Tiffany Maskulinski has broken records with her flight. She has also had moments where she

could not stand.

Today, she will finally compete for an opportunity to advance to the NCAA Track and Field

Championship finals.

Maskulinski, a University at Buffalo pole vaulter, will contend in the qualifying round at

7:15 p.m. in Fayetteville, Ark. She is the first UB women's vaulter to make the national

finals since Laura Olson reached the 2004 indoor and 2005 outdoor championships.

In her career, Maskulinski has faced 15 mile-per-hour crosswinds and 20 mile-per-hour

headwinds. But resistance is nothing new for the junior.

Maskulinski, who set national high school indoor (13 feet, 5" inches) and outdoor (14-0)

records at Iroquois, transferred to the University at Buffalo from Washington State University

in 2006. Her transition quickly included one to the sidelines.

One morning, she took a step and felt a shock in her spine. She had suffered from chronic back

problems after battling scoliosis as a child, and this time doctors found degenerating disks

at the base of her spine. On some mornings, the pain was so acute that she could not walk.

Maskulinski was forced to take a year off from vaulting to strengthen her back muscles.

"I was pretty miserable," she said. "It took a month for the pain to subside, but once I

started feeling better, I became more hopeful."

By August 2007, Tiffany was leaping at heights of 13 feet again. Her condition meant she had

to make changes to her step off the runway and her swing off the stretch. They worked, and she

began to return to form.

"She is very skilled at making on-the-spot adjustments," said UB women's head track and field

coach Vicki Mitchell. "Whereas many athletes are just going to do it, she's very deliberate.

She's a student of the sport."

Track and field meets have been a staple in the Maskulinski family since brother Jeff ran and

Tiffany watched from a stroller. Jeff, Jill and Brian ran track while Tiffany opted to vault.

Now they watch as 22-year-old Tiffany flies.

While some families meet on holidays, the Maskulinskis gather on Saturdays.

"It's funny," Jeff said. "You're at a track meet at some school, and there's my brother and my

sister. And my mom's standing there officiating."

All three of Tiffany's siblings, who also went to Iroquois, coach track and field at Section

VI high schools. Jeff, 30, is the head outdoor coach at his alma mater. Jill, 28, is a coach

at Maryvale. Brian, 25, is a coach at West Seneca West and Maryvale. Nancy, their mother,

officiates eight meets a year and volunteers at even more.

On April 19, 2008, Tiffany established an NCAA East Regional qualifying mark with a leap of

12-8—, her season-best performance. It was a usual family gathering. What Tiffany didn't

realize was it was the last time they'd all be together.

Dennis Maskulinski, her father, died three days later from heart failure.

"At first it was tough to compete," Tiffany said. "I was not totally there mentally. I would

think about how he looked on the sideline while he watched me. "He's not here.'"

Tiffany also began to struggle with a mysterious ailment that was eventually diagnosed as

vitamin B12 deficiency. After suffering from fatigue, numbness and frequent sickness, she

began receiving monthly injections of B12. She recovered shortly, but not in time to compete

in the 2008 NCAA indoor national championships. She was forced to sit out.

"She wasn't able to perform as she wanted to," said vaulting coach Tim Beach. "She was

determined to try, but really we just had to hold her back."

There's no holding her back now.

Tiffany cleared a season-best height of 13-1— to become one of five individuals to earn an

automatic bid to the NCAA national championships. Maskulinski earned All-East honors for the

second time in her career.

Tiffany said she would like to break Olson's UB record of 13-5—. She'd really like to fly over

14-6.

"Having this opportunity means a lot," she said. "In high school, I expected to win a

championship every year. I've learned life doesn't work that way; it doesn't go according to

plan."

"Track and field gave her endurance," her mother said. "It is a process where you build over a

four-year period. . . . There's always an opportunity tomorrow."

Or for Tiffany, today.