AUBURN, Ala. – A seasoned high jumper in her final collegiate competition, a West Coast transplant triple jumper finding a new home on the Plains, and a school record-holder from Zimbabwe.
Three Auburn women: high jumper Sanaa Barnes, triple jumper Simone Johnson and 400m runner Vimbayi Maisvorewa will represent the Tigers this weekend at the 2024 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships in Boston.
"I'm very blessed to be part of the Auburn family and I am excited to represent it," Barnes said.
Call it Sanaa's last hurrah.
"I'm excited. I don't think it's hit me that this is my last college competition," Barnes said. "I haven't felt that bittersweetness yet. I'm ready to see what I'm going to do out there."
Barnes will be making her third appearance at NCAA indoors.
"I'm very blessed to have had so many opportunities to go to nationals," she said. "God has definitely covered me and given me the opportunity to be at these nationals, so I feel like it's my duty to go and make it count."
A five-time All-American and three-time Big East champion at Villanova, Barnes transferred to Auburn last year, welcoming the level of competition she encounters at each SEC meet.
"It's challenged me," she said. "I've had to go up against a lot of my big-time competitors over and over again. I see them very often. It's challenged me to adapt. It's fun to challenge yourself and continue to have to grow."
In what Barnes calls an "emotional event," she seeks to stay composed.
"I think I do a good job of controlling my emotions," she said. "It's a matter of being able to stay composed and focused throughout the entire competition. High jump is a mentally tough competition. I think I have a lot of mental toughness.
"It's a very technical event. If my technique is off, I might have to cover it up with my height. If my height is off, I have to be perfect technically. When they all come together, it's a beautiful thing."
High jumper Sanna Barnes
Johnson, a native of Fresno, California, came to the Plains this year after three seasons at San Diego State.
"I am beyond blessed to have an out-of-state experience," she said. "It's very welcoming. The Auburn family and Auburn pride is such a surreal feeling. It's definitely a community here and people show you that support all the time."
Similar to Barnes' high jump perspective, Johnson believes physical ability is only part of the success equation for triple jumpers.
"I enjoy triple jump because of how technical the event is," said Johnson, who is making her second NCAA indoors appearance. "It embodies the way that track is a mental sport. It's a mental challenge because we have so much time between each attempt to remain strong and calm and execute."
Joining the conference which proclaims in its slogan that "It Just Means More," Johnson agrees.
"Having my first SEC meet, the energy is totally different," said Johson, who intends to compete again for Auburn next year. "It is everything they say it is."
Johnson, who first began triple jumping as a high school sophomore, appreciates the opportunity to compete alongside two of her teammates in Boston.
"It embodies that family feeling," she said. "These are two really big dogs in the NCAA at the same time. To be with each other and support each other, it's going to be cool."
Triple jumper Simone Johnson
Maisvorewa enters her first NCAA indoors after breaking the school record in the women's 400m (52.16) at SECs.
"I love 400 meters for so many reasons," she said. "It's more of a mind race because you have to plan your race to be able to execute the 400 meters. I'm still learning but to be able to run my PR during the competition shows me I'm improving."
With two laps around a 200m track, Maisvorewa tries to balance being at the front of the pack after the first lap with saving something for the second.
"It can slow you down if people are in front of you," she said. "The target is to be in front, then you can maintain. You have to keep pushing yourself to the end."
Before coming to the Plains, Maisvorewa attended junior college in Kansas after arriving from Africa.
"I love the coach (Lacena Golding-Clarke)," she said. "That's what made me most come to Auburn."
Maisvorewa also enjoys having two teammates with her at NCAA indoors.
"Going by yourself can be challenging," she said. "It's exciting and amazing for me to be able to travel with these two ladies.
"As an international student-athlete, when you're far from home, you have to remember why you're here and to keep chasing your dreams. There's nothing that will be able to stop you if stay focused and know what you want to accomplish.
"That's me. I'm focusing on my dreams and I know I will achieve them if I stay focused."
400m runner Vimbayi Maisvorewa
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer
