Five-Time Virginia Tech All-American Hunter Hall is in his third season as volunteer pole vault coach for the Tribe in 2016-2017. Hunter began his volunteer coaching career assisting Virginia Tech pole vault guru Bob Phillips as well as serving his athletic tenure under his watch. Hunter credits Bob with his coaching style and knowledge. Bob showed Hunter how much of an impact a volunteer could make on a program, student-athletes, and pole vaulting tradition at a college.
Hunter arrived at William & Mary in July of 2014 to serve as a Videographer and Multimedia Producer within the office of University Marketing and Advancement Communications. Hunter previously served as a media specialist for the Virginia Tech Schiffert Health Center.
During 2015-16, Hall helped Derek O'Connell become the Tribe's first-ever All-American in the pole vault, as O'Connell finished seventh at the NCAA Indoor Championships. His winter included the seven-best vaults ever at W&M, including a school-record 5.42m (17-9.25) to earn his first NCAA bid, and he also won the IC4A title for the first time since 1977. Also during the indoor season, Alex Hedrick finished fourth at the IC4A heptathlon and broke his own school record by more than 100 points, and women's sophomore Jacqueline Meeks cleared 3.70m (12-1.5) to qualify for the ECAC Championships for the first time. Outdoors, O'Connell became the CAA's first-ever three-time vault champion, leading the Tribe to a sweep of the top-five spots in the event. O'Connell went on to break his outdoor record with a vault of 5.36m (17-7) to unify the IC4A Championship titles. Hedrick also had a strong spring, finishing second in the CAA decathlon and fourth in the IC4A with a lifetime-best 6,127 points.
In his first season coaching with the Tribe, Hall helped coach five athletes to lifetime personal bests in the pole vault. Senior Lizzie Powell capped off her collegiate career with a 13’8” clearance indoors, Junior Derek O’Connell jumped 17’4.5” to set a conference record and new personal best. In the same meet, sophomore Lucas Wratschko jumped 16’3” to secure a silver medal at the conference. Sophomore Alex Hedrick set a personal best clearance during his route to becoming CAA Decathlon Champion with a mark of 14’11."
A native of Fort Wayne, Indiana, Hall was a five-time All-American (Indoor 2009, Outdoor 2009, Indoor 2011, Outdoor 2011, Outdoor 2012) as well as a two-time ACC Conference champion, once indoors in 2010 and once outdoors in 2012. He achieved a personal best height of 5.42 meters (17’9.25”) and comes from a long line of pole vaulters. (Grandfather, Charlie Hall 13’6”, Uncle Rob Hall 16’6”, Father Randy Hall 18’2”, Brother Hudson Hall 15’0” currently attending Liberty University.)
When he is not holding a camera or sitting in the edit bay, he is at home hanging out with his wife (head women's cross country Natalie) and son, Holden, or out at the track coaching the Tribe pole vaulters.
