The school year is winding down, and for most of the athletes at Portland State, so are the spring sports. But for graduate student Joenisha Vinson, the biggest accomplishment of her career could be still to come.
Vinson leaves PSU on a high note
The school year is winding down, and for most of the athletes at Portland State, so are the spring sports. But for graduate student Joenisha Vinson, the biggest accomplishment of her career could be still to come.
Vinson has been one of the most impressive Viking athletes on the track this season, turning in a series of outstanding results that culminated in a first-place finish in the heptathlon at the Big Sky Conference Championships last month. Her score of 5,488 was not only a school record but also ranked among the best in the nation this year. Since the heptathlon is not contested at regionals, Vinson’s win at the Big Sky meet booked her a spot at the NCAA Championships in Eugene this week.
“She has shown me she has a will to win,” assistant coach Seth Henson said. “[This year] she started taking all the off-track [training] really seriously. It’s stuff she has done before, but not with the focus she had this year. She’s always been talented, but she dedicated herself on and off the track this year.”
Before coming to Portland State, Vinson was a star athlete at South Mountain High School in Phoenix, Ariz. She spent most of her time on the track, but also played basketball. Her development as a multi-event athlete during her time with the Vikings is something her coaches have enjoyed witnessing over the last four years, and her positive outlook and easygoing attitude have been a welcome addition to the team.
“She loves to joke around with her teammates,” Henson said. “She laughs more than anyone that I have been around. But she’s also a great teammate, a great listener.”
“It’s been an honor for me to coach her,” he continued. “We have both grown up and learned a lot from each other through this whole process.”
