Success for Hintz

Top pole vaulter for the SDSU Aztecs

San Diego State University sophomore pole vaulter Kelsy Hintz competes at an event earlier this year. Hintz is a 2008 Del Norte High School graduate. Photo courtesy of San Diego State University

Despite all that’s going on in her life, Hintz continues to make her mark as an athlete and has the opportunity to earn a berth in nationals in the pole vault.

“It’s going awesome,” she said in a telephone interview with The Daily Triplicate on Thursday. “Things have been going in the right direction.”

The 2008 Del Norte High School graduate is a sophomore pole vaulter at San Diego State University and has made quite the impression.

On May 13, Hintz won the Mountain West Championship in the pole vault for the Aztecs.

She cleared 13-04.50 feet to take first place in the 17-person field in Fort Collins, Colo. Hintz has now cleared 13 feet in four consecutive meets.

She will next compete in the NCAA West Regionals in Eugene, Ore., on May 27.

The top 12 placers move on to nationals, with Hintz currently around 14th place in the region, she said.

“I would love to place in the top 12,” Hintz said. “I think it’s just going to be so much fun.”

Hintz, who is majoring in  child and family development, is engaged to Max Perez, a fellow Del Norte graduate, and they have a 20-month-old son, Kayceon.

“It definitely keeps me busy but it’s all been fun,” she said. “It all brings me happinesss.”

While it can be “tough” at times, Hintz said she has received a lot of support and help from her family and friends as she juggles responsibilities.

 “You just have to learn how to balance everything,” she said.

Hintz, the top-ranked pole vaulter on the team, said that the biggest difference for her from last season has been improvement in her “technique” and how she approaches each vault.

She said that she has learned ways to consistently jump higher, which have translated into more success, like the conference title.

As a redshirt freshman last year, Hintz placed seventh at the Mountain West Conference championships and competed in the preliminary rounds of the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Texas. She placed 23rd with a height of 12-09.50.

Since it’s little more than a four-hour drive from Crescent City to Eugene, a number of friends and family members will be rooting her on.

“A bunch of my family and friends will be there,” Hintz said. She is exited that her mother and grandparents will attend.

“It makes it special that they will be there to support me,” she said.

Coming into the MWC championships, Hintz was the No.1-ranked pole vaulter, “which gave me some confidence,” she said.

The competition was fierce, she said, with vaulters from BYU and New Mexico right on her heels.

Taking first was a confidence-booster, Hintz said.

It also has helped to be part of a close-knit group of athletes and to form bonds with her teammates, Hintz said.

“We all go out to dinners together and hang out,” she said.

Hintz, who was born and raised  in Del Norte County, competed all four years in the pole vault at Del Norte and left as one of the most successful athletes in Warrior history.

In her junior and senior years, she took second overall in the pole vault at state and received a scholarship offer from SDSU.

When she graduates, Hintz said she would love to open a dance studio or become a director of a child-care center.

As a mother, her major has become a natural fit for Hintz.

“It’s totally where my life is right now,”  she said. “It’s something I can really relate to.”