Brittney Jackson: Patch Top Senior Female Athlete of Spring 2010

Columbia's Brittney Jackson graduated two weeks ago as one of the best and most decorated athletes in the school's history. Listing all of her awards and honors through four years of a dominant track and field career would be about as lengthy as counting yard markers on a football field.

Simply put, Brittney won just about everything a high school athlete can win. She is the winner of a state record in 19 individual county championships. She was fifth in the nation in the 800 meters two weeks ago at the national championships in North Carolina. She won the conference, county, section and group in the 800 and finished second in the state. As a team, the Cougar girls captured the conference, county, North II Group 4 section, Group 4 and a national championship.

"I enjoyed this spring. It was my favorite season out of all four years. It was the most memorable and special one too," Jackson said. "Not only because it was my last season, but it was the prime of my high school career and I got to enjoy it with my team and we did great things. I just think I really ended it with a bang."

In the high jump, her second event, Jackson won the section, conference and county this spring. She captured the section in the 400 hurdles and took second in all of Group 4. Had it not been for a fall at the Meet of Champions, she likely would've placed in the event there as well, coming in as the No. 2 seed.

Jackson's point production for the Cougars was rivaled by only Kayann Richards on the Cougars and by very few others throughout the state. She's proven that she can score in relays, she can win 1,600s (as she did during indoor season in the county and conference), 400s, hurdles, high jumps and of course the 800.

She was a member of the fastest 4x400 team in state history this season (the same team finished second in the nation two weeks ago), and was anchor of the third fastest sprint medley relay team in the country.

"She helped to shape my team. She was one of my stars," said Columbia head coach Lisa Morgan. "I guess she goes off as one of the best athletes I have ever coached."

As a naturally gifted athlete, a multiple time All-American and a four-time junior national championship winner, Jackson has been an impact track athlete since she stepped foot in Columbia High School. As a 14-year-old, after winning four junior national track championships, Brittney was chosen as the New York Post/1010 WINS Radio Tomorrow Newsmaker. In January of this year, she was featured in Sports Illustrated's "Faces in The Crowd."

But for as much glory, acclaim and relative fame as Jackson has earned throughout the county, state and on the national level, to hear Morgan tell it, this is only the beginning. It's scary to think that the girl who is likely already running out of room on her shelf to hold all of her medals and trophies is not even close to being as good as she can be.

She'll take her next step at the University of Tennessee this fall, under the tutelage of CHS graduate and former teammate of Morgan, head coach J.J. Clark, who has led the Lady Vols to two national championships since taking over in 2003. Clark is also younger brother to the most famous track athlete in CHS history, four-time Olympian Joetta Clark, and a runner that Jackson admires greatly.

"I expect to build my success like a ladder," Jackson said. "I don't want to reach my peak freshman year and have nothing left senior year. I have expectations. I have goals I wasn't to reach. Each year the goals will get higher and higher."

Along with getting stronger, Morgan said the number one thing that Brittney needs to work on is her race strategy. She has a tendency to go out too fast, which is something that Morgan said she wanted to temper, but not to kill. She said that you always want a kid who is going to run as hard as he or she can all of the time.

"It was hard for me because you don't want to kill that heart," Morgan said.

Going out too fast has plagued Brittney a few times throughout her career, though more often than not she comes through for the team. Most notably, in the last two national championships, Brittney was handed the baton with a lead as anchor of the SMR, but got too anxious and went out too fast in the opening 400. Both times the result was her being caught from behind after running out of gas in the final 200.

"Definitely I did not show out like the way Brittney Jackson can run. I got a little carried away," she said. "I regret every time I let my team down. I know I didn't let them down much, but at big moments, like this past nationals when we did lose the sprint meds, I regret that. Because I know what I did wrong, and I can't believe I did it."

But these are the lessons an athlete has to learn, says Morgan. And, at the next level, Jackson will not only have better race strategy, she'll have the strength and endurance to not run out of gas when she goes out too fast.

"I would have to say that right now Brittney is a 2:04 or a 2:05 runner," Morgan said. "Once she learns to run with poise and go out slower and finish stronger and not go out like a madhouse."

But even with going out too fast, her fastest mark in the 800 of 2:08 would've put Brittney in the top 10 in the NCAA Championships this season. Looking at her times, there's no reason to believe that she won't be an immediate contributor.

"I know I'm better than a 2:08 runner," Jackson said. "Even though I ran 2:08, I know I'm a 2:06 runner right now."

"I think she'll make an immediate impact," Morgan said. "She has not even scratched the surface of her ability."

Aside from possibly chasing an Olympic dream, which Morgan says is a possibility, Brittney said that she wants to pursue a career in the field of communications, though she's not sure what specifically she would like to do.

She's running in her last high school national championship this weekend in Oregon and will then try to enjoy a little down time before college begins in the fall.