By John Frierson
Staff Writer

There is no end to the things you can learn while in college. 

“One of my favorite things so far that I’ve learned this semester is how to tackle a sheep,” said Skylynn Townsend, a Georgia track and field sophomore who is studying to become a veterinarian.

“It’s just a process where we have to check their eyes for different parasites and make sure they’re not anemic. … I’ve never worked with farm animals before, so being up close with all of them, like horses and cows, it’s totally different — and smells totally bad.”

Townsend started out majoring in Biomedical Physiology before changing it to Animal Biosciences.

“I feel like I’d rather take care of animals than humans,” she said. “Ever since I was young, I’ve really loved animals. I had one dog, her name was Sophie, and she passed away in 2024. She was my best friend, and I really loved taking care of her.”

Townsend is taking care of business on the track. As a freshman last year, she placed third in the triple jump at the SEC Indoor Championships, and later placed sixth at the NCAA Outdoor meet, earning All-America honors and helping the Georgia women win the program’s first outdoor national championship.

At the 2026 SEC Indoor Championships last month, Townsend won the triple jump title with a career-best leap of 44 feet 3.50 inches. She took the lead after her opening jump and then had fouls on her next three attempts. Her final jump was her best, giving her the win by about 8 inches over teammate Danah Nembhard.

“On my last jump, I was definitely more aggressive. I thought I had nothing to lose at that point, since I was already in first place, so I might as well just go for it,” Townsend said.

Townsend went for it and nailed it. Now, she and the second-ranked Bulldogs head to the NCAA Indoor Championships this week at Arkansas. Townsend’s top mark ranks seventh in the country this indoor season.

A serious gymnast when she was younger, Townsend first started doing the triple jump as a freshman in high school. She was the 2023-24 Gatorade Player of the Year for Texas girls track and field, and she won the USA Track and Field Under-20 Championships before coming to Georgia. She started off her collegiate career in strong fashion as a freshman, and said she’s improved a lot since last season.

“I’ve definitely gotten a lot stronger and a lot faster, as well. I think that contributes a lot for jumps, so training has been going well. I’m hitting new (personal records) in the weight room,” she said. “I’d say I’ve improved a good 10%.”

Trying to improve 10% every day is something of a mantra for Georgia track and field student-athletes.

“That’s definitely the goal,” Townsend said. “Even though every day isn’t perfect, I still push forward and try to get better every single day.”

Townsend is the latest standout triple jumper at Georgia. Keturah Orji, a three-time Olympian, won seven NCAA titles in the event during her legendary career (three indoor, four outdoor), as well as one NCAA title in the long jump, and she’s the only Bulldog to ever win the Bowerman Award, which is like the Heisman Trophy for track and field. Jasmine Moore won the SEC Indoor title in the triple jump in 2020 and 2021, and Mikeisha Welcome won it in 2024.

Being at a program with a great history in the jumps is important to Townsend, who wants to make her mark before she’s done.

“It really means a lot. Honestly, knowing that Keturah and Jasmine were here at one point — I see their records flash on the TV next to the locker room all the time — so knowing that I’m here at a jump school, with the Bowerman (trophy) literally right behind us as we sit here, it feels great to be a part of it.”

If you’ve seen how fast Townsend sprints down the runway while doing the triple jump, you know those sheep don’t stand a chance.

“Tackling sheep is definitely strange, and definitely new for me,” Townsend said.

Assistant Sports Communications Director John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men’s Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files.