Clemons jumps into bigger role

Mycaiah Clemons always knew running would be her ticket to getting a stellar education. It’s… Mycaiah Clemons always knew running would be her ticket to getting a stellar education. It’s what she’s done with that education that’s made her a different type of student-athlete. In person, she’s bubbly but humble. She works to keep her team together, but she wants to do well for herself. She’s proud of what she’s done, but she wants to do better. One of the best examples of Clemons’ character is her status as co-captain of the Pitt women’s track team, especially after last season didn’t see a captain at all. ‘It was disappointing,’ said Pitt coach Alonzo Webb of last year’s captain situation. ‘Last year [the team members] were just not strong enough to make the tough decisions that need to be made, so I just didn’t name any captains.’ It changed this year. ‘This year, Mycaiah and a few others separated themselves, and they understood that we did need the team leadership. I think she’s been a good leader so far, and the kids like her. She’s tough on them when she needs to be, but she’s also understanding. She cares about what she’s doing.’ Growing up in New Kensington, which is just northwest of Pittsburgh, Clemons was raised in an athletic family. Her older and younger brothers played football, baseball and basketball. She and her older sister ran track and briefly played basketball. All of the Clemons kids knew that athletics could be their ticket to college. ‘[Running] was how we were going to get our schooling paid for,’ said Clemons. ‘Growing up, it was either run or don’t go to college.’ After excelling in track at Valley High School ‘mdash; she was named an All-American her senior year ‘mdash; Clemons decided to take her talents away from home and head to Blacksburg, Va., to run for Lawrence Johnson at Virginia Tech. ‘[Virginia] Tech was a good school academically,’ said Clemons. ‘And his track program worked in a way that would take me to the next level athletically.’ That next level ‘mdash; the Olympics ‘mdash; was a goal of hers. But a mix of homesickness and some disagreements with the coaches led Clemons back home to join a program that she was familiar with for her sophomore year. And because of the violence that conspired on Virginia Tech’s campus on April 16, 2007 ‘mdash; the year after Clemons left ‘mdash; she feels that she might’ve been meant to return to Pittsburgh. ‘[The shooting] didn’t really affect me too much, but I felt bad for everybody else that was there,’ said Clemons. ‘It was shocking, because I could be down there. Some people said, ‘Well maybe it was a sign from God that you were supposed to leave,’ because I could’ve been in that building.’ Since she’s been here, Clemons has undoubtedly made her mark. In addition to stepping up as a leader and captain of her team, she broke the school record in the 60-meter hurdles at the Big East Indoor Championships last season. She took second in the event, missing first by only .06 seconds. ‘Knowing that my name is going to be in the history books forever is something that was really exciting to me,’ said Clemons. ‘But I don’t want to leave it at that, I want to do something bigger. My accomplishments will be set this year, for sure.’ For her senior season, Clemons hopes to win the Big East Indoor competition in both the 60-meter hurdles and 60-meter sprint, in addition to the outdoor 100-meter hurdles. After that happens, she has her eyes set on breaking school records in both hurdling events and making indoor and outdoor nationals. All of this, and she still manages a 4.0 grade-point average. ‘It’s a lot to do if you’re looking to just have a fun social time in college,’ said Clemons. ‘It’s not anything above and beyond for me. I just make sure I get done what needs to be done before it needs to be done. And that’s it.’ Webb has a similar outlook. ‘ ‘She’s really focused, she cares about being good, and she wants to be the best,’ said Webb. ‘She wants to eventually qualify for nationals, and I think she’ll do it this year. She’s been working hard for it.’ Clemens will continue to work hard both on and off the track. And she knows if she slacks off, it’s her own fault. ‘At the end of the day, coach is not going to be sitting at your desk beside you, making sure you’re doing your work,’ said Clemons. ‘Coach isn’t going to be the one on the track, running your legs, making sure they move fast. It’s all about you making sure that you get that done, and you practice to that point and you study to that point where you can get down there and make the grades and make the times.’