TUSCALOOSA | She settles one foot at a time into the block and stretches her arms out in front of her, waiting for the sound of the starter’s pistol to signal one of the most powerful moves in all of sports — a sprinter’s burst out of the blocks.

Trish Bartholomew, a University of Alabama 200- and 400-meter All-American sprinter, credits her start as the strength of her abilities.

“It’s just really powerful and it gives me an advantage,” Bartholomew said. “The start is the most important part of the race for me.”

Bartholomew will run in the Alabama Relays beginning today at the UA Sam Bailey Track & Field Stadium.

She is in her second year at UA, after transferring from the Essex County College in Newark, N.J., where she was a three-time All-American in the 400, 600 and 4x400 relay.

The St. Andrews, Grenada native had an injury riddled first year at the Capstone, spending October through February dealing with a nagging hamstring issue.

Coach Sandy Fowler said the turning point for last season was when the team traveled to New York for a meet.

“She stood next to me kind of leaning on the track and she said ‘coach Fowler, I think I just figured some things out that I just need to do and it’s me and it’s Trish,’ “ Fowler said. “She stepped over the barrier right then.”

Bartholomew has taken that boost in confidence and used it to propel her to a standout indoor season this year.

She finished runner-up in the 400 at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships earlier this month clocking a 52.37. Miami’s Krista Simkins took the top honor with a 52.16.

“Last year gave me a lot more experience knowing what I need to work on,” Bartholomew said of last season’s struggles. “But I turned it around and finished seventh in last year’s outdoor 400 and it kind of built from there.

“My goal was to win [this year’s indoor 400] but at that moment [Simkins] was better than me. Second was good to me.”

Bartholomew said the warmer climate coming to Alabama from N.J. and the facilities have made training easier.

“[Climate] has a big affect because we didn’t have very many outdoor races in New Jersey,” Bartholomew said. “It’s a big difference. We didn’t have an indoor or outdoor track so we trained on the basketball court, which gave me a lot of shin splints.

Bartholomew said she is expecting to better her 400 time and qualify for NCAA Regionals in the 200.

Fowler said her team is a favorite along with Western Michigan in the Alabama Relays.

“I think we’re going to do well,” Fowler said. “We’ve got a couple of injuries, but we should have a great competition. Coming off of spring break, we’re rested a little bit and recovered from some nagging ailments and we should be ready to go.”

Reach Aaron Suttles at aaron.suttles@tuscaloosanews.com or at 205-722-0229.