As an eighth-grader at Southside School, Ali Schmidt ran the
mile in P.E. as fast as she could
”
just to get it over with.
”
She didn’t particularly like to run, but the quicker she got it
done, the earlier she could sit in the shade and rest.
As an eighth-grader at Southside School, Ali Schmidt ran the mile in P.E. as fast as she could “just to get it over with.” She didn’t particularly like to run, but the quicker she got it done, the earlier she could sit in the shade and rest.
Schmidt, who was running faster than anyone, caught the attention of her P.E. teacher and the principal of Southside School. The pair lobbied heartily for Schmidt to run at the Junior High track and field meet, which had the all the local junior high schools participating.
Schmidt ran and the rest is history.
She won the mile run and the 800, then said to herself, what the heck? Why not run the 400? She won that, too.
Schmidt, now a senior scholar/athlete at Hollister High, hasn’t lost many races since that fateful day in eighth grade.
“After I won those races in eighth grade and won those medals, I really started to like running,” said Schmidt. “I found something I was good in.”
Schmidt will run the 800 and 1,600 meters Saturday in the Tri-County Athletic League track and field meet at Hartnell College in Salinas. Though she won the Monterey Bay League title the past three years in the 3,200, she may not go for the four-peat. If she did, she could have a chance at achieving what no other Baler runner has ever done – winning a varsity distance title all four years.
“If our team needs the points, I’ll run the 3,200,” said Schmidt, who is favored to repeat as the 1,600 champ on Saturday. “I’ve been working at the 800 and coach feels that’s where I can do best at CCS.”
Schmidt has a PR of 2:34 in the 800, despite running it in competition just three times this season.
“Ali likes the 800 better now,” said Baler girls coach Jennifer Logue. “She can improve her time, but she’ll have to start out faster. I expect she can run in the low 2:20’s. It may not be on Saturday, but probably in the CCS regionals when she has stiffer competition.”
“When I played soccer we did a lot of speed running,” said Schmidt. “That really helped my strength. I feel real strong when I run the 800.”
Schmidt’s PR in the 1,600 is 5:20 and 11:37 in the 3,200. Her sophomore year, she ran 11:43.74 in the 3,200 for ninth place at CCS, her best ever finish there.
“I’d get my tail kicked this year at CCS,” she said with a laugh, albeit realistically. “There are so many great freshmen and sophomore runners. It’s like, ‘Where did they come from?'”
Cross country
Schmidt ran cross-country her sophomore and junior years. As a sophomore, she was competing for the lead at the MBL championships when the pain in her hip forced to drop out.
“I had a small fracture and it was cutting into the muscle,” said Schmidt. “That was one of my worst experiences because I couldn’t help the team.”
Then, as a junior, her hip started bothering her right at the start of the season, which hindered her practice time. She stuck with it and eventually won the MBL cross-country title.
This year, however, she opted not to go out for the grueling distance sport.
“I really don’t like cross-country that much,” she admitted. “In the summer, I had to practice alone. Then I had a job during the summer, too. In the fall, I was concentrating on getting into college and I wanted to go to dances and enjoy myself.”
Soccer and sportsmanship
Schmidt played soccer and competed for a starting job in the midfield. She was beat out by her good friend, Kory Case, who runs the hurdles and 4X400 relay on the Baler track team.
“Ali was a very improved soccer player for us this year,” said Baler head girls soccer coach Michael Schurig. “She played her heart out. Then, when she wasn’t playing, she rooted for Kory and all the other players. She was a great example of a team player.”
For her efforts, Schmidt was awarded the Coaches Award as well as being named to the T-CAL All-Sportsmanship Team.
And if one observed Schmidt at last Wednesday’s T-CAL trials, she wasn’t racing, but that didn’t stop her from cheering on the other runners. That includes frosh-soph and junior varsity, as well.
“I love cheering on the other runners,” Schmidt said. “I always like it when people cheer me on.”
“Ali is my biggest motivator now that Coach K isn’t here anymore,” said Case. “Before the race, she’s giving me encouragement and telling me what to do. She’s always there for me.”
Schmidt has been a big influence on the younger Baler runners, such as junior Lee Ann Morales.
“Before I came here, I had heard she was pretty fast,” said Morales. “Then I saw her and I said, ‘Wow!’ She’s a great person, a good leader and really fun. I’ll miss her next year.”
Support of parents
Two of Schmidt’s biggest boosters are her parents – Brooks and Chere. In fact, Brooks and Ali have a system down when she runs.
“He stands near the track and says ‘Go, Ali’ whenever another runner is gaining on me,” said Ali. “It helps because I don’t want to look back. You don’t want to do that. My parents have always been supportive of me. When I didn’t want to run when I was younger, they encouraged me, but never pushed me.”
Brooks was a three-sport athlete at Hollister High, class of 1967, playing football, basketball and baseball. What, no track?
“People played baseball back then, not track,” said Brooks. “I don’t know where Ali got her running ability. Her grandmother was raised in Oklahoma and used to run foot races when she was younger. Ali probably gets her running talent from her grandmother. I like to see Ali run, but most of all, I want her focus and have fun. As long as she does her best, that’s all right with me.”
Ali Schmidt usually does her best, no matter what the circumstances.
“I’m able to keep a constant pace,” said Schmidt. “And I hate to lose. I’m real competitive. Once, when I was in a meaningless race as a sophomore, the coaches told me to take it easy. I couldn’t do it, so I ended up with a PR.”
“Ali is very talented,” said Baler boys track and field coach Randy Logue, who coached Schmidt as a junior on the cross-country team. “She’s always positive and helps out the younger kids. She comes to practice every day and works hard. She’s funny and intelligent.”
Quite a scholar
Intelligent may be an understatement. Schmidt, who will attend UC San Diego next year and major in Business Management, boasts an overall GPA of 4.34. She’s ranked seventh in her class of 500.
She won’t run at UCSD, but plans on participating in intramural sports.
“I’ll probably join a recreational running club,” she said.
For hobbies, she likes to read and play with her dog, Annie, an Australian Shepherd/Border Collie mix.
At home, Schmidt enjoys watching her younger brother, Austin, compete in a variety of sports. Austin Schmidt is a seventh grader at Rancho San Justo Middle School.
“Austin was an influence on me when he was younger because I used to watch him play sports and saw how fun they were,” said Ali. “He’s been an inspiration to me. He’s fast and should do well in track and football in high school. His future is in the sprints.”
Schmidt’s legacy
Randy Logue rates Schmidt as the second-fastest Baler distance runner since he’s been involved at the school, behind Marla Pleyte. Pleyte won the 800-meters (2:17.34) at CCS in 1994 and the 3,200-meters (11:09.78) at CCS in 1995.
It would be nice to see Schmidt run the 3,200 on Saturday, just to see if she can score four league titles in that event. If she doesn’t, one can bet she’ll be cheering on whoever is running for the Balers, because that’s the way she is.
