Maryland Eastern Shore freshman Vanessa Henry finished 10th in the women's shot put at the 2009 USA Junior Outdoor Track & Field Championships at the University of Oregon's Hayward Field Friday.

Henry's mark of 14.04 meters left her just shy of a berth in the top eight and a spot in the event finals. She did, however, top no fewer than nine student-athletes from Division I institutions in the 22-competitor field.

Anastasia Jelmini, an unattached athlete, captured the title with her second throw of the day, a toss of 16.15 meters,

The USA Junior Outdoor Track & Field Championships are open to American-born athletes ages 14-20. The event serves as the selection meet for the 2009 Pan-American Junior Athletics Championships at Hasley Crawford Stadium in Port of Spain, Trinidad from July 31-Aug. 2.  The top two finishers in each event qualify.

Henry was the second UMES student-athlete to represent the Lady Hawks at the USA Junior Outdoor Track and Field Championships in as many seasons. Sophomore Danai Lendor  ran the 400 meters in the 2008 event at The Ohio State University.