On the windows of the weight room at Columbus East High School, athletes write their goals, hopes and dreams.
Crase Bergman wrote that he wanted to set the school record in the long jump and become a Division I athlete. He accomplished the former during his senior track season this spring and the latter last week by signing to compete in track and field at Indiana University.
“What’s really neat about Crase is, on the windows, we mark our goals and everything, and he accomplished everything he’s ever written and said he’s going to do,” said former East strength coach and boys track coach Scott Pherson. “He did it. There’s very few people in this world that can say that. I’m very proud of everything that he’s accomplished.”
Bergman leaped into the Olympians record books on April 27 when he went 23 feet, 8 1/2 inches in the long jump in a dual meet at Seymour. That mark stood as the state’s best throughout the entire season, including the state meet.
Unfortunately for Bergman, however, he didn’t get a chance to compete for a state title in the long jump. He fouled on all three of his attempts in the Columbus North Sectional.
“(Winning state) was always a goal,” Bergman said. “I wanted to get to state and win it. That’s always your goal going into anything. You want to win it all. But my cards didn’t really play out right. It was one of my worst days and one of my best. I was jumping well and just kind of touched the board. It’s just going to push me to work harder.”
Bergman didn’t get shut out of the state meet entirely, though. He ran on East’s state-qualifying 4×100- and 4×400-meter relay teams.
“It was amazing, the atmosphere and just having four good buddies run next to me,” Bergman said. “It was a dream-come-true. It was so nice to actually experience with them.”
That wasn’t the first time Bergman had competed at the state level. He played a little special teams in football as a freshman when the Olympians beat Kokomo for the Class 5A state title at Lucas Oil Stadium.
“The chills and the goosebumps and the crowd, it all goes into it,” Bergman said. “It’s one big experience, and I wouldn’t change any of it now for anything.”
Bergman went on to become a key football player for East his last three years of high school. During his career, he played multiple positions on both offense and defense.
The past two winters, Bergman also was a regular on the Olympians’ varsity boys basketball team.
“Crase was a three-sport athlete, and that’s big,” East athletics director Pete Huse said. “He’s getting a D-I scholarship to a historic school in Indiana, and he’s a multiple-sport athlete. So obviously, the grades are there, the passion is there. It just wasn’t like he was on the team over these three programs either. He was a valuable member of three teams, got to experience state championships, conference championships, individual state qualifications and stuff like that. So if you just work hard, and you give it your all and you do responsible things in school to get here, this can happen.”
Pherson, who is leaving for a position as Director of Fitness and Performance Center at Concord High School in northern Indiana, was glad he was able to work with Bergman, both in the weight room and on the track.
“It’s just so funny watching him grow up from that little freshman that just dominated,” Pherson said. “You could tell he could play everything, and that fact that he played all three sports all four years, that’s another thing that’s very, very tough to do nowadays, and I love that he did it.”
Bergman had multiple offers for either football or track. He said IU track, which was his only Division I offer, started getting interested after he posted the 23-8 1/2 jump.
“They saw that number and started getting interested, and I had some other schools get interested,” Bergman said. “Ever since I walked on campus at IU, it just felt like home, and it had what I wanted to major in with the Kelley School of Business.”
Bergman plans to major in marketing and management at IU and hopes to keep reaching new distances in track and field during his time in Bloomington.
“I want to go there and be the best,” Bergman said. “I want to work to my full potential and keep on doing what I’m doing.”
