Schwartz runs: 4:15.57 for the Mile at Nike Outdoor Nationals

His splits were:

Christopher Schwartz Una-Ca-Bake 4:15.57 1:05.72(1:05.72) 2:08.87(1:03.15) 3:14.43(1:05.57) 4:15.57(1:01.14)

His coach reports that this a PR for the mile and converts to a PR in the 1600 too (4:14.07). His 1500 split was officially recorded as 3:59.52.

National: N 3:53.43 5/27/2001 Alan Webb, S Lakes, Reston,
Meet: M 4:02.01 6/14/1997 Sharif Karie, West Springfi
Freshman: F 4:15.07 2005 Andrew Perkins, Watertown,
Freshman: F 4:09.69 2005 Sintayehu Taye (1600m), Por
Sophomore: O 4:06.07 6/14/2003 Jeff See, Middletown, OH
Junior: J 3:59.0h 1964 Jim Ryun, East, Wichita, KS
Senior: S 3:53.43 5/27/2001 Alan Webb, South Lakes, Res
Name Year School Finals
================================================================
Finals
1 Christopher Stogsdill 09 Camillus, NY 4:06.70F
2 Alex Hatz 10 Manlius, NY 4:07.28F
3 Pat McGregor 09 Hoover, AL 4:09.27F
4 Drew Shields 09 Fishers, IN 4:09.66F
5 Michael Atchoo 10 Troy, MI 4:11.63F
6 Dylan Sorensen 09 Zionsville TC 4:14.51F
7 Robert Kleber 09 Fort Wayne, IN 4:15.12
8 Pat Schellberg 10 Morristown, NJ 4:15.26
9 Christopher Schwartz 09 Bakersfield, CA 4:15.57
10 Danny Neff 09 vandalia, OH 4:16.09
11 Marco Bertolotti 10 Port Washington, NY 4:16.28
12 Daniel Everett 11 St. Louis, MO 4:16.44
13 Bobby Andrews 09 Wading River, NY 4:17.37
14 Stephen Walker 09 Midland, MI 4:17.74
15 Zach Tennant 09 Fairview, WV 4:19.09
16 Walter Schafer 10 Centennial, CO 4:20.03
17 Shane Moskowitz 10 Bremerton, WA 4:23.11
18 Colby Alexander 10 Strongsville, OH 4:23.29
19 Patrick Gomez 09 Auburn, AL 4:24.92
20 Chris Carrington 09 Thiells, NY 4:25.73
21 Byron Jones 10 westborough, MA 4:25.82
22 Chris O'Sullivan 10 Havertown, PA 4:30.63
23 Steve Mangan 10 Honeoye Falls, NY 4:34.86
24 Colin Baker 10 Haddonfield, NJ 4:36.91

Chris Schwartz was the fastest in the State in the 3200

Schwartz ran a personal-record 8:51.60 to win the 3,200 meters. That was the third-best time by a U.S. high schooler this year and three-tenths of a second away from the best. Mens 3200 Meter
Rank	Mark		Name	Grade	School	Section	Meet	Date
1	8:51.60		Chris Schwartz	12	Foothill	CE	CIF-State Finals	06/06/09
2	8:53.78		CollinlJarvis	12	RancholBuenalV	SD	CIF-State Finals	06/06/09
3	8:55.06		Erik Olson	11	Novato	NC	NCS Meet of Champions	05/29/09
4	8:55.16		Heyden Wooff	10	Camarillo	SS	CIF-State Finals	06/06/09
5	8:55.71		Garrett Rowe	11	Mountain View	CC	CIF-State Finals	06/06/09
6	8:56.44		Matt:McElroy	11	Edison-HB	SS	CIF-State Finals	06/06/09
7	8:56.56		Dan Mitchell	12	Del Campo	SJ	CIF-State Finals	06/06/09
8	8:57.40		Isaac.Chavez	12	Barstow	SS	CIF-State Finals	06/06/09
9	8:59.5		Toby Villalva		El Toro	SS	Meet of Champions	03/28/09
10	9:00.95		Sam Pons	10	South Pasadena	SS	CIF-SS Masters Meet	05/29/09
11	9:01.32		Sterling Lockert	12	Petaluma	NC	CIF-State Finals	06/06/09
12	9:01.45		Matt!Petersen	12	Davis	SJ	CIF-State Finals	06/06/09
13	9:02.50		Zack Torres	12	Crescenta Vlly	SS	Arcadia Invitational	04/10/09
14	9:02.71		Justin Vilhauer	10	Redwood	CE	Arcadia Invitational	04/10/09
15	9:03.26		Ammar Moussa	10	Arcadia	SS	CIF-State Finals	06/06/09
16	9:03.79		MaclFleet	12	UniversitylCty	SD	Arcadia Invitational	04/10/09
17	9:04.06		Wyatt Landrum	12	Liberty	NC	CIF-State Finals	06/06/09
18	9:04.19		Western Nelson	12	Burroughs(Bur)	SS	CIF-SS Masters Meet	05/29/09
19	9:04.30		Jonathan Sanchez	12	Buchanan	CE	Arcadia Invitational	04/10/09
20	9:04.83		Adrian Rafiee	12	Patrick Henry	SD	CIF-State Finals	06/06/09
21	9:05.78		Mitch Moriarty	11	Aptos	CC	CIF-State Finals	06/06/09
22	9:06.59		Noe Ramirez	12	Vista Murrieta	SS	CIF-SS Masters Meet	05/29/09
23	9:06.93		Reesey Byers	11	Santa Rosa	NC	CIF-State Finals	06/06/09
24	9:07.10		Lance Wolfsmith	12	Sobrato	CC	Central Coast Section Fi...	05/29/09
25	9:07.23		Philip Macquitty	11	Palo Alto	CC	CIF-State Finals

Chris Schwartz was 19th in the State in the 1600

Mens 1600 Meter
Rank	Mark		Name	Grade	School	Section	Meet	Date
1	4:05.33		Mac Fleet	12	University Cty	SD	CIF-State Finals	06/06/09
2	4:07.25c		Elias Gedyon	10	Loyola	SS	Arcadia Invitational	04/10/09
3	4:09.15c		James'Cameron	12	Mission'Viejo	SS	Arcadia Invitational	04/10/09
4	4:09.42		Toby Villalva	12	El Toro	SS	CIF-State Finals	06/06/09
5	4:09.60		Erik'Olson	11	Novato	NC	MCAL Finals	05/14/09
6	4:09.90		David Cardona	12	North Torrance	SS	CIF-State Finals	06/06/09
7	4:09.95		Tyler Valdes	12	Dana Hills	SS	South Coast League Finals	05/08/09
8	4:10.04		Jonathan Sanchez	12	Buchanan	CE	CIF-State Finals	06/06/09
9	4:10.67		Zak!Phillips	12	Dana!Hills	SS	South Coast League Finals	05/08/09
10	4:11.22		Danny Thomas	11	Arroyo	NC	CIF-State Prelims	06/05/09
11	4:11.73		TravislEdwards	11	Royal	SS	CIF-State Prelims	06/05/09
12	4:11.90		Pedro De Alba	12	El Rancho	SS	CIF-SS Masters Meet	05/29/09
13	4:12.30		Tyler Brady	12	Upland	SS	CIF-SS Divisional Finals	05/23/09
14	4:12.38		Ryan Valdes	12	Dana Hills	SS	South Coast League Finals	05/08/09
15	4:13.59		Kenneth Raedel	12	San Pasqual	SD	CIF-State Prelims	06/05/09
16	4:13.9		Zack Torres	12	Crescenta Vlly	SS	Weekly Duals, 4/26/09	04/26/09
17	4:14.19		Collin Jarvis	12	Rancho Buena V	SD	Mt. SAC Relays	04/17/09
18	4:14.27		Sterling Lockert	12	Petaluma	NC	Viking Classic	04/25/09
19	4:14.37		Chris Schwartz	12	Foothill	CE	Central Valley Masters	05/23/09
20	4:14.73		Ammar'Moussa	10	Arcadia	SS	CIF-SS Masters Meet	05/29/09
21	4:15.32		Nohe Lema	12	Willow Glen	CC	CIF-State Prelims	06/05/09
22	4:15.35		Justin:Vilhauer	10	Redwood	CE	Mt. SAC Relays	04/17/09
23	4:15.55		Victor:Delgado	12	Beaumont	SS	CIF-SS Divisional Finals	05/23/09
24	4:15.60		Matt!McElroy	11	Edison-HB	SS	CIF-SS Divisional Finals	05/23/09
25	4:15.60		Dan Mitchell	12	Del Campo	SJ	Woody Wilson Classic

Chris Schwartz will be running the mile and 2 mile at the Nike Outdoor Nationals.

Nike Outdoor Nationals - 6/18/2009 to 6/20/2009
North Carolina A+T University, Greensboro, NC

• 2009 Meet Website HERE.

The event in 2008 ranks as one of the greatest high school track meets ever, and this year's event promises to be as good or better. Two national records were set in 2008 (technically, three): German Fernandez's incredible 8:34.40 Boys 2 Mile (and 7:59.83 3000m en route) and the Warwick Valley (NY) Girls Distance Medley of 11:31.81.

In 2007 we added an "Emerging Elite" division. We expanded it in 2008 and have expanded it again in 2009, adding the 2 Mile Run, 4x100m Relay, 4x200m relay and 4x400m Relay.

Please join us on June 18, 19 and 20 for the nineteenth annual national outdoor meet, the Nike Outdoor Nationals!

Event 9 Boys 1 Mile Run
===============================================================================
Saturday 6/20/2009 - 5:00 PM
All but top 2 sections at 5;00pm; top 2 sections at 6:55pm
National: 3:53.43 5/27/2001 Alan Webb, S Lakes, Reston, VA
Meet: 4:02.01 6/14/1997 Sharif Karie, West Springfield, VA
Freshman: 4:15.07 2005 Andrew Perkins, Watertown, WI
Freshman: 4:09.69 2005 Sintayehu Taye (1600m), Portland, ME
Sophomore: 4:06.07 6/14/2003 Jeff See, Middletown, OH
Junior: 3:59.0h 1964 Jim Ryun, East, Wichita, KS
Senior: 3:53.43 5/27/2001 Alan Webb, South Lakes, Reston, VA
Name Year School Finals
===============================================================================
1 Colby Alexander 10 Strongsville, St
2 Bobby Andrews 09 Shoreham Wad, Wa
3 Michael Atchoo 10 Breen TC, Troy,
4 Colin Baker 10 Haddonfield, Had
5 Chris Carrington 09 North Rockla, Th
6 Kirubel Erassa 10 Grayson HS, Gray
7 Daniel Everett 11 Una-Mo-St._l, St
8 Patrick Gomez 09 Auburn HS, Aubur
9 Alex Hatz 10 Manlius TC, Manl
10 Byron Jones 10 Una-Ma-Westb, we
11 Anthony Manfrin 11 Pwn3rs TC El, Sl
12 Pat McGregor 09 Una-Al-Hoove, Ho
13 Shane Moskowitz 10 Una-Wa-Breme, Br
14 Danny Neff 09 Una-Oh-Vanda, va
15 Chris O'Sullivan 10 Girard Avenu, Ha
16 Pat Schellberg 10 Una-Nj-Morri, Mo
17 Christopher Schwartz 09 Una-Ca-Baker, Ba
18 Drew Shields 09 Fishers Dist, Fi
19 Matthew Sonnenfeldt 09 Knoxville TC, Kn
20 Christopher Stogsdill 09 Marcellus HS, Ca
21 Tyler Stutzman 09 Western Albe, Ch
22 Zach Tennant 09 WV Flyers, Fairv

Event 13 Boys 2 Mile Run
===============================================================================
Friday 6/19/2009 - 6:50 PM
All but top section at 6:40pm; top section at 8:15pm
National: 8:34.40 6/20/2008 German Fernandez, Riverbank, CA
Meet: 8:34.40 6/20/2008 German Fernandez, Riverbank, CA
Freshman: 9:04.4h 1973 Eric Hulst, Laguna Beach, CA
Freshman: 9:01.68 2005 Sintayehu Taye (3200m), Portland, ME
Sophomore: 8:50.6h 1974 Eric Hulst, Laguna Beach, CA
Junior: 8:41.10 2000 Dathan Ritzenhein (3200), Rockford, MI
Junior: 8:44.9h 1975 Eric Hulst, Laguna Beach, CA
Name Year School Finals
===============================================================================
1 Bobby Andrews 09 Shoreham Wad, Wa
2 Ben DeJarnette 09 Atlee HS, Mechan
3 Trevor Dunbar 09 Kodiak HS, Kodia
4 Kirubel Erassa 10 Grayson HS, Gray
5 Matthew Estlund 09 Chaminade Co, St
6 Phil Fairleigh 10 Cary-Grove H, Ca
7 David Forward 10 Shawnee HS, Medf
8 Ben Furcht 09 Lower Merion, Ha
9 Taylor Gilland 09 Chapel Hill, Cha
10 Nick Happe 09 Omega Falcon, St
11 Sherod Hardt 10 Queen Creek, Que
12 Michael Hickey 09 Una-Ny-Pearl, Pe
13 Steve Magnuson 10 Una-Az-Oro_v, Or
14 Clint McKelvey 10 Una-Tn-Maryv, Ma
15 Shane Moskowitz 10 Una-Wa-Breme, Br
16 Dave Oster 10 Una-Nj-Veron, Ve
17 Thomas Porter 09 Mountain Vie, Fr
18 Wes Rickman 09 Una-Co-Falco, Fa
19 Dominick Robinson 09 Una-Wy-Gille, Gi
20 Joe Rosa 11 Plainsboro T, Pl
21 Walter Schafer 10 Cherry Creek, Ce
22 Christopher Schwartz 09 Una-Ca-Baker, Ba
23 Taro Shigenobu 09 Ridgewood HS, Ri
24 Matthew Sonnenfeldt 09 Knoxville TC, Kn
25 Andrew Springer 09 Westerly HS, Wes
26 Ben Veilleux 09 Clarke Kents, Be
27 Lukas Verzbicas 12 Una-Il-New_l, Ne
28 Joey Whelan 09 Una-Ny-Hambu, ha
29 Zachary Wills 11 Una-Oh-Mason, Ma

State Champ: Chris Schwartz Foothill/ce 8:51.60

Despite being a state cross country champ in 2007 and coming in second to German Fernandez and going sub nine for the first time at the state track meet last year, Schwartz was the forgotten man in the 3200.

Those of us in Bakersfield knew he would win and not just because he is from Bakersfield. No one wanted it more or deserved it more. Plus he is an amazing talent and a great kid.

Race video HERE.

There were over thirty runners in the field and Chris was in third through the first lap and stayed there through the 800 in 2:13. The announcer did not mention Schwartz till the 800. He stayed in the same place at the 1200 too. At the 1600, Chris took the lead at 4:30 for the split and opened up a lead with Jarvis.

At the 2000, he was in the lead with a large group (14 runners chasing him. At the 2400, Woff took the lead and Schwartz retook the lead with Jarvis following him. Now the the field thinned out. With 500, Jarvis took the lead and had ten yards on Chris on the backstretch. With 200 to go Chris made his move and took the win!

CIF State Track and Field Championships - 6/5/2009 to 6/6/2009
Presented by Farmers
Buchanan High School - Clovis

Event 18 Boys 3200 Meter Run
=======================================================================
Name Year School Finals Points
=======================================================================
Finals
1 Chris Schwartz Foothill/ce 8:51.60 10
2 Collin Jarvis 12 Rnch Buna/sd 8:53.78 8
3 Heyden Wooff 10 Camarillo/ss 8:55.16 6
4 Garrett Rowe 11 MountainV/cc 8:55.71 4
5 Matt McElroy 11 Edison(HB)ss 8:56.44 2
6 Dan Mitchell 12 Del Campo/sj 8:56.56 1
7 Erik Olson 11 Novato/nc 8:56.56
8 Isaac Chavez 12 Barstow/ss 8:57.40
9 Sam Pons 10 S Pasadena 9:01.05
10 Sterling Lockert 12 Petaluma/nc 9:01.32
11 Matt Petersen 12 Davis /sj 9:01.45
12 Ammar Moussa 10 Arcadia/ss 9:03.26
13 Wyatt Landrum 12 Liberty/nc 9:04.06
14 Adrian Rafiee 12 Ptrck Hnr/sd 9:04.83
15 Mitch Moriarty 11 Aptos/cc 9:05.78
16 Western Nelson 12 Burr Bur/ss 9:06.68
17 Reesey Byers 11 Santa Rsa/nc 9:06.93
18 Philip Macquitty 11 Palo Alto/cc 9:07.23
19 Daniel Rosales 11 Apple Vl/ss 9:07.34
20 Jonathan Sanchez 12 Buchanan/ce 9:12.91
21 Zack Torres 12 Cres. Vly/ss 9:15.18
22 Heath Reedy Buchanan/ce 9:19.29
23 Cody Schmidt 12 Redondo /ss 9:19.30
24 Chris Brewer 10 Rnch Buna/sd 9:20.44
25 Zack Kaylor 11 Enterpris/no 9:21.17
26 Trevor Halsted 10 Davis /sj 9:22.86
27 Mewael Ogbai 12 Oakland/ok 9:23.98
28 Lance Wolfsmith 12 Sobrato 9:24.47
29 Noe Ramirez 12 Vis. Murrieta 9:30.58
30 Javert Solorzano 11 Granada H/La 9:31.22
31 Pablo Rosales 11 San Pedro/la 9:37.42
32 Jorge` Mendez 11 Monroe/la 9:48.66
================================================================================
Men - Team Rankings - 15 Events Scored
================================================================================
1) Clovis East /ce CE 20 1) La Sierra /ss SS 20
1) Cathedral /ss SS 20 1) Frontier /ce 20
5) Taft /la LA 18 6) DeLaSalle /nc NC 16
6) Serra /ss SS 16 8) Ayala /ss SS 14
9) Vista Murrieta/ss 13 10) Granite Hills /sd SD 12
11) Dana Hills /ss SS 11 12) Santee/la 10
12) Mater Dei /ss SS 10 12) Foothill /ce CE 10
12) Deer Valley /nc NC 10 12) Granada /nc NC 10
12) Valencia-Pl /ss SS 10 12) Crenshaw /la LA 10
12) University Cty/sd SD 10 20) Del Campo /sj SJ 9
21) Gahr /ss SS 8 21) Ridgeview /ce CE 8
21) Loyola /ss SS 8 21) Poly (LB) /ss SS 8
21) Rancho Buena V/sd SD 8 21) Arroyo Grande /ss SS 8
21) Chino Hills /ss SS 8 21) Fountain Vlly/ss SS 8
29) Jesuit /sj SJ 7 30) Camarillo /ss SS 6
30) Dorsey /la LA 6 30) Agoura /ss SS 6
30) Folsom /sj SJ 6 30) Saugus 6
30) El Toro /ss SS 6 30) Clayton Valley/nc NC 6
30) Newport Harbor/ss SS 6 30) Fairfield /sj SJ 6
39) JSerra/ss 5 39) St. John Bosco/ss SS 5
41) Dominguez /ss SS 4 41) Buchanan /ce CE 4
41) North Torrance/ss SS 4 41) El Camino Real/la LA 4
41) Vacaville /sj SJ 4 41) Mountain View /cc CC 4
41) Paramount /ss SS 4 41) San Jacinto /ss SS 4
49) Lutheran (Orange) /ss 2 49) Rancho Verde /ss SS 2
49) Drake /nc NC 2 49) Harvard Westlake /ss 2
49) El Diamante/ce 2 49) Las Lomas /nc NC 2
49) Elsinore /ss SS 2 49) Edison-HB /ss SS 2
49) Oaks Christian/ss SS 2 49) Tustin /ss SS 2
59) Ventura /ss SS 1 59) St. Francis/cc 1
59) Vallejo /sj SJ 1 59) Servite /ss SS 1
59) Irvine /ss SS 1 59) Salinas /cc CC 1
59) Granite Bay /sj SJ 1 59) Weston Ranch /sj 1
67) Poly (Pas.) /ss SS 0.50 67) Franklin (Stock)/sj 0.50

Chris Schwartz - 1600 & 3200

A 3200 title has been the goal since Schwartz ran at state his sophomore year. That year he learned what state was all about. Last year, he ran into the buzzsaw that was German Fernendez who erased the national record in the 3200. One of the few who tried to run with him that magical evening and manage to still run a good time was Schwartz.

Schwartz came in second and broke nine minutes for the first time while being part of the historic race last year. This year he is expecting to finish his own outstanding high school career with a win in the 3200.

Event 18 Boys 3200 Meter Run
===============================================================================
National: 8:34.23 5/31/2008 German Fernandez (Riverbank)
State Meet: 8:34.23 5/31/2008 German Fernandez (Riverbank)
Name Year School Seed
===============================================================================
1 Olson, Erik 11 Novato/nc 8:55.06
2 Wooff, Heyden 10 Camarillo/ss 8:57.66
3 McElroy, Matt 11 Edison(HB)ss 8:59.91
4 Pons, Sam 10 S Pasadena 9:00.95
5 Nelson, Western 12 Burr Bur/ss 9:04.19
6 Chavez, Isaac 12 Barstow/ss 9:04.50
7 Torres, Zack 12 Cres. Vly/ss 9:04.85
8 Moussa, Ammar 10 Arcadia/ss 9:06.06
9 Jarvis, Collin 12 Rnch Buna/sd 9:06.24
10 Ramirez, Noe 12 Vis. Murrieta 9:06.59
11 Wolfsmith, Lance 12 Sobrato 9:07.10
12 Schmidt, Cody 12 Redondo /ss 9:07.71
13 Rowe, Garrett 11 MountainV/cc 9:08.17
14 Rosales, Daniel 11 Apple Vl/ss 9:08.96
15 lockert, sterling 12 Petaluma/nc 9:09.48
16 Rafiee, Adrian 12 Ptrck Hnr/sd 9:10.42
17 Landrum, Wyatt 12 Liberty/nc 9:10.90
18 Macquitty, Philip 11 Palo Alto/cc 9:10.93
19 Moriarty, Mitch 11 Aptos/cc 9:11.57
20 Byers, Reesey 11 Santa Rsa/nc 9:14.15
21 Brewer, Chris 10 Rnch Buna/sd 9:14.19
22 Petersen, Matt 12 Davis /sj 9:17.91
23 Halsted, Trevor 10 Davis /sj 9:18.04
24 Mitchell, Dan 12 Del Campo/sj 9:19.99
25 Schwartz, Chris Foothill/ce 9:20.22
26 Sanchez, Jonathan Buchanan/ce 9:22.21
27 Reedy, Heath Buchanan/ce 9:22.28
28 Ogbai, Mewael 12 Oakland/ok 9:35.59
29 Rosales, Pablo 11 San Pedro/la 9:37.41
30 Mendez, Jorge` 11 Monroe/la 9:42.67
31 Solorzano, Javert 11 Granada H/La 9:44.73
32 Kaylor, Zack 11 Enterpris/no 9:53.46

"I want to be in the Olympics while I'm still in college."

Schwartz runs down his dream
BY ZACH EWING, Californian staff writer
zewing@bakersfield.com | Thursday, May 21 2009 10:05 PM

Five years ago, as a 13-year-old eighth grader, Chris Schwartz visited Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo.

"It was the first college I'd ever visited," Schwartz said. "It was like me. It's next to the beach; I love the beach. It was laid-back. It was cool."

This, mind you, was before Schwartz found a stable foster home, before he began to focus on academics at Foothill High and really before he started running in earnest.

It also, of course, was before he won a cross-country state championship, a state runner-up finish in the 3,200 meters on the track and a top-10 place at the Foot Locker national cross country race last fall.

So when Schwartz signed a letter of intent at Foothill on Thursday to attend Cal Poly, it was the end of a long pathway to the coast.

"He doesn't walk around like, 'Look at me, I'm the best,'" Foothill track and cross country coach Arron Rietz said. "He's matured. Earlier he was a little more cocky, but he's learned, especially with his personal problems. He knows that if kids have problems, they can talk to him, but he doesn't say, 'Hey, I was in foster care.' He lets his actions speak."

Schwartz has personal bests of 8:58.50 in the 3,200 -- that during the state-championship race last year -- and 14:59 in cross country. He was the first Kern County state cross country champion ever as a junior, and he won the Jim Tyack Award, given to the best boys and girls athlete in Kern County, on Monday.

All this after Schwartz grew up in a troubled home. His mother abandoned him at a mental hospital when Schwartz was 11. He then bounced around in foster homes and group homes until high school, when his life stabilized.

Now this.

Schwartz signed next to his foster parents, Robert and Martha Gonzales, and in front of a packed room of friends and teammates, plus Rietz and long-distance coach Paul Contreras.

"It feels great," Schwartz said. "I'm happy to go to a place where I really want to go."

He'll join a nationally renowned track and cross country programs at Cal Poly that typically rank in the nation's top 30.

That, Rietz said, is exactly what's needed for Schwartz, who thrives off of competition and doesn't get much of it locally.

"He's going to a place where he won't be the fastest guy, at least not at first," Rietz said. "They'll push him to be the best."

To Schwartz, this is a step on another pathway that one day he hopes will lead all the way to the Olympics.

"I want to be in the Olympics while I'm still in college," Schwartz said. "I want to be one of the fastest guys there."