BOZEMAN — She's already etched her name in the record books multiple times, but Lucy Corbett is determined to keep raising the bar.
The Montana State junior high jumper — who had just one season of high school track and field experience on her resume when she graduated from Bozeman High in 2018 — wasted little time in toppling a pair of program records that had stood for decades.
Last season she became MSU's record holder in the outdoor (6 feet) and indoor (5-foot-10) high jump. She also qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials where she got the opportunity to compete for a spot on Team USA at the University of Oregon's Hayward Field.
She'll compete at Hayward Field again on Saturday in her second-straight appearance at the Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships. She placed 16th overall last year.
Having competed on some of track and field's biggest stages, she knows how to handle the pressure.
"I think it will help a lot with just having that experience under my belt of competing at big meets," she said last week prior to heading for Oregon. "Being able to remain calm and collected as I compete."
Her objectives on Saturday are as straightforward as they are ambitious — set a personal best mark (her current mark is 6-foot-2 1/4) and establish herself as one of the top 10 collegiate high jumpers in the nation.
"I think it would be wonderful to set a PR at nationals," she said. "And also my main goal is probably to place in the Top 8."
She headed for Eugene with a cohort of Bobcats as the MSU men's team sent a program-record four athletes to Oregon. On Wednesday, three of them advanced to the finals in their respective events — Duncan Hamilton and Levi Taylor in the 3,000-meter steeplechase and Drake Schneider in the 400-meter hurdles.
Corbett's feats may look effortless, but they've taken a toll on her mainly in the form of chronic back pain. Learning to manage that pain and keep her back in good shape has been one of the primary challenges she's faced this season.
"I just have a better regimen this season with going to physical therapy and what not," she said. "So I've been able to do a lot more practice sessions actually jumping. So I think that's been really helpful."
With her senior season still ahead of her, the sky is the limit for Corbett who is eager just how much more she can accomplish as a Bobcat.
"It's very exciting for me," she said. "I think the main thing that's exciting for me is that I've able to kind of improve each year and so it just makes me excited about the future."
