Hoosiers look to continue strong start in Gladstein Invitational

In college sports, most athletes specialize in a sport or an event within a sport. For IU sophomore Matt Schmitz, this is not the case. \nSchmitz, a member of the IU men’s track team does not compete in one, two or even three events. He competes in seven, and said this can sometimes be difficult.\n“Once one event is over you have to move on to the next event,” he said.\nSchmitz is what the team calls a “multi” athlete, and he will compete in the heptathlon, a series of seven events, at the Gladstein Invitational this weekend. The meet, hosted by the Hoosiers, will start at noon Friday and run through Saturday afternoon.\nThe track team has been training intensely over the course of the season so far, and many athletes have already set career bests in their respective events. \nThe throwers had an impressive meet last weekend at the Big Ten-SEC Challenge, in which the shot put and weight throw combined saw five IU men’s and women’s athletes setting career bests. IU sophomore Paul Haas set a career best in the shot put with a toss of 51-1/2 feet. Haas said that even though he might be tired from the intense training, he goes out and competes hard in every meet. \n“No matter how tired you are it’s a day of competition and you must get up for it,” he said. “Every time counts.” \nIU junior Caitlin Lauer said she thinks this is the toughest month of training for the team. Despite the demanding training regimen so far, she competed in three events last weekend – two of which were back-to-back. \n“It’s a mental challenge, you hurt but you still have to do it,” she said. “The pain is temporary; you just have to get through it.”\nIU coach Ron Helmer believes that the early meets in the season are all about the athletes understanding how to race and getting comfortable in the environment of pressure competition and increased intensity.\n“The majority of our athletes at this point are excited and building confidence in their ability to perform,” he said. \nAccording to IU sophomore Tim McLeod, this represents a change in the mindset over years past. He said the team is competing at a high-level, is getting points and is running faster times to get better seeds for the bigger meets later in the season. \nHelmer discussed other important issues he said were related to the success of his team. He talked about how his athletes have built a sense of team atmosphere and have grown throughout the year. \nThe growth of his team he said was one of his most basic goals this year. This trait extends both on and off the track, is about life as a whole and includes academics as well as athletics. \n“Doing your best is constant,” he said. “Our athletes are learning how to take care of themselves.” \nThis season is going to be a learning process he said. \nThat learning process will continue with the Gladstein Invitational today. \nMcLeod put it simply when describing the strategy for the Hoosiers going into the meet this weekend. \n“We are going to go out, be competitive, and try to beat people,” he said.