This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is junior runner Grant Schmid. The Schmid name is one that has dominated running in central North Carolina over the past four years. Schmid’s older brother, Gabriel, won two 3A State Cross Country championships for Orange. Last month, Schmid finished fourth in the 1,600 meters at the 5A State Indoor Track & Field Championships at the JDL FastTrack in Winston-Salem. Last week, Schmid started his outdoor track season with a strong performance at Eastern Alamance High. He finished first in the 1,600 meters with a time of 4:40.67, leading a group of Panthers who finished in the top five spots in the event. Schmid also won the 3,200 meters at 10:10.49, inching out his teammate Lucas Van Mater. Last fall during cross country season, Schmid made the 5A All-State team after he finished 9th in the State Championships at the Ivey Redmond Sports Complex in Kernersville. Schmid crossed the finish line at 15:58.58. At the East Regionals, Schmid finished 5th at 16:03.42, which helped the Panthers finish 2nd in the team standings. Last year, Schmid finished 7th in the 1,600 meters at the 3A State Outdoor Track & Field Championships at North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro. He finished 12th in the 3,200 meters at the State Championships, as well.
