Calvin Seitz, a freshman from Jasper High School, had an eventful weekend competing in the freshman championship for the mile, 2 mile, and 800m events on Thursday, Friday, and Sunday. Seitz won the first two events, setting meet records with times of 4:20.85 for the mile (4:19.34 converted for 1600m) and 9:10.58 for the 2 mile (9:07.39 converted for 3200m). He also achieved a personal best of 1:57.54 in the 800m, marking his first sub-2:00 performance in this event. At the state meet, Seitz ran a 1:58.336 split in the 4x800m relay before placing 8th in the state finals for the 1600m with a time of 4:17.97 in rainy conditions.
Seitz's converted 3200m time from the 2 mile surpasses the Indiana state freshman class record by nearly 3 seconds, breaking the previous record set in 2020 by former Carmel runner and current University of Colorado sophomore, Kole Mathison.
In Thursday's mile race, Seitz led the field through a 67.73 and 70.27 split to reach 2:18 flat at the 809m mark. He then increased his pace, closing the final 800m in 2:02.85 to secure victory by about 10 meters.
Friday's 2 mile race featured a fast pace with strong competition from Kamari Ronfeldt of Michigan and Will Pongonis of Wisconsin. Ronfeldt led for the first six laps before Pongonis took the lead with just under 800m to go. However, Seitz reclaimed the lead with 300m remaining and held off Ronfeldt in an exciting final 100m, closing the last 400m in 58.61 seconds to win the title.
After a day of recovery, Seitz competed in the 800m on Sunday afternoon. Running in heat 5, he stayed near the front throughout the race and was in contention for the win towards the end. Fellow Hoosier, Jace Trevino, ultimately edged him out in the final stretch, with Trevino finishing in 1:56.47 and Seitz in 1:57.54, placing 6th and 10th overall in the freshman championship. Cooper Szotek also earned a top 10 finish from heat six, placing 9th overall with a time of 1:57.23.
Last fall, Seitz placed 9th in the Indiana state XC Championship, running 15:25 on the LaVern Gibson Championship course, achieving one of the best finishes by a freshman in state history. He was the only freshman to place in the top 90. As track season wraps up, Seitz will be a runner to watch this fall, being the #4 returner based on the state meet results.
Calvin Seitz, a freshman from Jasper High School, had an eventful weekend competing in the freshman championship for the mile, 2 mile, and 800m events on Thursday, Friday, and Sunday. Seitz won the first two events, setting meet records with times of 4:20.85 for the mile (4:19.34 converted for 1600m) and 9:10.58 for the 2 mile (9:07.39 converted for 3200m). He also achieved a personal best of 1:57.54 in the 800m, marking his first sub-2:00 performance in this event. At the state meet, Seitz ran a 1:58.336 split in the 4x800m relay before placing 8th in the state finals for the 1600m with a time of 4:17.97 in rainy conditions.
Seitz's converted 3200m time from the 2 mile surpasses the Indiana state freshman class record by nearly 3 seconds, breaking the previous record set in 2020 by former Carmel runner and current University of Colorado sophomore, Kole Mathison.
In Thursday's mile race, Seitz led the field through a 67.73 and 70.27 split to reach 2:18 flat at the 809m mark. He then increased his pace, closing the final 800m in 2:02.85 to secure victory by about 10 meters.
