harris said. "Just to get your feet in the water, though, to compete in the championships, is really exciting."
Crook's height of 3.76 meters was the second highest of the competition, but she recorded more misses than Villanova's Michelle Ezzie and William and Mary's Charlotte LaRoche.
"We did a good job as a team," Penn coach Gwen Harris said. "We scored more points this year than we have in quite some time."
The Quakers next compete in the NCAA Regional Championships, held at George Mason University from May 30 to May 31.
A top-five finish there by Siebert-Johnson, currently ranked 13th in the nation, will secure her a spot in the NCAA Championships.
"If you're in the top five, you go automatically," Harris said. "But, if it goes the way it should go, the top 11 or 12 will go."
Therefore, if Siebert-Johnson does not finish in the top five, she still has a chance of making it to the NCAA Championships.
"We're hoping that she does it the right way and the easiest way, which is to finish in the top five," Harris said.
Siebert-Johnson mirrored Harris' sentiments.
"It's been my goal all season to get to nationals," she said. "I'm really shooting for an automatic bid."
If her past performance is any indication, placing in the top five appears to be an achievable feat.
"I've been in the top 15 all year long," Siebert-Johnson said. "As long as I take care of business, everything should be fine."
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