Westlake High senior Paige Sommers discusses her decision to sign with Duke in an interview conducted Nov. 11, 2020, the first day of the National Letter of Intent signing period. Sommers, the top girls pole vault recruit in the U.S., selected Duke over Stanford, Michigan, Washington and Georgia among a reported 18 schools that made offers to the California record-holder. Last February, just as the 2020 outdoor season was getting underway, Sommers cleared 14-6 at the Thousand Oaks Invitational to set a CA State Record.
Her clearance is the highest ever by a junior in high school and now ranks fifth all time in high school history.
Highlights of Paige from the Thousand Oaks Invitational
While the CIF outdoor season was lost to the COVID-19 pandemic in mid-March, Sommers was able to compete in open competitions this summer, where she cleared 14-0 in June and 14-1 in July.