For Hummel, that came with a mixed bag of reactions.

While his long jump, the event he earned the silver in, remained well within the state-qualifying range, his triple was much less ensured. Entering the spring season, he had hit the qualifying mark – 45-0 – just once back in January. And he wouldn’t hit it again until May, one meet before the postseason.

“That was a big thing coming into the year,” said Hummel on the move in regard to his triple jump. “Coming up from AA, I was gonna either have to qualify, hit that 45 standard, which I hadn’t done last year or the year before, or take first, which I knew would be a challenge with Xavier (Midder) there.”

Coupled with being sick heading into districts, feeling about 50-percent the morning of the triple jump, qualifying in two events for a second straight season – and the triple for a third – would be easier said than done.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Bellefonte senior Zane Hummel performs a jump during a quad meet on Saturday, March 29, 2025, at Bellefonte.

But though doubt entered his mind, the Red Raider never let it consume him. He knew he had hit the mark before and only needed to hit once at Altoona to give himself a shot at two bids. And with a first jump of 44-10 ½, any doubt that was there vanished.

“I knew I had it in me,” said Hummel on that jump. “I got confident from there.”

It’d take one more jump to punch his ticket, as he neared his PR with a 45-6 on his second before surpassing it on his last with a 45-9 ¼. He’d fall short of Midder, who hit a 47-7, but those marks were more than enough to extend his stint in the event.

“I’m just happy to qualify,” said Hummel on the event. “My coach pushing me (helped me hit 45). He does a lot for me, getting my feet under me and building my strength especially.”

Though his more assured event was all that remained on his individual slate after Wednesday, those moments leading up to the triple jump weren’t the only time he felt doubt throughout the two-day event.

TIM WEIGHT/For the ExpressBellefonte senior Zane Hummel competes in a relay during a quad meet on Saturday, March 29, 2025, at Bellefonte.

Even as his sickness calmed and long jump warmups went well, his jumps just weren’t landing. He’d land a 21-8, five inches off the state-qualifying mark, to start off. Then, neither of his next two attempts eclipsed that mark, with the third coming in at a 20-2 ¼.

“I was definitely stressing. I was doubting myself,” said Hummel on what was going through his head throughout those attempts. “I didn’t know what was going wrong.”

But just like his first event, he’d find a way to extinguish that doubt before it spiraled out of control.

Remembering that he had hit a state-qualifying in five of the team’s nine competitions leading up to districts, he’d shake off the rough first half of jumps, composing himself and hitting a 22-2 on the fourth – one inch off states. Then, he’d surpass that mark twice to close things out, hitting a 22-10 ¼ to qualify and 22-9 ¾ to show off his consistency.

“Trusting myself, just knowing I had it in me,” said Hummel on what allowed him to prevail. “Not the happiest about taking second by a fourth of an inch, but I’ll get my get-back at states. We’ll pop one out there and hopefully medal.”

With that out of the way, Hummel heads into his third and final stint at Shippensburg – set to begin on Friday – with plenty of confidence, hoping to close out what’s been a storied career with one last standout performance. While looking to build on his silver from last year, he also hopes to garner his first in the triple.

“Going to go for a medal in both events, that’s the goal,” said Hummel. “Hopefully top three in long and heck, maybe even top three in triple. Just got to work on it a little bit.”

As it stands, Hummel is seeded No. 7 in the triple and No. 8 in the long. His stint will begin on Friday at 9 a.m. with the former.