When Elena Stoughton first visited Bellarmine University, she wasn’t looking to attend the school.
The Columbus East senior high jumper was visiting University of Louisville with a friend, and they decided to make the short trip over to Bellarmine to take a look.
When Stoughton returned, she e-mailed Knights track and field coach Angela Hapner Musk, and that led to a conversation that eventually led to Stoughton signing a letter-of-intent to compete for Bellarmine, which is moving from Division II to Division I next year.
“At first when I applied there, I wasn’t really looking to go there,” Stoughton said. “It was just so it could be an option. Then I e-mailed the coach the week after I got back, and she e-mailed me back, and we just started talking, and she said, ‘We’d love for you to come down and visit and have a face-to-face meeting.’ So we went down there, and I just really loved the coaches and the team and everything.”
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Stoughton also visited Hanover for track and field and Indiana University and Purdue for academics only before settling on Bellarmine. She wants to major in biochemistry and molecular biology and is receiving academic and athletic scholarships.
“If I would have found somewhere that I liked better, I would have visited,” Stoughton said. “But after visiting Bellarmine, it was a lot better than the other ones.”
Stoughton also played soccer for the Olympians, along with her twin sister Lindsey. Lindsey Stoughton is headed to Marian University to play soccer.
Elena Stoughton finished second in the high jump in the Hoosier Hills Conference and was a regional qualifier as a freshman and junior and was HHC champion and a state qualifier as a sophomore. She cleared a personal-best 5 feet, 4 inches as a freshman and made a high of 5-3 each of the past two years.
Elena was hoping to make a return trip to the state finals and challenge Erin Mack’s school record of 5-6. But this year’s track and field season, along with other spring sports, has been canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic.
