2025-26 Track & Field Roster

Sam Novak

  • Position Pole Vault
  • Class Freshman
  • Hometown Paradise Valley, Ariz.
  • Last School(s) Phoenix Country Day School

Biography

CAREER BESTS:
Pole Vault (In):
5.25m (17-2.75)

CAREER HONORS
  • Tied for No. 6 in Cal indoor pole vault history
  • Owns the school freshman record in the indoor pole vault
  • 1x ACC Men's Freshman of the Week

2026 (Indoor): Recorded a mark of 5.25m (17-2.75) at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Invitational... named ACC Men's Freshman of the Week on Jan. 20... broke a 19-year-old Cal freshman record in the indoor pole vault with a winning clearance of 5.25m (17-2.75) at the Spokane Sports Showcase, becoming the first Cal freshman in history to surpass 17 feet in the event and tying for sixth on the program top 10 list.

HIGH SCHOOL: Was the overall No. 2 men’s pole vault recruit (Track & Field News)… had the fifth-best mark of all high school boys nationwide and best in Arizona by eight inches (5.38m/17-8)… two-time USA Track & Field (USATF) U20 Championships competitor (2024-25)… 2025 USATF Arizona Association Junior Olympic Champion… placed third at the 2025 Arizona Interscholastic Association (AIA) State Championships… three-time AIA Division V Champion (2023-25)… two-time competitor at Nike Outdoor Nationals (2023-24)… 2024 AIA State champion… competed at the 2024 New Balance Nationals Indoor meet.. 2023 USATF Arizona State runner-up… placed fourth at that year’s AIA State Championships… as a freshman in 2022, placed third at the AIA D4 Championships.