By Thomas Sellers Jr.
Munford junior Caine Robinson clears the 6-foot bar Friday afternoon during the Class 3A High Jump in Murfreesboro. Robinson finished 10th in that event and earned a fifth place finish in the Triple Jump.
MURFREESBORO — Just seconds after his last triple jump attempt in the Dean A. Hayes Stadium in Murfreesboro, Munford junior Caine Robinson collapsed to the red track. Despite competing in the Class 3A High and Triple jumps back-to-back, it wasn’t fatigue. Robinson laid on his back in frustration. Although he didn’t bring home gold in either event, the virtually unknown Tipton County product when the 2013 season started left Murfreesboro with two top 10 finishes in the state. “Today was not my best day at all,” Robinson said. “But I made a lot of progress since the beginning of the year.” In the High Jump, Robinson came in with a 6 feet, 6 inch mark. But last Friday, Robinson could only clear 6’2 good enough for 10th place. As High Jump champion K.J. Carothers of Collierville prepared to clear 6 feet, 8 inches, Robinson raced over to the Triple Jump area to start his bid for No. 1. Out of nowhere Robinson jumped into the mix landing an attempt of 44’8. But the rested Phillip Smith of West Creek and Malcolm Terry of Brighton posted jumps more than 46 feet. Robinson’s best leap of the day was good enough for fifth place and a trip to the medal stand on his first visit to State. “I had a really good year,” Robinson finally acknowledged. “I broke a lot of my own records. I broke some records at school and I had a lot of personal bests. I made it a long way. I came in the start of my junior year not doing what I did today.” The athletic junior also participated in sprints and relays for Munford Head Coach Bernard Ivie. When he picked himself up off the Murfreesboro track he was already focusing on next year. The successes of 2013 have sparked a determination for Robinson. “I’ve come a long way because I tried hard and I worked hard,” he said. “Next year is going to be different. Next year I’m going to be No. 1 in both. “Plyometrixs everyday,” Robinson declared. “And I’m sure Coach Bernard Ivie is going to have me in his front yard if he had to doing plyometrixs set up and plyometrix running. I’m going to do some weight lifting but I don’t need to get too big.” As he prepared to walk to the medal stand for the first time in his career, Robinson declared it won’t be his last trip.
“You’ll see me back here next year guaranteed,” he concluded.
