By JONATHAN ZWEYGARDT
Hays Post
By the time Mason Younger finished his high school athletic career, he was one of the most decorated athletes in Ellis High School history, winning multiple state wrestling championships and a state pole vault title.
The accolades and hard work eventually earned him a track and field scholarship to Fort Hays State University. While the journey was not easy, Younger’s faith never wavered. In fact, his faith made it possible for him to go on a once-in-a-lifetime trip that allowed him to share his faith with others.
Growing up, Younger thought he would be the first-ever member of his family to wrestle in college.
Wrestling was always his passion, and after claiming a second-place finish as a sophomore, Younger went on to win back-to-back state championships, becoming the first Ellis Railroader to accomplish that feat.
But after 14 years, he began feeling burnt out and seriously looked elsewhere. There, he found track and field, specifically pole vault.
“The reason that I chose pole vault over any of the other events is because I thought it was the most interesting. It's the most unique event in track and field. There's so many things that go into it, and it's not that easy to even do let alone to be good at,” Younger said.
“I kind of just felt like flying through the air. ... I kind of like challenging myself.”
After a rough freshman year, Younger began to focus on improving at pole vault, and the results started to show.
"Track was always my second sport because I've done wrestling for 14 years," Younger said. "It wasn't until after my sophomore year that I actually started taking pole vault and track seriously."
That year, he earned a sixth-place finish at state, but Younger’s competitive nature fueled his desire to be better.
He said it all started to click at the end of his junior year, culminating in a third-place finish. But that still wasn’t good enough.
"After I trained through the summer before my senior year, I started going to camps. I started to see myself improve, and when I started to see myself improve, that's when I was like, I want to do this in college," Younger said.
In his senior year, Younger said his goal was to earn all-state football honors and win a state championship in wrestling and pole vault.
In his senior season, Younger hauled in 65 passes for 941 yards and 11 touchdowns, earning him 1A Sports in Kansas first-team honors on the football field.
He followed that with a record of 39-1 and his second straight state wrestling championship at 144 pounds.
Then, in his first track meet of the season, he broke the school record in pole vault, clearing 13’7”. But after that, he struggled for much of the season and could never clear the 14’ mark.
"It just wasn't clicking and wasn't making sense to me. Why couldn't I get it, and why wasn't my technique getting down?" Younger said. "Me and my family ended up just praying about it, and I was like in God's will and in his control that things will work."
He followed that with a regional performance of 14’6”, his new personal record, which also broke his previous school record.
Younger bettered his regional performance at state and clinched the elusive 2A state pole vault title with a height of 14’7”.
The new record also worked well for Younger’s scholarship situation at FHSU. Although he had previously contacted the coaches at FHSU, it wasn’t until he reached the new height that he secured a bigger scholarship opportunity.
"It means a lot because Fort Hays is obviously only 15 minutes away from where I live, and both my parents graduated from Fort Hays," Younger said. "I know that even my cousins and my aunts and uncles and grandparents all love watching me and supporting me, so I know that being at Fort Hays will be even better for them, too, is that they're even close enough that they could come support and watch me."
He plans to major in health and human performance to become a chiropractor.
Younger is quick to praise God for the athletic success he has experienced and says that his faith, growing up and attending the Ellis Baptist Church, is an extremely important part of his life.
His faith is so important to him that he decided to take part in a mission trip to Africa after the school year.
Younger was part of a group of six people who left the United States at the end of May and spent two weeks in Africa. His mother, Jenifer, his older sister, Tessa, his best friend, Logan Russell, and a local Ellis teacher also participated in the mission trip.
Russell is also headed to Fort Hays State University next season. He has signed to play football for the Tigers.
Their trip took them to Johannesburg, South Africa, and then to Bulawayo, Zimbabwe.
Younger said they spent the week sharing the gospel there.
"We stayed in a mission house for a week down there and went to many different boys' homes and girls' homes. We went to a dump, which had a church there, and we ministered that whole week. We talked to many different people and different groups and gave our testimonies," Younger said.
After a week, they returned to Johannesburg before flying to Kimberley, South Africa.
While in Kimberley, Younger said they spent the week on a farm called Africa for Jesus. There, they were able to help teach lessons and helped with manual labor.
“We helped teach lessons, and I learned a bunch just from sitting down there and listening,” Younger said. “So, each different part that we went to was all a completely different experience and a very eye opening experience.”
Younger said that after the initial excitement of the trip wore off, he was a little apprehensive but believed it was worth it.
"Obviously, it was scary, fully committing to it," Younger said. "But once we landed, and we met everybody down there, we all got comfortable down in Africa. It all became way easier because I knew I was there for God's will and not my own plan."
Younger said he’s unsure if he will take part in another mission trip but will continue to lean on his Christian faith.
"My faith has been a huge part of my life because I don't know what I would be or where I would be without having the Lord next to me the whole time and having him guide my path and lead me into the right direction that I can never leave myself," Younger said.