Capital’s Amanda Moll wins 3A pole vault state title, nearly sets national record

Capital junior Hana Moll had a busy Friday at the Class 3A state track meet.

Along with sister Amanda (also a junior) and the rest of the girls pole vaulting field, Hana Moll got Day 2 at Mount Tahoma Stadium started at 9 a.m. As expected from two of the nation’s best in the event this spring, the Moll sisters finished first and second.

Both eclipsed the meet record of 14 feet set the last time this meet was held, in 2019, by West Seattle’s Chloe Cunliffe. Amanda Moll now holds the new record at 14-6, while Hana’s runner-up finish came with her previous-record-tying 14-0.

“It was pretty exciting,” Amanda Moll said. “I’ve got next year to break that, hopefully. I think 15 (feet) was probably more exciting for me, because I was so close.”

The only competitor left after making 14-6, Moll tried to become the first high school girl ever to vault 15-0. She came closest on her first of three tries, actually clearing the bar before clipping it and pulling it down with her on her way down into the pit.

“I thought I was over,” Moll said.

Hana Moll got her state title on the other end of Friday’s proceedings – in the second to last running final of the day, the 100 meters intermediate hurdles. Moll pulled away from runner-up Olivia Conklin over the final hurdle, run in a pouring rainstorm that hit the stadium just before the hurdles finals began, to win in 14.66 seconds to Conklin’s 14.72.

“Mentally, I felt fine, I felt focused,” Hana Moll said. “It didn’t distract me. During the race, I got some water in my eyes, so … No, it was fun.”

Just a week ago at the District 3/4 meet in Kent, it was Amanda Moll who had the double event day on Day 2, with the bi-district schedule contesting the pole vault and the long jump at virtually the same time. That required the national vault leader to jump back and forth between pits and she finished second in both.

The mano-a-mano battle for the pole vault title almost didn’t happen. With Hana sitting and waiting, having cleared 13-6 on her first try, Amanda (the national leader with a 14-9¼ she made at a meet in Texas back on March 26) missed twice and stood on the runway for her third attempt.

Bainbridge’s Ella McRitchie had just missed her third try, and officials had difficulty getting the bar replaced properly, causing a nervous delay for Moll.

“I was kind of just, okay I’m going to set my bar down, I’m going to reset,” Amanda Moll said. “I’m going to calm down because it was taking a little while. Then, I think I just got into a good mental state. I was a little worried. But I was just like, I’m going to do it and I did it.”

That left the sisters already atop the podium in the first and second place spots. It was then simply a question of who would take the title.

“That’s normal for us,” Amanda Moll said. “It’s actually nice to have Ella there.”

Hana Moll at least had a few hours in between her event finals on Friday to allow her legs to recover.

“I really had to earn that one, but I’m excited for that,” Hana said. “I always like to come in thinking positive. I really fought for it and I got it.”

Amanda Moll goes after her second state placement at 2 p.m. on Saturday afternoon, when she competes in the 3A girls long jump during the last field event session of the meet. And both sisters helped the 4x100 relay to a state-best 48.8 in their prelim heat, giving the Cougars the top seed into the finals on Saturday.

This story was originally published May 27, 2022 at 8:05 PM.