Sattiewhite Soaring To New Heights
FITCHBURG, MASS. – It’s a difficult feat to be considered a championship contender in any given sport, but it’s even harder when that sport splits time with another.
Senior becoming a regular at the NCAA DIII Indoor Track & Field National Championships
Fitchburg State University's Ben Sattiewhite is no stranger to this fact and despite it has rose toward the national spotlight for NCAA Division III track & field in the high-jump event. Sattiewhite is ranked fifth in the nation for the men's high jump with his season-best of 2.07-meters.
Sattiewhite, who would be going to the NCAA DIV. III National Indoor Championships for the third-consecutive year on March 10th-11th, also doubles as a wide receiver for the school's football team in the fall – an ideal target for a quarterback when the offense is in the red zone.
This past year on the football team, Sattiewhite saw action in ten games for the Green & Gold, picking up 189 receiving yards on 17 catches and two touchdowns. With both scores coming in Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) action.
"Other track athletes start the school year and they're gearing up for the indoor season," Sattiewhite said. "I'm still playing football. I don't even get to think about track until about one week before the indoor season starts."
Similar to a baseball player not touching a bat in the offseason, then going 3-for-4 in the first game, track & field is something Sattiewhite can seemingly pick up and compete in. He demonstrates a true knack for the sport. But it may not have started without a nudge from the football coach in his hometown of Salem, Massachusetts.
"I didn't start track until my junior year in high school. My football coach, who was also the head coach for track, always told me I would make a great high jumper. He kept asking me, and asking me, so one day I said 'alright I'll go out for track,'" Sattiewhite recalled.
"I went to my first indoor track meet in high school and I qualified for states - my first meet ever. I couldn't turn back."
Success came quickly for Sattiewhite in track & field but he saw himself competing on another field once he got to college (the gridiron), so he prioritized football pads instead of track spikes as he continued his educational search.
"I didn't think I would do track in college. I was sold on playing football. I went to a junior college that only had football. That's when it really looked like track may be done. Then Coach Haverty (Fitchburg State Football Head Coach) reached out and I realized there was a track team. I thought I could do both once I got here," Sattiewhite said.
And that's what he did. Sattiewhite's reunion with track since coming to Fitchburg State has been nothing short of rewarding.
During the 2014-15 season, his first with the Falcons, Sattiewhite finished second at the All-New England Championships, setting a new school record with a jump of 2.08-meters in the process. The next season, he duplicated his postseason appearances qualifying for both the All-New England's and National meets for the second straight year.
This season, Sattiewhite has been a name that other high jumpers have become aware of. Since January 29th, he has risen from eighth in the country to where he presently sits at fifth. There is still weeks in the schedule as the busiest section began this past weekend when he placed third at the DIII New England Championships at Tufts University.
This weekend, he will show case his talents against the top track & field athletes in the region when the Falcons compete in the All-New England Championships, which includes teams from throughout the NCAA athletic divisions.
Finally, the senior high jumper hopes to head to the NCAA National Championships on March 10th-11th. As of now he would be the second representative from Fitchburg State University at the NCAA DIII Track & Field National Championships.
Although a significant accomplishment, Sattiewhite knows he has more room to improve in the sport, but has to wait until the offseason, his first without football, to do it.
As of now, he has his goals set for the remainder of his junior season and hopes to build momentum that will carry into the outdoor track season, which begins on March 26th.
"Confidence is huge. I feel like I'm my own biggest enemy. Physically I can jump heights I haven't yet, but mentally when I see a bar for a quick second I'll think, 'wow that's high.' Your mind sometimes limits you to that stuff. I'm no where near satisfied," he emphasized.
There's reason to believe Sattiewhite when he says he's not finished improving.
Since conducting the interview with him, Sattiewhite established new-season best jump at the 2017 Dartmouth Indoor Classic on February 4th. The third-year Falcon also captured his first MASCAC indoor championship in the high jump at the 2016-17 MASCAC/Alliance Championships, hosted by the University of Southern Maine on Saturday, February 11th.
Story courtesy of Fitchburg State student journalist Kyle Prudhomme