SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Senior pole vaulter Meghan Ladd has committed to attend and compete for St. John's University in New York.
"I visited several colleges, but when I visited St. John's University, I knew this was the perfect place for me," said Ladd. "St. John's has a beautiful 100-acre campus in Queens, N.Y., which is a short drive into Manhattan. The University is rich in 150 years of tradition. St. John's University has 17 NCAA, Division 1 teams. Many student athletes end up competing in the Olympics or becoming future leaders in New York City. I am ready to embrace the academic and athletic traditions of the school, and compete as a pole vaulter for the St. John's track and field team."
Ladd holds the St. Francis pole vault record at 12-0 set at the Bronco Pole Vault Carnival in 2018, breaking the mark of 11-9 held by Laura Huarte (2002) and Ingrid Kantola (2004).
"My favorite high school track and field memory is from my freshman year," said Ladd. "I had just placed third in Sections, with a jump of 11-2, and Stacy Dragila, a former Olympian Pole Vaulter, congratulated me over the phone. At that moment, it motivated me to continue pole vaulting through high school. My other fond high school memory is when I vaulted 12-0 and broke the St. Francis High School pole vault record."
Ladd will compete for the Red Storm under Jim Hurt, who has led his teams to 27 consecutive NCAA Championship appearances.
"Athletes under his watch do well in the classroom as well as the track," said Ladd. "I also look forward to working with Assistant Coach Pompey. She is a four-time Olympian and former NCAA 400 meter champion. I'm also excited to work with Coach Schrick, the pole vault coach. I look forward to becoming a member and a contributor to the track and field team. Another thing that I admire about the coaching staff, is the fact that they are all very dedicated to making sure their athletes reach their full potential."
Ladd is excited about the opportunity to attend college in New York.
"Honestly, attending college across the country isn't an issue for me but rather a big adventure," said Ladd. "My mom grew up in New York and I still have a lot of family out there which makes the move from California to New York much easier for me."
Ladd, a former gymnast, was introduced to the event as a freshman and quickly set personal-bests as she grew in the event. She reset her personal-best eight times in her first season, rising from 7-6 to 11-2 to place third at Sections qualify for the Section Masters meet. She finished sixth overall to cap her first season.
She cleared 11-6 in her fourth meet of her sophomore season and then set the school record at 12-0 one week later. It highlighted a season in which she won nine meet titles including the Delta League championship. Lst year, she placed third at sections as a junior and qualified for the SJS Masters. She was ready to make the most of her senior season before the shutdown of high school sports.
"This year was my last year to compete in high school and to have that taken away from me was pretty devastating," said Ladd. "The one thing that I am going to miss most about St. Francis High School's Track Program is the amazing team of students, parents, and coaches that always provided encouragement and support to all the St. Francis athletes. I am going to miss all that St. Francis team spirit."
She is going to study Computer Science - Cyber Security Systems at St. John's. She has taken two years of AP computer classes at St. Francis, which helped her select this field of study. She says, "The thought of coding in the Cyber Security field seems pretty fun, challenging, and exciting to me".
Now healthy and a strong offseason were set back by a foot injury that prevented her from competing this season. But she has fully recovered and has turned her focus to her collegiate career.
"I was upset (about the injury) because I knew I'd be missing the beginning of the track season," said Ladd. "Luckily, working hard during my physical therapy paid off. I've been out of the boot for a month now and I'm excited about the next four years of collegiate track."
