RANDY HISNER
WZBD.com
If Hailey Cole had never gone out for track for the first time her senior year at Bellmont, never picked up a shot put, never broken the 33-year-old school shot put record multiple times, never piled up numerous shot put championships—conference, sectional, regional—she’d still be considered one of the best athletes ever to walk the halls at Bellmont High School.
Her athletic legacy had already been established in basketball and volleyball, the list of her accomplishments long and impressive. Three-year starter in basketball. Two-year starter on state runner-up volleyball teams. All-NE8 three times in basketball, twice in volleyball. All-state (3A) twice in both sports. Academic all-state in volleyball.
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Then she went out for track this spring and added immeasurably to her legacy.
But it almost didn’t happen.
“We tried really hard to get her to do it last year,” said veteran girls’ track coach Carl Risch. “Kids were trying to get her to come out, and Dale (Bellmont athletic director Dale Manis) was involved. We had a lot of people trying to get her to come out, and that was unsuccessful to that point.”
Cole wasn’t being stubborn. Her schedule in the spring was already jam packed with AAU basketball and volleyball; there simply wasn’t enough time to add track to the mix.
This year it was different. She had already secured a deal to play basketball for Trine next year, and she was done playing volleyball, so she had the time.
Still, she was on the fence as track season approached. “After basketball I knew I had about two weeks until track started,” Cole said, “and I really didn’t decide until the night before the first practice that I was going to do it. I was just like, you know, I might as well try it. You never know. Try something new.”
Once she started learning from Bellmont throws coach Tony Ordway and boys’ coach Dave Hakes, her progress was astounding. Within six weeks she had advanced enough to break Robin Schuller’s 1991 school record and finish third in the small school division of the coaches’ association’s indoor state meet with a throw of 39-4.5.
How can you explain her light-speed progress?
“She’s just a natural athlete,” stated Ordway.
That’s not the whole story, though. While it’s true that Cole possesses all the tools coaches like to see in a shot putter—strength, size, quickness, power, agility—it’s also true that she’s worked very hard at it.
And all those years of training hard in Bellmont’s top-notch volleyball and basketball programs helped her develop a foundation of athleticism that gave her throwing career a jump start.
People unfamiliar with the throwing world may think it’s just a lot of big, strong folks chucking heavy things as far as they can. Strongest person wins.
Not so. There’s a reason Arnold Schwarzenegger didn’t throw the shot put in the Olympics. It’s a highly technical event, and strength without proper technique will not win any titles.
Fortunately, Cole is a quick learner and has the work habits to make the most of her coaches’ instruction. Her progress was fast, but not instantaneous. “We started from the beginning back in February when we started throwing, just drills after drills after drills,” Ordway said, “and then getting a lot of repetitions through the ring.”
What was the toughest part of the technique for Cole to learn? “Probably just the footwork,” she stated. “I mean, I have the strength part of it, but I had to learn how to stay on my toes and just really rotate.”
Ah yes, the rotation. As in many athletic endeavors—hitting and throwing a baseball or softball, swinging a golf club, stroking a tennis ball—most of the power for the shot put comes from rotating successive body parts in the right sequence with the right timing.
Cole said she sometimes doesn’t get her hips completely through the rotation, or the timing of her rotation is off. “I kind of open up early and try to use most of my upper body to throw it,” she said. But she’s learned enough by now and has enough body awareness to recognize when she makes a technical mistake.
“On Tuesday (at regional) after my second throw (her only one under 40 feet), I went over to Tony and Dave, and I was like, ‘This is what I did wrong,’ and they watched the video and they’re like, ‘You’re exactly right.’”
The problem, she said, was that she didn’t stay low enough on her glide across the ring and that she opened her hips too soon.
She corrected in a hurry, just two throws later unleashing her winning effort and new PR of 43-7.5. A regional championship was hers—and a coveted trip to the state finals.
Though Coach Risch doesn’t work directly with the throwers—Ordway and Hakes handle that—he has observed Cole’s attitude, and he likes it. “Very easy to work with,” he said. “Very coachable. She’s very much in with the team and all about fitting in with the team and not just doing her own thing. Absolutely a good teammate.”
“She’s been the leader, period,” Risch added. “She’s the kind of kid where you go to a meet and you know you’re getting 10 or 20 points automatically.”
Risch thinks she can earn a place on the podium (top nine places) at state. “I like her chances in the medal hunt,” he said. The top three-seeded throwers are “untouchable,” according to Risch—top seed Hadley Lucas of Bloomington North, for instance, has thrown over 54 feet and is ranked #1 in the country—but things are wide open after that. Cole is seeded sixth.
“Obviously, you have to be on your game,” said Risch, “but I like how she has been able to step up in big moments.”
No matter how it turns out for Cole at state, it won’t be her last track and field competition. She was recently given permission by her Trine basketball coach to participate in track too. She won’t compete in indoor track since it conflicts with the basketball schedule, but she will throw the shot outdoors—maybe the hammer too. “I think it will be a lot of fun,” said Cole, who will study physical therapy.
Cole won’t be the only Z-Lander at state. Maya Gerber and Madilyn Scheumann of Heritage will compete also, Scheumann in the shot put, Gerber in the shot put and discus.
The meet Friday will start with the pole vault, long jump, and discus at 3:00 P.M. The shot put competition is slated for 3:30. Running events begin at 4:15.
Those interested in following Cole, Gerber and Scheumann can listen to WZBD throughout the night Friday for updates from the Z Team. The same will be true for Heritage’s Logan Teichman at the boys meet on Saturday.
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