TIFTON, GA – Success can be defined in a number of different ways. No matter which definition you choose, Katie Utley, a Tift County senior pole vaulter, has had a successful career with the Blue Devils. A relative latecomer to the sport of pole vaulting – she didn’t start until the eighth grade – Utley is leaving Tift County High with three state titles, a state runner-up, and the 6A state record.

Growing up, Utley tried a number of different sports. Her mother suggested that she add one more. She knew Charlie Polhamus, an accomplished pole vaulter and coach who lives in Fitzgerald. Utley obliged and within a year of taking up the sport, she had a state title to her credit. “Pole vaulting was always fun, from the first time I tried it. Then when I won that state title, I realized I was pretty good at it,” she says.

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