After winning four events at your first state meet as a freshman, what long-term goals did you hope to reach by the time you graduated? Have you accomplished those goals yet?
Well, my freshman year was not my first state meet. I ran my first state meet as a 7th grader and I placed 2nd in the 400 and our 4x400 relay team won first place. I was really excited that I won but It didn't mean as much to me then as it does now because I didn't work hard enough. The biggest goal that I have set for myself is to jump 40 feet in triple jump by the time that I graduate. No, I have not accomplished this goal yet but I am working hard at it.
Under the new AHSAA classifications of 2000-2001, UMS-Wright moved up from 3A to 4A largely because it is a private school. How did you feel about the change when you found out it was happening? About the claim that private schools hold an advantage in athletics?
First of all I do not really feel as if we hold an advantage over anyone because we have smaller student body. I was kind of excited about the change because we would compete against bigger schools and stiffer competition. I was kind of sad about not being able to compete at Troy State anymore because I loved their track facility.
How would you compare the competitive atmosphere at the 1A-3A meet in Troy versus the 4A-6A championships in Tuscaloosa? Does any one particular difference stand out the most to you?
There is a big difference between the two meets, in the 3A meets there were only a few standouts here and there but at the 4A-6A meet there are so many great competitors. At the 4A- 6A meet there are so many people that come out to watch it makes you want to do well because its not that often at home that you have a lot of people that support track and field.
If the move from 3A to 4A was a challenge, you certainly responded. Your sophomore season was one of best a track athlete could possibly have--four event titles at the state meet, the 4A team title, the state heptathlon championship, and two 4A state records in the long jump and triple jump. How did you prepare in the offseason and during the spring to condition yourself for such a great year?
Truthfully the success of my Sophomore season came as a great surprise to me. I played volleyball and basketball and I conditioned in the summer for those sports. After basketball season was over we had about a week before our first track meet. I didn't have very much practice. Our first home meet is usually the McGill-Toolen Relays and I came out that day and jumped 37'10 in triple jump and all I had done was some run threws to check my steps. After that I think I began to practice more and take it a little more seriously. Until then I was a big slacker.
With three more event championships and a new record in the triple jump at last year's state meet, it's hard to say you had an off-year, but some of your marks were a little off your sophomore performances and you finished second in two events-- the first time you'd taken anything but first at a state meet. Was there anything different about you or your training that may have accounted for the differences?
I would love to know what the true answer to that question is. I didn't feel that my performances last year were quite up to my standards and I have really let that hang over my head. I felt last year that I put a lot more pressure on myself because I knew what my coach, teammates, and even what I expected of myself. I felt as if I practiced harder but I think that I lost a lot of muscle weight and I think that I felt weak.
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In many of your state championships, Shaquanda Banks of Guntersville has been your runner-up, and in the two events you finished second in last year, she's the girl who took first. Do you go through the season with Banks in mind, knowing you'll face her at the state meet and preparing for that? Or do you mostly worry about Mobile-area competition during the regular season and face the rest of the state when that time comes? |
 Finley and her teammates accept the 1A-4A Indoor runner-up trophy photo: Steve Bedsole |
No not really my main competition is myself If I go to a meet and PR and get 2nd I will be ok with that, even though I hate to lose. I would much rather do that than win with a mediocre time or jump. Last year Shaquanda won hands down, but I admit that I didn't have one of my greatest showings but this is a new year. I think if anything, last year I beat myself mentally. I would say more than anything I look forward to competing against good runners and jumpers every week they help bring out the best in you.
What major meets will you be traveling to this spring, and which are especially important to you?
This year I am mostly just competing in city meets, but I participated in the Nike Indoor championships in Landover, Maryland.
In general, do you wish you could face more competition from outside the bay area during the early months of the season?
Yes, I would like to travel to more meets but we have some very talented female athletes in the Mobile area like Courtney Gholston, Consuella Hamilton, and Natalie Neely. It kind of brings on a certain rivalry to compete against the same girls every week because some times you might want to seek revenge and other times you have to hold your title.
With your PR's in the 100m and 300m hurdles now standing at 14.54 (hand-timed) and 44.39 (FAT), and the state records standing just shades away in 14.86 and 44.13, how do you feel about your chances to break either or both of these records in May? If you only break one, which do you hope it is?
I would love to be able to break those records. I have felt very strong in 100m hurdles this year and I think that has a lot to do with getting an early start and running indoor track this year. I have only run the 300m once this year and did not go full out so I am not sure what I can do. I think that I have a very good shot at breaking both of them but the 300 would mean more to me because I had a shot at breaking it as a sophomore and I did not do it. I was very upset with myself.
Are you related to the current 4A 300m hurdle record-holder, Elizabeth Finley?
No, I do not believe that I am related to her but you never know.
Though you don't run against her in the state meet, BC Rain's Courtney Gholston is a tight competitor with you in the hurdle events. How do your styles as hurdlers compare to each other, and what's your usual strategy for when the two of you face off?
Courtney is probably the biggest competitor that I face during the the regular season. I think that I might have a little more technique but she just has so much raw speed and talent. I wouldn't really say that I had a special strategy but you just have to come prepared when you are going to race her because she is such a talented athlete.
Moving to the jumps, you hold the 4A state triple jump record at 38' 7.5," the long jump record at 18' 5," and your 5' 6" high jump from the McGill-Toolen Relays a few weeks ago would tie the current 4A record if you could duplicate it at the state meet. Put that together with the hurdle races and you could set five state records at a single state meet! Is this a feat you've considered and set in your mind as a goal?
Actually I didn't realize that I was close in all of those records especially the high jump. I would love to break all of those records and it is something that I know I can do If I set my mind to it. It is going to make for a really long weekend but it is going to be my last chance so I have to do it now.
The triple jump is one of the most complicated events in track & field, yet one you've excelled in. What facet or phase of the event, if any, has been the hardest for you master? If you really got your technique down in a single jump, how far do you think you might you go?
I have really been working hard on triple jump lately because not only is it one that I would like to excel in but it is my favorite. At first I had a really short first phase and then I lengthened that out and then my 2nd phase got a little shorter, so now I am working on balancing out the two. Right now jumping in the 39 - 40 foot range is my goal.
By this time, anyone in the state who follows track & field is familiar with your name and accomplishments. However, few may realize that you're also one of the top volleyball players in the state-- selected to the 4A All-State Team, the AHSAA All-Tournament Team, and recently added to the Alabama-Mississippi All-Star roster. As track is close to a pure test of athleticism, and volleyball is a sport requiring a tremendous amount of skill and control, which do you feel best brings out your full abilities as an athlete?
I feel that track brings out my best abilities while it is a team sport a lot of the things that I do are individual events. The focus is totally on you. A lot of the things that I do in track help while playing volleyball like jumping ability, foot work and speed. In volleyball you have to be dependent on your teammates for everything.
Have you found it easier to gain recognition for your volleyball or track success?
I think that I have gotten more recognition from track because I have competed on the Varsity level for such a long time, run in national competitions, and set records. I have played volleyball since like the third grade and I never even stepped on a track until the 7th grade. I love volleyball and I love to just play because it is fun, but Volleyball is like the biggest team sport because everyone plays such an important role. Therefore it is harder to be a standout.
Where are you in the process of selecting a college? Will you continue to compete in either track & field or volleyball or both?
I am going to continue to compete in track & field but I am not sure where that is going to be yet.