Zachary Schmidt joined the Milwaukee track & field team in the fall of 2016, working with the team’s pole vaulters. He will enter his 11th season with the Panthers in 2026-27.
Milwaukee’s pole vault team has been successful under Schmidt’s watch, winning three indoor championships and one outdoor title during his time. Kate Watson won consecutive indoor pole vault titles in 2022 and 2023, while Emma Johnson was Milwaukee’s most recent champion, earning the outdoor title in 2026.
In just his first season with the team, Schmidt helped coach the first men's indoor pole vault champion for Milwaukee since 2013 in Nate Scherer.
Schmidt joined the Panthers after a successful career at Oshkosh, where he earned seven letters with the Titans including four seasons as a member of the outdoor track & field team that won both the Indoor and Outdoor NCAA Division III Championships his senior season.
