Once They Turned Out, Trio Was Right On Track

Their coach said they had to be talked into turning out for track as Freeman freshmen.

Now that they are seniors, Ryan Bates, Andy Schmidt and Jason Harless have been integral parts in one of the school’s best seasons.

All three compete in four events, including two relay teams, and are among 25 Freeman boys and girls participating in today’s District 7 A track finals at Central Valley High School.

Besides running on an area-best 4x100 relay team and the 4x400 team, Bates is a sprinter; Schmidt is a sprinter-pole vaulter; and Harless is perhaps the Northeast A League’s best hurdler.

“It’s quite a crew for me,” said Scotties coach John Hays. “It started out they weren’t going to come out for track, kind of take it easy in spring. Now they are in position to make it to state.”

At district, top two individuals and relays qualify for next weekend’s State A meet.

Harless qualified No. 1 to districts in both the high and low hurdles. The trio, with Bill DePell, won the short relay in preliminaries and, with Steve Simmons, finished a close third in the longer run. Schmidt is among the pole vault favorites.

Actually, Harless said he always planned on participating in track. It was Bates and Schmidt who had to be talked into turning out.

“Coach said we weren’t doing anything else,” said Bates, “So we might as well come out.”

When Bates did, Schmidt joined him, saying, “We decided to pole vault together as freshmen.”

Both have since cleared 12-6. Bates qualified for state his sophomore year. Schmidt was a place away.

Then Bates injured his shoulder and underwent surgery, missing last season. Schmidt again took third.

“I thought, after surgery, I’d be fine to pole vault again,” said Bates.

He cleared 10-6 at Ferris early in spring, but a bad crash factored in his decision to stick with sprinting. Schmidt misses his company.

“We pushed each other a lot,” he said. “I’m kind of struggling a bit.”

Schmidt did qualify second in last week’s preliminary meet. He also made the finals in the 200, while Bates made the finals of the 100.

The soft-spoken Harless has improved each of his four years in the Freeman program. He lowered his best time by 1.5 seconds between his sophomore and junior year.

After missing several meets this year because of an ankle sprain, he has come back to improve even more, clocking 16.2 in the high hurdles and 42.3 in the 300 intermediates.

“I want to break the school record in the intermediates,” said Harless. “I don’t know about the highs. I want to get in the 15s (seconds).”

And for all three, the relays have taken on added importance. Last week they ran a league-best 45.5 in the shorter race. In the longer, it took Bates and Schmidt a bit to adjust to 400 meters.

“It’s the worst race you can run,” said Bates, who leads off.

Being anchor, said Schmidt, provides its benefits.

“When you start out, you wonder what you’re doing,” he said. “When you round the turn, and the crowd goes crazy, it’s pretty cool.”

And the team is not far away from a state trip.

Beyond their talent, Hays has relied on the trio for leadership.

“Our team has worked harder than ever in practice because of these guys,” said their coach. “Because of them the younger kids will be successful in the future.”

The three, he said, are good friends who will be missed.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: FREEMAN DISTRICT QUALIFIERS

Boys participants Ryan Bates, 100, relays; Andy Schmidt, 200, pole vault, relays; Jason Harless, 110 hurdles, 300 hurdles, relays; John Russell, 800, 1,600, 3,200; Joe Russell, 1,600, 3,200; Tom Ward, 800; Jason Gregor, 110 hurdles, 300 hurdles, high jump; Gary Mills, 300 hurdles; Bill DePell, 4x100 relay; Steve Simmons, 4x400 relay, high jump, triple jump; Josh Johnson, discus; Todd Simmons, shot put; Lance Rasmussen, shot put; Jeff Wigen, pole vault; Nolan Charbonneau, pole vault; Pat Erickson, javelin.

Girls participants Sarah Pratt, 200, 400, 4x100 relay, 4x400 relay; Sadie Kalstad, 400, 4x100 relay, 4x400 relay; Heather Wilkerson, 800 4x200 relay; Jami Harless, 300 hurdles, 4x100 relay, 4x400 relay; Kim Davey, discus, 4x100 relay, 4x400 relay; Tracie Duncan, 1,600, 3,200, 4x200 relay; Melissa Litzgow, 3,200, 4x200 relay; Jordan Moberg, shot put, discus; Sara Gruber, 4x200 relay.