Marcella Bolha, a former three-time track MVP at YoungstownState, enters her 11th season as the jumps coach for thePenguins.
In her 10 years, the Penguins have won 20 individual conferencecrowns in jumping events, and four student-athletes have earnedspecialty awards at the Horizon League Championships. YSU has wonfive consecutive indoor high-jump crowns to go along with fourstraight outdoor high-jump titles.
In 2011-12, Katrina Rettburg continued her dominance of the highjump winning conference titles at the indoor and outdoor meets. InApril, Rettburg and Makayla Martin both set the outdoor record byclearing the bar at 1.70 meters. Rettburg added on to her schoolrecord indoors with a leap of 1.73 meters in February. For heroutdoor efforts, Martin was named the top Field Newcomer at theHorizon League Championships.
In 2010-11, Rettburg won the high jump at both the indoor andoutdoor Horizon League Championships as a freshman. Senior AlishaAnthony capped off her career with a title in the long jump duringthe outdoor slate. She was fourth in the triple jump during theoutdoor campaign as well. In indoor, she was second in the longjump and fifth in the triple jump.
Anthony qualified for the outdoor's NCAA East Regional in thelong jump, an event in which she holds the school record.
Highlighting the men's 2010-11 outdoor campaign was BryinEhrhardt's title during the outdoor high jump and Dorian Davis'ssecond-place finish in the triple jump. Darius Reeves was third inthe triple jump at the indoor league meet.
During the 2009-10 slate, both Jen Grayson and Robyn Rayfinished their careers with Horizon League championships. Graysonthe high jump at the outdoor meet while Ray took home the crown inthe indoor high jump. At the indoor meet, Bryin Ehrhardt was secondin the high jump.
Grayson had a standout career for Bohla. Grayson won four highjump championships (two indoor and two outdoor) during here careerand on four occasions placed second.
In 2009, Anthony won her second straight triple jump title atthe outdoor league meet setting a school and league record. Graysontook home top honors in the high jump.
Earlier in the year at the indoor championships, Anthony wasnamed the HL's Most Outstanding Field Performer after winning thelong jump with a distance of 5.70m and posting a second-placefinish in the triple jump. Grayson picked up a title in the highjump.
Anthony was named Newcomer of the Year in the outdoor season(2008) after winning the triple jump and finishing second in thelong jump.
As a freshman, Anthony busted onto the league scene by beingnamed Field Newcomer of the Year at the indoor championship meet.She won the long jump with a distance of 19-1 1/2, which was thefourth-longest winning mark in league history at the time.
Also in 2007-08 under Bolha's guidance, Jerrill Hall was namedthe Men's Field Newcomer of the Year in both the indoor and outdoorseasons. Hall placed second in the high jump (6-6 3/4) and sixth inthe long jump (22-1 3/4) in outdoor season
In the 2005 season Bolha helped Carly Youlton experience similarsuccess in her first season. Youlton was named the Field Performerof the Meet by winning the long jump and triple jump at the indoorleague championship meet. She then went on to set two schoolrecords at the outdoor met and placed second in the triple jump andthird in the long jump.
Marty Vieth became Bolha's first men's champion in 2006 when hewon the high jump at the Horizon League Outdoor Championships.
The best group effort came at the 2005 Horizon League IndoorChampionships when Bolha had five jumpers finish in the top six. Inaddition to Youlton's titles in the long jump and triple jump,Yandeh Joh finished second in the triple jump, Nikki Hooper placedsecond in the triple jump and Estee Rogers was sixth in the highjump.
Bolha, formerly Scaife, came to YSU from Xenia High School andmade an immediate impact being named the Mid-Contintent ConferenceNewcomer of the Year in 1995. At YSU, she led the Penguins to twoconference championships while setting the school record in theoutdoor 4x400-meter relay and the long jump in both indoor andoutdoor.
After graduating from Youngstown State in the spring of 1999with a Bachelor of Arts degree in criminal justice, Bolha moved toLakewood, Ohio, and coached middle school track for two years aswell as working as a personal trainer, substitute teacher and childcare director.
Bolha currently resides in Youngstown with her husband Bernard,the varsity boys basketball coach at Chaney High School.
