Arrowhead pole vaulter finds his team, becomes state champion

HARTLAND, Wis. - Evan Bartelsen was a boy without a team, but that never stopped him from chasing his dreams. Now, the Arrowhead senior is a state champion and that is why he's this week's FOX6 High School Hot Shot.

As a freshman, Bartelsen tried out for volleyball, baseball and basketball, but didn't make the team for any of them.

He saw his sister and a few friends pole vaulting so he thought he would give it a shot.

"Actually, I wasn't really that good my sophomore year," Bartelsen said. "Then, during COVID I started to focus in on it and I continued jumping pretty much two to three days a week. That's where I am now."

Zach Zirgibel was one of those friends that helped Bartelsen get into it. 

"Sophomore year, we talked about setting school records and it was always like a joke," said Bartelsen. "It was never anything very serious because he was like a 12 foot jumper and I was maybe eight feet at the time."

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During his senior season, Bartelsen hit 16 feet.

"I don't know, it was more of a dream," Bartelsen said. "Something that you were going to work towards. Like shooting for the moon and hitting the stars."