Photo by: R. Dean Hendrickson
Martin Hopes Individual Success Translates to Team Success During Senior Season
2/6/2020 3:04:00 PM | Men's Track and Field
Noah Martin's collegiate career got off to a strong start individually. Now he's got his sights set on getting the Bobcats to the top of the Big Sky Conference podium.
BOZEMAN, Mont. – Noah Martin couldn't have got his collegiate career off to a better start. Four years later, Martin hopes to play a big role as a senior for the Montana State men's track and field team in its pursuit of a conference title.
The Spokane, Wash., native came to Montana State with plenty of accolades. Martin qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials in the summer of 2016 by clearing 7 feet, 3 inches in the high jump. He arrived in Bozeman as a freshman and immediately made an impact for the Bobcat program. He earned a gold medal at the Big Sky Indoor Championships in the high jump and placed fourth at the outdoor meet in the event. He made MSU's all-time top 10 in the high jump during both seasons with marks that nearly reached 7 feet.
All this while preparing his body to make an even more significant role for the men's team at future conference meets.
"One of the things people don't realize is when he came in, we thought he could be a great multi-eventer," jumps coach Tom Eitel said. "We had him gain some weight which hampers the high jump. Even though he was still jumping 6-10 and 6-11, that was pretty good for his weight."
The Bobcats have certainly benefited from Martin's efforts.
The men's program placed third at back-to-back Big Sky Indoor Championships before taking runner-up a season ago at the 2019 meet held in Worthington Arena as Martin scored a career-high 13.5 points. MSU nearly won the 2018 outdoor championship in Moscow, Idaho, with Martin scoring 11 combined points in the high jump and pole vault. He also owns a bronze medal in the heptathlon that he achieved at the 2018 Big Sky indoor meet with 4,799 points, which was good for seventh most in program history.
Despite a gold medal and five total all-conference performances, Martin has continued to improve in order to achieve a group goal.
"I think it's really cool to compete as an individual, but in hindsight, winning a conference championship as a team would be even better," Martin said.
His senior season could be an indicator of what's to come for the Bobcats.
Martin improved on his collegiate-best high jump in MSU's season opener on Dec. 6 to pick up Big Sky Field Athlete of the Week honors. He again garnered the award after topping seven feet for the first time as a Bobcat at the MSU Dual Meet Invitational in Bozeman on Jan. 24.
Martin first cleared 7-00.50 (2.14m) then topped it by setting the new third-best mark in school history of 7-01.50 (2.17m) at the meet in Worthington Arena. He became MSU's first high jumper to clear seven feet since 1995.
"I think it was a confidence booster that the training is paying off and that I haven't lost it," Martin said. "I think it's good as a way to look into the future to see what I can do this year potentially."
"It's really nice for him," Eitel said. "Once he went seven feet, I was telling the guy the 'flood gates are going to open up. The pressure is off.' He's gone 6-11 tons of times and just got a little tight at 7."
While he ranks among the top 25 currently in Division I track and field in the high jump, Martin also hopes to continue to contribute in the pole vault to help the team's scoring at Big Sky meets. He sits in a tie for 12th on the conference pole vault performance list.
"(Noah) is the most team-oriented guy I've ever coached and we've had some good ones," Eitel said. "The one thing with the really good ones are, if they're not doing what they want to do, they still don't complain. They just keep working and try to find a way to get there. He's done whatever we've asked. He's said he'd score points in the multi, the vault, and he's done that in both. That's just who he is."
Martin's ability to rank among the best in the high jump in the conference and to compete in the pole vault makes a difference for Montana State as team points start to add up at the end of a championship meet. They'll continue to be important as the season winds down and personal and team objectives begin to tie together.
"Individually it's to get to an NCAA Championship and become an All-American," Martin said of his goals for his senior campaign. "But winning a team championship is more of my main goal. Anything beyond that is icing on the cake."
The Spokane, Wash., native came to Montana State with plenty of accolades. Martin qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials in the summer of 2016 by clearing 7 feet, 3 inches in the high jump. He arrived in Bozeman as a freshman and immediately made an impact for the Bobcat program. He earned a gold medal at the Big Sky Indoor Championships in the high jump and placed fourth at the outdoor meet in the event. He made MSU's all-time top 10 in the high jump during both seasons with marks that nearly reached 7 feet.
All this while preparing his body to make an even more significant role for the men's team at future conference meets.
"One of the things people don't realize is when he came in, we thought he could be a great multi-eventer," jumps coach Tom Eitel said. "We had him gain some weight which hampers the high jump. Even though he was still jumping 6-10 and 6-11, that was pretty good for his weight."
The Bobcats have certainly benefited from Martin's efforts.
The men's program placed third at back-to-back Big Sky Indoor Championships before taking runner-up a season ago at the 2019 meet held in Worthington Arena as Martin scored a career-high 13.5 points. MSU nearly won the 2018 outdoor championship in Moscow, Idaho, with Martin scoring 11 combined points in the high jump and pole vault. He also owns a bronze medal in the heptathlon that he achieved at the 2018 Big Sky indoor meet with 4,799 points, which was good for seventh most in program history.
Despite a gold medal and five total all-conference performances, Martin has continued to improve in order to achieve a group goal.
"I think it's really cool to compete as an individual, but in hindsight, winning a conference championship as a team would be even better," Martin said.
His senior season could be an indicator of what's to come for the Bobcats.
Martin improved on his collegiate-best high jump in MSU's season opener on Dec. 6 to pick up Big Sky Field Athlete of the Week honors. He again garnered the award after topping seven feet for the first time as a Bobcat at the MSU Dual Meet Invitational in Bozeman on Jan. 24.
Martin first cleared 7-00.50 (2.14m) then topped it by setting the new third-best mark in school history of 7-01.50 (2.17m) at the meet in Worthington Arena. He became MSU's first high jumper to clear seven feet since 1995.
"I think it was a confidence booster that the training is paying off and that I haven't lost it," Martin said. "I think it's good as a way to look into the future to see what I can do this year potentially."
"It's really nice for him," Eitel said. "Once he went seven feet, I was telling the guy the 'flood gates are going to open up. The pressure is off.' He's gone 6-11 tons of times and just got a little tight at 7."
While he ranks among the top 25 currently in Division I track and field in the high jump, Martin also hopes to continue to contribute in the pole vault to help the team's scoring at Big Sky meets. He sits in a tie for 12th on the conference pole vault performance list.
"(Noah) is the most team-oriented guy I've ever coached and we've had some good ones," Eitel said. "The one thing with the really good ones are, if they're not doing what they want to do, they still don't complain. They just keep working and try to find a way to get there. He's done whatever we've asked. He's said he'd score points in the multi, the vault, and he's done that in both. That's just who he is."
Martin's ability to rank among the best in the high jump in the conference and to compete in the pole vault makes a difference for Montana State as team points start to add up at the end of a championship meet. They'll continue to be important as the season winds down and personal and team objectives begin to tie together.
"Individually it's to get to an NCAA Championship and become an All-American," Martin said of his goals for his senior campaign. "But winning a team championship is more of my main goal. Anything beyond that is icing on the cake."
Players Mentioned
Jumps
/ Men's Track and FieldFriday, February 11
Monday, February 18
Tuesday, February 12
Tuesday, February 05
