(Editor’s note: this award is retroactive December 7).
This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is sophomore pole vaulter Caroline Fowlkes. On Saturday, Fowlkes won her fourth indoor track & field meet of the year at the Apex Last Chance meet at Apex High School. Fowlkes cleared nine feet for the victory. Earlier this year, Fowlkes set her new personal best at the Eastern Alamance Polar Bear #2 in Mebane, when she vaulted nine feet, six inches. With that, Fowlkes qualified for the 3A State Indoor Track & Field Championships, which takes place next Saturday at the JDL Fast Track in Winston-Salem. This is the second year in a row that Fowlkes has qualified for the state indoor championships. Last year as a freshman, she finished 14th in the state when she finished at 8 feet, six inches. Last May, Fowlkes also qualified for the outdoor state championships in the pole vault at North Carolina A&T. She finished 9th in the state championships with a vault of ten feet. Fowlkes comes from a family of pole vaulters. Her father, who competed at the University of South Alabama, is her coach. Her mother competed at the University of Florida.