Of the many talented athletes on the Chico State women’s track & field team, the Wildcats’ pole vaulters have posted consistently outstanding marks since the very start of the 2022 season. The trend continued at last week’s CCAA Track & Field Championships, as five ’Cat vaulters combined for a whopping 33 team points. Leading the way was Rebecca Graham, who stood at the top of the medal podium after posting the meet’s best mark in the event. Coming home as the conference’s pole vault champion has also earned Graham Wildcat of the Week honors.
Competing at San Francisco State’s Cox Stadium, Graham needed only two attempts Friday to clear the bar at 3.60 meters, and the height was enough to finish as the top pole vaulter of the meet. Graham certainly wasn’t alone in her vaulting success, as teammates Lara Condosta, Elise Barnum, Carissa Rodriguez, and Samantha Brackett finished second through fifth, respectively, adding up to a major haul in team points for Chico State.
Graham has registered a mark of at least 3.50 meters in seven of the eight meets in which she’s competed this season. Her score of 3.67 meters at the March 31st Mike Fanelli Track Classic not only represented a personal best for the Oroville product, but placed Graham in the Chico State record books with the ninth-best pole vault mark in program history.
Graham has been no less a standout in the classroom during her Chico State career. To date, she has received five California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) All-Academic awards, and is a two-time Division II Athletic Directors Association Academic Achievement Award winner.