With the Olympics recently crossing the finish line it’s time for some athletic reflection and appreciation. And there is no need to travel to Tokyo to find special athletes who are simply out of this world – or at least out of this state.
Just take a look in the backyard, Dexter. And while there are plenty of local athletes and teams to raise up the flag pole (we’ve highlighted many here), the accomplishments of two particular young athletes requires a jump that will clear the bar and land where few have ever landed.
It’s quite an accomplishment to win a state title in anything. And to have two athletes from the same school win a state title in the same sport/event is, well, amazing and let’s assume very rare. But how unique – and how cool – is to have two athletes from not only the same school, but the SAME family finish first AND second in the state finals in the same event as members of the Dexter track and field team.
Please allow me to introduce – Sophia and Josie Mettes – the Mettes sisters from DEXTER!
Sophia, who is entering her senior year at Dexter, was state champion in girls’ pole vault with a leap of 12-feet, 6-inches. Her older sister, Josie, was second overall with a vault of 12-3.
Well, that deserves some appreciation and recognition.
Both Sophia and Josie were part of the Interact Club and the National Honor Society at DHS. And both were/are excellent students with GPAs over 3.8. Josie is now heading to U-M while Sophia has one more year of high school.
The two sisters recently answered some questions about their sport, their school, their sisterhood and their amazing accomplishments in the pole vault. Let’s get into it!
Q: What were some of the highlights from this past track & field season?
Sophia: I had grappled in the past with vaulting in cold weather conditions, but one of my biggest highlights this year was overcoming these conditions and PRing (personal record) despite my previous struggles.This season I hit two new marks: 12’6” and 12’7”. One was The Outdoor Nationals qualifying mark (12’ 7”) and the other was in the state finals (12’ 6”).
Josie: Coming back from the Covid lockdown, I didn’t expect much from this season since we had limited time to practice and prepare. For a while, we were uncertain if there would even be a season this year. As my sister mentioned, our performances were off to a slow start due to unfavorable weather. That being said, I think our entire team was able to rally as can be seen from how well everyone did this year. I was able to PR not once, but twice at the same meet and increase my height from 12’3” to 12’8”. Hitting that mark qualified me for the 2021 Outdoor Nationals and I also broke the DHS school record. I was state runner-up and at Larry Steeb Meet of Champions I was awarded Female Field Athlete of the Year. This season, I was ranked No. 1 pole vaulter in the state of Michigan.
Q: Tell us about some highlights/accomplishments from previous years?
Sophia: I was lucky enough to attend Freshman Nationals hosted by NSAF in Greensboro, NC and take fifth place. I also was able to place sixth at the Outdoor State meet my freshman year. I also took third and qualified for the New Balance Indoor Nationals (canceled because of Covid-19) at the MITS indoor state meet my sophomore year.
Josie: I started vaulting in eighth grade, so as I came into my second year as a pole vaulter, I placed 16th as a freshman at the Outdoor States. I’ve also been SEC Champion twice and Regional Champion twice throughout high school. Similar to my sister, I placed second at MITS Indoor State Finals and qualified for New Balance Nationals Indoor (which was then cancelled).
Q: Dexter has one of the best pole vault programs in the state and has been for many years – what are the reasons for this incredible success?
Sophia: Dexter’s pole vault program would not be as successful without the excellent coaches. Geoff and Janell Gerstner (Coach and Janell as we call them) show commitment and devotion for each and every single vaulter that is a part of their program. Their support and ability to make every practice enjoyable makes it easy for vaulters to reach their full potential.
Josie: Yeah, I completely agree with my sister. Aside from the work that the vaulter’s put into their own success, the team’s overall success is because of Coach and Janell. Out of all of the coaches I’ve had in the different sports I’ve participated in throughout the years, I can say that my closest relationship has been with my pole vault coaches. They put 110 percent into everything they do to help the team. They work to accommodate the needs of the athletes whether that be new strategies to improve their vault or even changing practice times that will allow for more people to attend.
Coach and Janell are amazing in the sense that they have set up an organized and helpful vaulting program/club that allows beginner vaulters to try their new sport and experienced vaulters to continue improving their technique. Not only that, but our coaches have the best attitudes that makes practice 10 times more enjoyable. We always joke about how enthusiastic Coach is at pole vault meets – we take videos of our vaults at the meets and you can always see Coach jumping up and down in the background when someone makes a bar.
Q: What was it like having to miss last season because of the pandemic?
Sophia: Missing last season was a heartache. Sitting at home everyday knowing that I could be practicing and hanging out with my friends was hard to deal with.
Josie: I was devastated to miss last season because not only did it take away almost a year of my vaulting, but we also missed that last season with the athletes who were seniors at the time. I always look forward to practices because even if it’s one of those off days where I’m having more trouble than usual taking vaults up, I still enjoy the company of my coaches and teammates. However, we missed out on that last year and without school and without pole vault, it just got really boring.
Q: What first got you interested in pole vault?
Sophia: Initially, my sister and I were gymnasts, and once our gymnastics career had come to an end we were looking for other sports to partake in. We looked into many activities and came across diving and pole vault. Giving both sports a try we ended up pursuing our passions for pole vault.
Josie: While I got my sister interested in pole vault, it was my friend/teammate, Kenzie Stock, that got me to join pole vault. As Sophia said, both of us were finishing up gymnastics and were looking for new sports to try. A lot of people had mentioned that gymnasts normally take up either diving or pole vault, so we gave both a shot. I remember that I had just joined track in middle school and we were allowed to choose the events we wanted to try. Kenzie got me to write down “pole vault” on the piece of paper and I’ve stuck with it ever since.
Q: What is it like having your sister as a teammate?
Sophia: Having my sister on the team with me is so amazing. We do a lot of things together at practice and at meets since we are vaulting around the same heights. For example, when we are at meets we normally enter competitions around the same height, so we will do some running and stretching together to get warmed up.
Josie: It’s really nice to have Sophia on the team with me. She said exactly how I view our situation. We do a lot of warmups together at meets because we come into the competition at similar heights.
Q: How do you train for pole vault?
Sophia: Training for pole vault requires hours of training both inside and outside. Inside practice I work towards perfecting my technique when vaulting. Outside of practice I will spend 30 minutes to an hour working out to build up muscle and to stay in shape. On the side I will watch videos to get an idea of what I need to work on technique-wise next time my team has practice.
Josie: We have practices almost year round with a break in the fall. Most of our training during the year is focused on vaulting and improving our technique. However, we still spend some practices doing workouts and drills that all help to either increase our strength or lead us through the movements similar to that of a real vault.
Q: What are your future goals/plans for pole vault?
Sophia: I have many future goals for pole vault. Some of my biggest aspirations include hitting 13’ 0” this summer, and vaulting at a collegiate level. Besides that I plan to work hard to achieve those goals, and see what else happens along the way.
Josie: This summer will most likely be my last season vaulting, so for me I intend to continue performing at the level I’m at right now and maybe PR before fall comes around. But I also just want to have fun with my teammates and enjoy my time during the summer.
Q: What are your college plans?
Sophia: I would love to vault in college, but I don’t have any specific plan on where I would like to attend college. As I enter my senior year of high school, I am continuing to look more into colleges and what I would like to study.
Josie: I’m attending the University of Michigan starting this Fall and will be studying Biology. As of right now, I don’t plan on pole vaulting in college.
