New Oxford's Jamilla Janneh is the Evening Sun's All-Area Girls' Track Athlete of the Year. (Evening Sun Photo by Shane Dunlap)
The biggest difference this year for New Oxford junior Jamilla Janneh?

Attitude and experience.

The track and field standout had undoubtedly her best season because she had hit that pivotal point in her career where she put everything together.

"She definitely practiced with a totally different attitude than in previous years," New Oxford head coach Jason Warner said of Janneh. "She came in with the attitude that she was here to work and get better at what she did."

Janneh, the All-Area Girls' Track Athlete of the Year, qualified for the PIAA Class AAA meet in the triple, long and high jumps.

She won a state bronze in the triple jump with a leap of 36-11 3/4. A week earlier in the District 3 Championships, she had piled up a third-place effort in the high jump and two fifth-place finishes in the long and triple jumps.

And, during the YAIAA Championships, Janneh scored three straight titles in the long, triple and high jumps.

"I think I did what I had to do," Janneh said of her postseason. "I was really proud of doing as well as I did.

"I expected to make it to states, though honestly I wasn't expecting the medal. To get a third-place medal, that says something."

The problem a year ago, Warner said, was Janneh had trouble making the board. This season, however, there was a stark change.

Much of 2011 cornered around balance and efficiency.

"Being consistent on the board led to a lot more," Warner said. "She had a lot of really great jumps, but when you foul by a toenail, you don't get measured. That was a big focus this season, to be consistent on the board."

It was harder than it looked, but Janneh took a better approach on the runway as a junior.

Whether that meant constantly changing her starting runway positions or switching board locations, she was focused on improving her effectiveness.

"As a sophomore, that was my biggest thing," Janneh said. "I was always inconsistent. I was either consistently on or off and so that was something I was focused on changing."

Janneh also had to delegate a heavy workload.

On top of her three jumping events, she also was a standout 100-meter sprinter. At the YAIAA Championships, she finished seventh with a time of 13.29 seconds.

Perhaps her best event, though, was the triple jump, in which she consistently leaped in the high 36-foot range through the campaign. She recorded a season-high 38-9 1/4 mark at South Western -- and, at that same meet, she did it twice.

"If you look at the final product, her best jump of the year," Warner said, "that jump was pretty darn good. That's really impressive."

Maybe the only frontier left is breaking 40 feet.

Can Janneh do it? What's the end goal as a senior?

"I feel like I can improve for next year," she said. "Each year I consistently do better, so there's no reason why I can't do better going into next year."

cmull@eveningsun.com; 717-637-3736, ext. 139