Girls’ track to undergo changes
New coaching staff, loss of event
March 10, 2015
Spectators at track meets will no longer be able to watch pole vaulters fly several feet through the air.
This year, according to head coach Christine Tvrdik, there are multiple changes occurring to the coaching staff.
“We have a new distance coach, Kelson MacKenzie, a former Park grad, and Gospel Kordah, the new horizontal jumps coach, also a former Park grad,” she said.
However, with these changes, the track team will not be able to pole vault this year due to a lack of coaching staff.
“We were unable to find a coach on short notice,” Tvrdik said. “With such a technical event with a lot of liability, you want to have a coach who is properly trained with adequate experience.”
Senior captain Mikka Schacherer, who is a pole vaulter, said she is disappointed with not being able to pole vault, but understands the decision.
“(Pole vaulting is) a very dangerous and technical sport,” she said. “It makes me sad because it’s my senior year and I was looking forward to improving in my favorite sport, but I’m hopeful that we will find a coach or still find a way to be able to vault this season.”
Despite these changes, Schacherer said she looks forward to working together as a team this year.
“We have a great set of captains and we are all working really hard to make sure that track is a positive and fun environment where we can all have fun as well as improve as athletes,” Schacherer said.
Their first meet is an indoor time trial at 9:30 a.m. on Mar. 21 at the University of Minnesota.
