North Cook News

Timber Terrell needs to get done jumping before she starts spiking.

A senior at Wheeling High School who will be taking her volleyball game to Arkansas State in the fall, Terrell is one of the top triple-jumpers in Illinois, according to yearly performances listed on athletic.net. 

During the Bruce Ritter Invitational in Downers Grove on April 13, Terrell jumped 38 feet, 9 inches, which ranked third among all Illinois high-school triple-jumpers and second among jumpers in Class 3A as of May 2. Only Jaimie Robinson of Class 3A Homewood-Flossmoor (40-8) and Serena Bolden of Class 2A Southeast (39-8) had better jumps.

Robinson told the North Cook News that she got into track during her freshman year “to just have fun” and because the upperclassmen on the volleyball team whom she looked up to also ran track. 

Then she realized how much she liked it.

“I instantly fell in love with how independent you can be in track even though it's so team-based because you're running and jumping for your teammates and coaches,” she said.

While not serious about jumping at first, Terrell qualified for the state meet in the triple jump as a sophomore, then earned eighth place in the event last year as a junior. The volleyball training — which involves “non-stop jumping” for club volleyball  — has aided her development in the triple jump.  She also got a boost from others around her.

“My mentality and the support from my coaches really played a huge role in my improvement because they built up my confidence in triple jump,” she said.

Terrell has found parts of triple-jumping she likes beyond the individuality.

“Triple jump has so many boards you can jump off of, or you can switch what leg you jump off of,” she said. “I like how diverse the event can be and how much it [strengthens] my mentality because when I jump it's all on me.”

Since she won't take part in track and field at Arkansas State, this year represents Terrell's last shot at placing in the event at a major meet.

“My goal is to get top three at state for triple jump this year because I know that if I go in with the right mindset, it will happen," she said. "I also would like to do that for my coaches and teammates to show them that they helped me get to where I am today."