Editor’s Note: With the coronavirus outbreak shutting down spring sports, The Republic is featuring senior athletes from Columbus East, Columbus North and Hauser whose final seasons were affected by the decision over the course of the spring.
Hoping to break the school record for the high jump this spring, Hauser senior John Bragg honed in on his skills during the offseason.
Bragg said that he was eager to get the season underway, feeling like he could reach peak performance in 2020.
Like many of the other seniors across the area and state, Bragg was disappointed when the season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I pretty much wanted to break the high jump record because I’ve been pushing for it since I was in seventh grade,” Bragg said. “Last year at practice, when I tied it, it was pretty mind blowing, and I was like, ‘All right, I can do this now.’ I worked all year, and it just kind of stinks that none of us seniors were able to test our skills to see how much better we got from last year.”
Bragg hit a personal best of 6 feet, 3 inches in high jump during competition last season, which is the second-best height reached in school history behind John Collier’s 6-5.
Last year, Bragg finished fourth in the Columbus North Sectional, one spot out of the third, and final, automatic qualifying spot to regional. However, Bragg received a callback and tied for 13th in the Warren Central Regional.
Hauser boys track coach Ben Finke also had confidence that Bragg could reach new heights in his final season with the program.
“John has the athletic build and looks like a long jumper, but he has got a knack for understanding (high jump) and being able to walk himself through that and really teach himself to jump into something that he found and is really good at,” Finke said. “He has sort of a quiet, kind confidence. He usually doesn’t say a lot, but he understands it and is very confident when he gets down to it. He knows he can do well and goes for it.”
Bragg hasn’t fully set out his college plans yet, but he is leaning toward majoring in criminal justice. One school that has interested Bragg is University of Indianapolis because he has competed in indoor meets there, and he likes their track program. He is considering Ivy Tech, as well, since it is close to home.
Finke said that Bragg is really supportive of his teammates and is someone that will especially be missed.
“’Kind’ is really the word that describes him a lot. He’s definitely got good sportsmanship. He’s there to support his teammates, but there to do his thing, as well,” Finke said. “We were looking forward to a lot this year as a team, and I’m sure he had that school record in sight and was hoping for it. It was definitely of season of ‘what ifs,’ but he’s definitely accomplished a lot over the last couple years, which we’re all proud of and definitely thankful for and we’ll miss.”
Bragg is thankful for all the memories and opportunities he had at Hauser.
“My career for the Jets was much better than I thought it would go because when I first came in my freshman year, I was only jumping 5-4 to 5-6,” Bragg said. “Then, the more I focused and put time into it, the better I got, and it was helped with good coaches and assistant coaches.”
