Madison Skelly saw the bar dangling from two implements precariously holding it up on each and every attempt.

The Austintown Fitch senior wanted to get up and over and land on the cushioned mat, knowing her attempts kept getting higher and higher each time.

Skelly cleared a personal best 11 feet, 6 inches, in the pole vault, landing on the mat inside Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium. Skelly stood on the podium in the infield, facing the home stands as an all-Ohio athlete at the state track and field meet. She finished eighth in Division I. The top eight earn all-Ohio honors at state track and field in each division.

It was a massive progression, coming from a 9-6 mark at mid-April meet at GlenOak High School to late May in Columbus.

“I was completely amazed at how far I had actually come from the season before and how much my training had paid off,” said Skelly, who signed her National Letter of Intent to compete at Youngstown State University. “I honestly didn’t think that I was going to place, since I wasn’t necessarily vaulting as high as the other girls, so it was really cool to look out and see my family and teammates in the stands.”

She knew YSU gave her the opportunity to see her family and friends and, of course, the track and field program which has dominated the Horizon League.

“I received quite a few letters from colleges, but I knew that none of them had the program I needed,” said Skelly, who will major in exercise science while following the pre-physical therapy track. “YSU checked off every box on my list.”

Dylan Latone, an accomplished pole vaulter at YSU, is now the pole vault coach at Austintown Fitch, his alma mater.

His advice for Skelly is to “make sure you just focus on the task at hand and trust the people that are helping you along as practice and meets come.”

“The biggest change for school will be the freedom that you have and mentally staying focused,” Latone said. “Track is knowing and trusting in your abilities. Also, with the program as a vaulter, it’s very specific for working out. The strength and ability will rise and you just have to know that that’s going to happen.”

He said being at Fitch helped his preparation for YSU, with the competitive atmosphere the Falcons have in Austintown.

That’s why Skelly has lofty goals entering this indoor and outdoor track seasons with Latone as her coach.

“My main goal is to continue to break our school record and to find a spot at states and nationals — both indoor and outdoor,” Skelly said.