With first NCAA berth in long jump already secure, Henderson looks to make history by becoming first Wyoming female athlete to qualify for championship meet in triple jump

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

It was a leap of faith that brought a Christian minister’s daughter from Meadowdale, Ohio to the University of Wyoming.

But it has been the long jumping prowess of Ja’la Henderson that secured her first trip to the NCAA Division 1 Outdoor Championships and her newfound passion in the triple jump that could make the talented junior an All-American and potential qualifier at the USATF Outdoor Championships.

“It’s been extremely moving and an inspiration for me to come from where I was and to be where I am now,” said Henderson, who had a wind-aided leap of 20-0.50 (6.11m) on her first attempt Thursday to win her flight and place eighth overall at the Division 1 West Regionals at Sacramento State’s Hornet Stadium.

“My parents told me, ‘If you make nationals, we’ll be there.’ My overall goal was to make it and finally see my family, so they can watch me compete. I’ve had a lot to motivate me to make it.”

The former Ohio Division 2 state champion wanted Kentucky to be her dream school, before ultimately deciding her path would be on a runway less traveled in Laramie.

But after a couple of years battling injuries and overcoming personal struggles, Henderson is making her aspirations a reality for the Cowgirls, including a Mountain West Conference triple jump title May 12 in Clovis, Calif., and securing a berth to compete in the national long jump final June 7 at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.

“I’m really more hungry and determined this season and I’ve been mentally focusing so much more on track because I went through so much with not being able to long jump or doing anything last year,” Henderson said. “I feel like I have so much to prove and these last two years are so delicate to me and I can’t get last year back, so that’s why I really want to make this year count.”

Henderson, 21, made an immediate impact in the long jump for Wyoming in 2015, producing a leap of 19-6.75 (5.96m) in her first career competition for the Cowgirls. She has continued to climb the program’s all-time ranks, elevating to No. 2 with a 20-2.50 (6.18m) in her outdoor opener March 17, trailing only 1980 All-American Patricia Miller-Davis at 20-4 (6.19m).

But a growing level of frustration with her sprint results led Henderson to have a conversation during the indoor season with Wyoming assistant coach Quincy Howe about taking on a new challenge in the triple jump.

“I get frustrated with the 60 because my speed doesn’t come in until after the 60 is over. It was frustrating because I’m so competitive and I hate losing and I wanted to get points for my team for conference in more than just long jump,” Henderson said. “I asked him if I could please try the triple jump and see where it goes. Ever since then, it just took off from there.”

With limited practice and no prior experience in competition, Henderson took to the runway in January at the Potts Invitational in Colorado and opened with a modest 37-foot effort.

By the end of the meet, Henderson had produced a 41-1.50 (12.53m) triple jump. She has remained a quick study, setting program records both indoor with a 42-11 (13.08m) effort and outdoor with a 43-10.50 (13.37m) performance to capture the Mountain West title.

“I was kind of insecure and worried going into the first meet, and they were debating whether to have me go from a 36 board or a 32. I asked if they could make a 32 board for me because I wasn’t confident that I would do well since it was my first time,” Henderson said. “I saw other people jumping far and I didn’t want to lose, so I told myself, ‘Just run, do what you gotta do and if you get out far, then OK.’ My main focus wasn’t even on being a good triple jumper, it was just on winning. And just on natural instinct, it just happened and I was able to jump far.

“When I was doing my phases, I was getting super close to the (edge of the) pit and ever since, Quincy has been like, ‘You’re not going from a 32 board, you’re going from a 36.’ When I jumped, I didn’t even know that I jumped far because it felt so effortless and everyone was freaking out and I was like, ‘What’s going on because I don’t know anything about triple.’”

Not only had her vision for a promising future in the sport become clear, but an unwavering desire and determination to achieve greatness had finally been unleashed.

“That’s when it donned on me that you could be great at this, you just have to figure things out and get the passion for it and then this is going to be the thing that takes you to the next level,” Henderson said. “Quincy even showed me on film. The reason why I jump so far is because my body is often positioned in the right place. He even used me as an example at practice for the rest of the team. I guess naturally my body was just in the right place and doing the right things, but there were still things I needed to work on and still do need to work on.

“It just happens naturally and I really don’t think too much when it comes to triple. It’s just one of those events that I have fun with because long jump I’ve been doing for so long and I put so much pressure on myself to jump this or that, so with triple I just kind of get out there and I don’t know what I do, I just have fun and jump and it’s been working. I really don’t know how to explain it.”

Howe, a two-time All-American and international standout for Trinidad and Tobago, is one of the most decorated jumpers in Mountain West history and still holds Wyoming records in both the indoor and outdoor triple jump.

But not even his learning curve in the event accelerated as rapidly as Henderson.

“She does make the event look easy, especially being so new to it. We weren’t necessarily surprised by it, just taken aback a little bit by how quickly she took to it,” Howe said. “She has an innate ability to do the event. She does a lot of the things that are absolutely necessary for success really well and that makes my job a lot easier. It’s just a matter of her being able to do those things consistently and often, and as the season has gone on, she’s been able to accomplish those two things and the results speak for themselves.”

Howe was instrumental in Scott Carter winning both conference indoor and outdoor men’s triple jump titles last year, in addition to placing third at the Division 1 outdoor meet for the Cowboys.

After missing out on qualifying for the NCAA indoor championship in March by less than two inches, Henderson is even more motivated to not only follow Carter’s success, but become the first Wyoming female athlete to qualify for the Division 1 finals in the triple jump.

“It frustrated me indoors, because I was so close to going to nationals and I really wanted to put my name out there,” Henderson said. “It would be a true honor, especially to show that we have a good coach and we have a good program, because a lot of times when we go other places, people discredit Wyoming. We actually do have talent here, we actually do have an amazing program and we actually can send people to nationals, we just need the right recruits and we need people to want to come here.”

In addition to the incentive of qualifying for the NCAA meet in both jumps, Henderson is also pursuing the 43-11.75 (13.40m) standard to qualify June 21 for the USATF Outdoor Championships in Des Moines, Iowa.

It’s all part of the vision and belief that Roger Henderson had for his daughter when she decided to devote her future to developing as a student-athlete in Wyoming three years ago.

“My dad sat me down and said, ‘This is a place where you are going to focus and if you do the right things and sacrifice these couple of years to dedicate your life to this, then your dreams will come true,’” Henderson said. “Ever since I got here, what my dad said was extremely true. Being in Wyoming, you’re going to focus. At first, it was a huge culture shock for me, but over time, I’ve learned so much being here. Being so far away from home, it changed me as a person, I’m more mature, I’ve learned how to be on my own and how to do certain things. Overall, this experience has developed me, not only as an athlete, but as a person.”

And that unheralded individual from a humble Ohio background, relying on faith, fortitude and a fiercely competitive spirit, has the potential to make more history Saturday by adding to her legacy in Laramie with another NCAA championship qualifying berth.

“I think it would be tremendous, especially with helping the recruiting process,” Henderson said. “Hopefully it will make more people want to build a program here, and hopefully that means there are more (national qualifiers) to come. This just proves you can be great anywhere and it gives me a lot of pride to represent Wyoming and help us be recognized on a national level.”