Q&A: Indiana Pole Vault Talks Team History, Comradery and Indoor Season Success
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – The Indiana pole vault squad has had tremendous success under now Associate head coach for Pole Vault and Multis, Jake Wiseman.
Recently at the NCAA Indoor Championships, graduate student Jessica Mercier earned runner-up at the conference championships and earned a qualifying spot to Nationals. She finished eighth on the podium becoming the 19th All-American pole vaulter for IU.
At the Big Ten Indoor Championships, the Hoosiers combined to score 16.33 points on the men’s side and eight points on the women’s side. Nathan Stone won the Gold just missing the national qualifying mark by one spot. Teammates Tyler Carrel earned Bronze while Riley Johnston finished on the podium with a three-way tie for eighth place. The Hoosiers have 35 combined Indoor and Outdoor Big Ten Titles.
Wiseman has also had the opportunity to mentor some of the top pole vaulters in the nation like Jeff Coover, Scott Houston, Adam Coulon, Kelsie Abhe, Vera Neuenswander and current vaulters in Stone and Mercier.
He has coached 16 Big Ten Champions, 18 All-Big Ten honorees, one Big Ten Freshman of the Year, one Great Lakes Regional Athlete of the Year and his athletes have earned 19 All-American certificates.
We caught up with coach Wiseman along with some current and former athletes to talk about the Hoosiers in the event, the pole vault legacy and the importance of passing on the knowledge and team comradery to future generations.
Jake Wiseman | Associate Head Coach – Pole Vault, Multis
On the history of the Pole Vault and the success here at IU…
“From the Beginning, my high school track coach was the ’82 national champion in the decathlon, [Kerry Zimmerman]. He is still the record holder here today. His college roommate was Dave Volz. When I came to IU, Coach Bell had just retired a year or two before I got here. Dave Volz’s and Kerry’s coach Dr. Phil Henson was still here at IU and he actually coached me in the decathlon here at IU.
His area being the decathlon and jumps, but really Dave Volz came out and helped him with the pole vault. I was on the team then, and when I was hired here, Dave stayed and helped. So, I got to learn from America’s greatest pole vaulter on the track and in my coaching career. All of his philosophies were carried forward. I’m not Dave Volz and nobody is every going to replace him. His knowledge is just invaluable. I was always around that. I am just very thankful for that still to this day. That is what really kickstarted it all."
"We weren’t very good to begin with, but one of the guys who is coaching know, Jeff Coover, and his freshman year was my first-year coaching. He got really good and had a professional career in the pole vault. He trained here for a year or two post-collegiate and is doing a great job at Northern Iowa. My first female recruit was a girl by the name of Vera Neuenswander, now Schmitt. She was a national runner-up and a Big Ten Champion. Kelsie Ahbe broke her record at the NCAA’s in 2014 before Sydney Clute took the top-spot in 2017.
She had a great attitude and a great work ethic. In today’s standard, Vera wasn’t that good out of high school, but it is a testament to her because she worked very hard. So did Jeff. They were on a team together, and they know out of anyone that that’s how hard you have to work to be good. So they really set the standard with the work ethic and the mindset up about what you needed to do to be successful.”
On the team comradery…
“I think the biggest thing with this group is that they are proud of each other. As much as they want to do well, they want to see their teammates do well. It is pretty clear in this group. They have always been this way, there is no ego. They all feed off that. They not only want to do well for themselves, but they want to do well for each other. Whether it be working out or their mindset at practice. That is what I notice most about this group. The Pole vaulters in here always want to talk to each other and are in a little niche, but they are really proud of each other, and all have their own goals as well.”
On the upperclassman’s leadership…
The team is always together, hanging out and bringing the other ones with them along in life. They incorporate them in what they are doing. They talk about hanging out and taking the younger ones with them and know what they are doing. I know they talk about pole vaulting while they are hanging out too, so I think there is growth in that. I think the little things that they do, like if someone is having an off day, I can tell that they try to pick’em up. It’s kind of inherent. It doesn’t come from me, it comes from years of that being the mentality around here. That is something that you can’t always teach. It comes from hard work some days and obviously you have to have the results, that always helps.”
Nathan Stone | Gr. | Indianapolis, Ind.
Stone won his fifth Big Ten title for his third indoors with a height of 5.43m/17-9.75. He won the title in 2021, 2023, and 2024. He finished the Indoor season 17th overall, just missing the qualifying mark for NCAA’s.
He is one of five athletes to have five individual titles in one event. The Hoosiers have won five of the last six Indoor titles dating back to 2019. Stone is also ranked fourth on the Indoor top-10 list, and fifth on the outdoor list with a height of 5.50m/18-0.5.
On the pole vaulting legacy at Indiana…
“Pole Vault at IU has gone on for generations at IU. Our school record has always been very high, so I knew I had to step up and keep that tradition going. I failed indoor once, which is a little sad, but it happens. This time I didn’t let that happen. It was very clean, and I felt really good going into it.”
On the pole vaulting group as a whole and the team comradery…
“It’s actually really great having people that support you. I have been really blessed at IU where I have always had that culture here. Even before they were here, I had it with older guys who have helped instill it in me, so I can instill it into the younger people. It is a really great community, and I genuinely don’t think I would jump near as high as I have without them backing me up. Seeing people in practice every day, trying really hard to beat me or me trying to beat them really makes a big effect on my performance going forward. I really owe it all to them.”
Jessica Mercier | Gr. | White Lake, Mich.
Mercier finished eighth at the NCAA Indoor Championships competing against the nation’s best, earning First-Team All-American status in her final season of eligibility. She also earned a silver medal at the Big Ten Indoor Championships after she broke her own school record with a height of 4.45m/14-7.25 for the second time this season.
On your final competition and All-American honors…
“This one is bittersweet,” Mercier said. “I like the atmosphere, and I love to Pole Vault. But I am a little sad. I know I could have done better [at NCAAs]. I had a few issues the last two weeks, but I was confident in my ability to make the jumps. We were changing things around, but these were my best jumps I’ve taken today. I was nervous my first time at Nationals, so I had a different mindset coming in of I can compete with these people. I can be the best. It’s just a normal meet. I had some issues keeping a consistent run, so I knew I had to hit it, and I did. That’s the worst part is even when you hit it, if the pole is too small, it’s too small.”
On the competition in the Big Ten…
“I don’t even think I pole vaulted well in terms of my form, but I played the game really well. I passed and I did the things I needed to do. I really like the girls and I knew it was my last time, so I couldn’t feel super pressured. There was nothing left for me to lose or gain.”
On the team comradery and pole vault legacy...
“It’s great. I am glad that I can be a part of rich program like this. They took me in and were willing to have me on their team. They welcomed me and gave me what I needed to be the best athlete that I could. I am very thankful, and I definitely would not have jumped as high as I have been without Wiseman and the team. I am just truly a product of what’s around me. If the environments bad you can tell, because I could not pole vault anymore.
I never had guy vaulters, even at my high school or in college up until I came and transferred here. It was such a different environment. Especially in high school and college, when a girl vaulter would come up to you and critique your form, who are you to say that you know better than me. But when a guy comes up to you, you know they truly want what’s best for you. It was a huge thing to have someone else other than my coach help me. They are incredibly good at building me up, more than I ever could. They have more faith in me, more than I have in myself.
Nate is really confident and is very overconfident in everything. He says things that I know aren’t true, but it helps me a lot. He is confident in me, but also in himself. It helps me a ton. Tyler knows the Pole Vault a lot and he will always catch things on video with Wiseman. Riley is very positive with his words and is always very kind. It is just a different environment. I am very thankful for the guys. I think I Pole Vault more mentally like a guy, not overthinking the vault. I think that is what I needed.”
On helping out your teammates…
“Wiseman is the worst videographer ever.” [She says jokingly.] “At a certain point he will get tired of videoing, and he will hand it off to one of us. If you are competing, you aren’t allowed to touch it. I know what Nate wants to see, I know want he wants to see like ‘Oh, my step,’ then I know what he wants to see.”
Sydney Walter (Sydney Clute) | 2012-2017 | Greenwood, Ind.
Walter currently serves as the team’s academic advisor and is currently working towards qualifying for the Olympic trials in June 2024 along with former teammate Sophie Gutermuth.
On the team comradery…
“The sport of pole vault in general is more about clearing the bar. It’s competition the sport and the event, not so much the person. You are trying to win, but there is much more camaraderie because you are just trying to beat the bar.
Once I was older, a senior I was able to help my teammates out more. Even after I graduated, I was practicing with the team and was able to help the younger guys. Advice on things that helped me or on how I think about things that could help them. I tried to pass that on.”
On Coach Wiseman and the environment that he creates…
“Wiseman is very, very good in those big meets, playing the game and making those changes and those decisions. Thinking back to my time on the team, he is pretty laid back. That was always really nice in practice. The group was always laid back and it was always a really great time coming to practice, to be with everyone and be in a competitive environment. We were competing against each other and trying to get better every day. I miss those days of having a group of people to practice with.”
On interacting with the team in your current role…
“It is really fun for me still, to be a part of it and to be around it. To still be training, but to get to see the next generation of IU vaulters and know them. So, it has been fun.”
POLE VAULT HISTORY AT INDIANA
SCHOOL RECORDS
Men’s
Pole Vault
Dave Volz, 1982 (O)
Mark Buse, 1994 (I)
Decathlete
Kerry Zimmerman, 1983 (7810)
Women’s
Jessica Mercier, 2024 (I)
Sydney Clute, 2017 (O)
NATIONAL CHAMPIONS
Pole Vault
Mark Buse, 1993 (O)
Dave Volz, 1981 (O)
Bryce Beecher, 1932 (O)
Decathletes
Kerry Zimmerman, 1983 (O)
BIG TEN CHAMPIONS
Pole Vault
Bryce Beecher, 1932 (I)
Steve Divich, 1934 (I)
Steve Divich, 1934 (O)
Brealon Donaldson, 1957 (I)
Paul Gaydos, 1969 (I)
Lance Fox, 1979 (I)
Lance Fox, 1979 (O)
Brian Kimball, 1980 (O)
Dave Volz, 1981 (O)
Dave Volz, 1982 (I)
Dave Volz, 1982 (O)
Dave Volz, 1983 (I)
Dan Burton, 1990 (O)
Jimm Stack, 1991 (O)
Mark Buse, 1993 (O)
Mark Buse, 1994 (I)
Mark Buse, 1995 (I)
Mark Buse, 1995 (O)
Dino Efthimiou, 2003 (O)
Blayne Burkholder, 2007 (O)
Jeff Coover, 2009 (I)
Scott Houston, 2013 (I)
Terry Batemon, 2015 (O)
Adam Coulon, 2019 (I/O)
Adam Coulon, 2020 (I)
Nathan Stone, 2021 (I/O)
Nathan Stone, 2022 (O)
Nathan Stone, 2023 (I)
Nathan Stone, 2024 (I)
ALL-AMERICANS
Men’s
Bryce Beecher, 1932 (O)
Brian Kimball, 1979 (I)
Lance Fox, 1980 (I)
Brian Kimball, 1980 (I)
Dave Volz, 1981 (I/O)
Dave Volz, 1982 (I/O)
Dave Volz, 1983 (I)
Jimm Stack, 1990 (O)
Jimm Stack, 1991 (O)
Mark Buse, 1992 (O)
Mark Buse, 1993 (O)
Mark Buse, 1994 (I/O)
Mark Buse, 1995 (I/O)
Dino Efthimiou, 2001 (I)
Jeff Coover, 2008 (O)
Jeff Coover, 2009 (I)
Jeff Coover, 2010 (I/O)
Adam Coulon, 2018 (O)
Adam Coulon, 2019 (I/O)
Adam Coulon, 2020 (I)
Nathan Stone, 2021 (I/O)
Nathan Stone, 2023 (O)
Women’s
Vera Neuenswander, 2009 (I/O)
Vera Neuenswander, 2011, (O)
Kelsie Abhe, 2011 (O)
Sophie Gutermuth, 2013 (I)
Kelsie Abhe, 2014 (O)
Sydeny Clute, 2014 (O)
Sophie Gutermuth, 2015 (I)
Sydney Clute, 2016 (I/O)
Sydney Clute, 2017 (O)
Anna Watson, 2021 (O)
Jessica Mercier, 2024 (I)
OLYMPIANS
Dave Volz, 1992 (5th)
Kelsie Ahbe, 2016 (12th)
CURRENT COACHES
Scott Houston, High Point (2015-pres.)
Jeff Coover, Northern Iowa (2017-pres.)