As a freshman, Josh Schroder was nearly cut as a pole vaulter
for the San Benito track team.
Hollister – As a freshman, Josh Schroder was nearly cut as a pole vaulter for the San Benito track team.
Thursday, the senior signed a letter-of-intent to accept a partial scholarship to compete for Cal State Northridge.
“Four years ago the guy showed up right after basketball season and I almost cut him,” Haybalers vaulting coach Julio Trinidad said. “But I said I’d give him a try. … Sophomore year he really took to it. That thing took over his life. That’s when we gave him the nickname ‘Future’ because we knew he had a future as a big-time vaulter.”
Schroder was intrigued by Northridge because it’s the only school he spoke with that offers both an indoor and outdoor season.
“It’s very exciting for me,” Schroder said. “I put all my time and effort into this and it paid off. Now I have something to look forward to after high school.”
Schroder plans to study civil engineering and is equally excited about the opportunity to earn a top-flight education.
“They say people who complete the major all the way usually have jobs lined up when they graduate,” Schroder said.
He’ll be entering a program with a strong history of success. The men’s team has won the past two Big West Conference championships and the vault coach, Bridget Pearson, is a former CIF state champion while at Hoover High and also competed at powerhouse UCLA.
“That’s the whole deal since we started this crusade in the vaults,” Trinidad said of Schroder’s signing. “We started this for this reason.”
As a strong safety on the football team, Schroder had a strong campaign and finished with 48 tackles and shared team-high honors with nine tackles in the Prune Bowl victory over Gilroy.
“Football helped me a lot with the lifting to help me get up to 170 pounds,” Schroder said.
Schroder, along with former ‘Baler vaulter Todd Merrigan, qualified for the CIF State Track and Field last season and both finished among a large group tied for 11th. So far this season, he’s broken the school record with a clearance of 15-9 1/4.
With the Tri-County Athletic League championships upcoming next week, and the Central Coast Section championships to follow, Schroder is hoping to get himself ready for another run at the state meet.
“I’ve just got to fix down the runway,” he said.
