“She just was like, ‘Oh, I think you’ll like this. I like it because I did gymnastics,’” Freeze said. “It was a whole like body and coordination with the speed. It was similar to gymnastics in a way, and she thought I would like it since she liked it so much. That’s really how I got into track and pole vault and she just kind of brought me along with her.”
Four years later, Freeze vaulted 12 feet to win the OATCCC D3 Indoor State Meet on March 7 at Spire Institute in Geneva, breaking state and school records. She finished sixth at Division II outdoor state championships in Dayton last year, and the Warriors senior recently won long jump and pole vault events at the Northwestern Quad meet earlier this season.
On Friday, she placed first at the Wayne Invitational with a leap of 12-foot-6.
“Indoor was definitely a surprise. Outdoor last year as a junior, I was very happy with how much progress I made,” Freeze said. “I’m impressed, especially how far I’ve come since freshman year and sophomore year. I am very thankful for those who have helped me, because that’s really what made the biggest difference.”
Freeze, a three-time All-Central Buckeye Conference member, received Special Mention honors in the 400-meter relay in 2023. She describes herself as “more of a sprinter” and has competed in the 100-, 200- and 400-meter dashes as well as the 4x4, 4x2 and 4x1s.
Freeze has also balanced being part of the cheerleading and cross country programs at Northwestern. She cited the importance of having “the love of the sport” for being a successful multi-sport student-athlete.
“I’m just thankful for how many people who have just gone with me, pushed me, just supported me through it,” Freeze said. “I know that it is impressive, but I feel that it’s just who I am as a person to be competitive, and working in a team sport I always make sure I put my best foot forward, and I think that’s why coaches support me so well.”
Northwestern track and field coach Brian Badenhop said the Northwestern coaching staff saw “there was potential” early in Freeze’s track and field career. He noted “she was running good times for us” and was coachable.
“She was willing to kind of do whatever we needed her to do, and then just her mentality and her desire to just be the best at what she’s doing is what really kind of propelled her to where she is now,” Badenhop said. “I always kind of tell her she has that like bulldog in her. It doesn’t matter what she’s doing, she wants to beat who’s ever in front of her and she’s going to do whatever it takes to try and beat those people.”
Badenhop said Freeze’s “pure athleticism and her speed” together with strength built from competing in multiple sports allows her to be “a great pole vaulter.”
“We’ve gone to some meets with some bigger schools with girls who can really jump, and she understands, like, this is just going to make me better,” Badenhop said. “It’s just that mentality and that drive on top of just the physical tools that she just continues to work on and improve.”
Freeze will soon enroll at Wright State as a nursing major and continue her track career as a pole vaulter. She said “it was a pretty big decision” but she was impressed by the Raiders academics and already knows a high jumper and “a few” of the pole vaulters.
Another run toward the outdoor state championship is a focus for Freeze, and so is leaving a lasting impact beyond her high school career at Northwestern.
“I just want to be known as someone who was nice,” Freeze said. “I encourage the younger kids for sure, and I tell them, I said, ‘I’m only setting PRs and records for you guys to break.’ That’s all I want because it gives some of them a little bit of a drive just because I want someone to break it. That’s why a record is there.”
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