VAN BUREN – Kinley Jeffcoat enjoyed a record-breaking career over and over.

Jeffcoat set the Van Buren school record in the pole vault while she was a sophomore, then broke it at the Meet of Champs last year as a junior when she cleared 10 feet, 6 inches.

It didn't take her long to break her record, again, as she cleared 11-1 in April while competing in the Cardinal Relays at Farmington in April.

At the Meet of Champs this year, she cleared 11 feet.

Jeffcoat is the River Valley Democrat-Gazette Girls track and field Athlete of the Year.

She started pole vaulting in the seventh grade after watching her older sister, Kyla, for two years.

"My older sister Kyla pole vaulted first," Kinley Jeffcoat said. "She started in the seventh grade, and I was in the fifth grade. I thought it was pretty cool and I tried it. I just kept going."

She even bettered her sister as a freshman in the 5A-West meet, when she cleared 8-6, just ahead of Kyla.

"It was just motivation that I could be good at it," Jeffcoat said. "Passing her was when I wanted to see how far I could get in my senior year."

From that point, Kinley Jeffcoat started a steady progression and finished with three top 10 finishes in her career at the Meet of Champs, the annual event that features the top performers from all classifications.

"It's really neat, it shows that hard work can pay off," Jeffcoat said. "Without working consistently, I could have never done that."

Jeffcoat leaped 10 feet as a sophomore at the Meet of Champs and bumped that to the school-record leap last year at the Meet of Champs before bettering her school record this year.

"It's even more fun," Jeffcoat said. "Again, it's just staying consistent and seeing it over the years."

She also won the 5A-West Conference meet this year ahead of a competitive field.

"I thought there were a lot of girls that could step up and tie me," Jeffcoat said. "There were a lot of PRs set, but I was able to take first. There were a lot of good performances. Being able to perform that well was really neat."

Jeffcoat will complete collegiately at Ouachita Baptist.