Photo by: Thomas Breach
Paola Brena ready for 2023 NCAA Indoor Championships
3/7/2023 1:46:00 PM | Women's Track & Field
Grad student High Jumper enters the national meet ranked No. 8 in the NCAA with a 1.74m clear
ST. CLOUD, Minn. – St. Cloud State graduate student high jumper Paola Brena will compete at the 2023 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships this weekend at the Virginia Beach Sports Center in Virginia Beach, Virginia in search of a third collegiate All-American finish. The High Jump is scheduled for Friday, March 10 at 3:35 p.m. ET.
A graduate transfer from Franklin Pierce, Brena earned Second Team All-NSIC honors at the 2023 NSIC Indoor Championships with a season-best clear of 1.74m – a mark that stands No. 8 across the DII level and is second on the St. Cloud State Indoor career performance list. Brena is now a three-time NCAA Indoor Qualifier after advancing to the Indoor Championships in 2019 and 2020. Originally from Queretero, Mexico, she will be in search of her second collegiate Indoor All-American honor after being named an All-American by the USTFCCCA in 2020 following the cancelation of the national meet.
Brena is the eighth NCAA Indoor Qualifier under head coach Sam Kettenhofen and extends the program's streak to three straight Indoor seasons with an Indoor Qualifier – following Emelia Burris (Long Jump, 2021) and the duo of Hannah Arason (Pentathlon, 2022) and Parker Buske (Triple Jump, 2021).
QUOTING KETTENHOFEN
"As you go through the Indoor season, you're always hoping to get somebody qualified - to hit a mark that you think could go. Paola ended up hitting the mark at the conference meet to finish runner-up and rank number eight in the country. I'm excited about that, to see what she can do this weekend. At this point of the season there's not a whole lot of changes, not a whole lot of training adjustments - just a lot of making sure we're feeling good and ready to jump high."
"It's really special. It will be nice to see her jump at a National Championship. When you bring in a grad transfer with her ability, there's always a bit of a learning curve on both sides in terms of trying to figure out common language, trying to figure some things out. You want to make sure you can fix some things and change some things without taking too many steps back. She's embraced the whole process and has managed to jump really, really well. She put it together the last few weeks over the Indoor season to where we were seeing 1.72 or higher in just about every meet down the stretch. It's been a really fun process to go through, and I'm looking forward to seeing her jump on Friday."
"I'm just looking for her to be her usual self. She always shows up and is ready to high jump - she loves the high jump, and that's really apparent. As long as she's herself, competes and enjoys the overall experience I know it will go well."
QUOTABLES - ST. CLOUD STATE JUMPER PAOLA BRENA
"I'm super excited. I went to Nationals two years ago, and I feel like it's been a long time since I've been there. I'm really excited to represent a new university. It was an amazing feeling when I qualified - I know I will be competing with the best girls in the nation at Division II, I'm really excited to perform well and give my best."
On progressing through the season... "It's been difficult - a lot of patience and progress. I've known my body has the height, it was just waiting for the perfect time and the perfect meet - it finally clicked when I hit in conference. It was amazing, especially to be competing against the national champion - I felt really good, really confident and everything worked perfectly."
On her goals for the national meet... "I want to feel good. I want to go for another All-American title, of course, and I want to come close to or break my PR."
For all the latest on St. Cloud State Track & Field, stay tuned to SCSUHuskies.com and follow the team on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
A graduate transfer from Franklin Pierce, Brena earned Second Team All-NSIC honors at the 2023 NSIC Indoor Championships with a season-best clear of 1.74m – a mark that stands No. 8 across the DII level and is second on the St. Cloud State Indoor career performance list. Brena is now a three-time NCAA Indoor Qualifier after advancing to the Indoor Championships in 2019 and 2020. Originally from Queretero, Mexico, she will be in search of her second collegiate Indoor All-American honor after being named an All-American by the USTFCCCA in 2020 following the cancelation of the national meet.
Brena is the eighth NCAA Indoor Qualifier under head coach Sam Kettenhofen and extends the program's streak to three straight Indoor seasons with an Indoor Qualifier – following Emelia Burris (Long Jump, 2021) and the duo of Hannah Arason (Pentathlon, 2022) and Parker Buske (Triple Jump, 2021).
QUOTING KETTENHOFEN
"As you go through the Indoor season, you're always hoping to get somebody qualified - to hit a mark that you think could go. Paola ended up hitting the mark at the conference meet to finish runner-up and rank number eight in the country. I'm excited about that, to see what she can do this weekend. At this point of the season there's not a whole lot of changes, not a whole lot of training adjustments - just a lot of making sure we're feeling good and ready to jump high."
"It's really special. It will be nice to see her jump at a National Championship. When you bring in a grad transfer with her ability, there's always a bit of a learning curve on both sides in terms of trying to figure out common language, trying to figure some things out. You want to make sure you can fix some things and change some things without taking too many steps back. She's embraced the whole process and has managed to jump really, really well. She put it together the last few weeks over the Indoor season to where we were seeing 1.72 or higher in just about every meet down the stretch. It's been a really fun process to go through, and I'm looking forward to seeing her jump on Friday."
"I'm just looking for her to be her usual self. She always shows up and is ready to high jump - she loves the high jump, and that's really apparent. As long as she's herself, competes and enjoys the overall experience I know it will go well."
QUOTABLES - ST. CLOUD STATE JUMPER PAOLA BRENA
"I'm super excited. I went to Nationals two years ago, and I feel like it's been a long time since I've been there. I'm really excited to represent a new university. It was an amazing feeling when I qualified - I know I will be competing with the best girls in the nation at Division II, I'm really excited to perform well and give my best."
On progressing through the season... "It's been difficult - a lot of patience and progress. I've known my body has the height, it was just waiting for the perfect time and the perfect meet - it finally clicked when I hit in conference. It was amazing, especially to be competing against the national champion - I felt really good, really confident and everything worked perfectly."
On her goals for the national meet... "I want to feel good. I want to go for another All-American title, of course, and I want to come close to or break my PR."
For all the latest on St. Cloud State Track & Field, stay tuned to SCSUHuskies.com and follow the team on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Players Mentioned
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Sprints/Jumps
/ Women's Track & Field
Jumps/Throws
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