The 6-foot-1 senior won the discus and the shot put at the Division 1 state meet this past season, leading the Thunderbirds to a sixth-place finish as a team. Schaefer's season-best discus toss of 171 feet at the Division 1 Baraboo Regional meet ranked as the nation's No. 6 performance among prep competitors this spring at the time of her selection. She also ranked No. 18 nationally with her state-winning shot of 47-8. She owns the state record in the discus courtesy of her 176-3 effort at the USATF Junior National Outdoor Championships in June of 2016, which ranks as one of the Top 50 throws in prep history.
Schaefer has maintained an A average in the classroom. She has signed a national letter of intent to compete on an athletic scholarship at the University of Wisconsin beginning this fall.
Schaefer has volunteered locally as a youth volleyball, basketball and track coach, and she has donated her time as part of multiple community-service initiatives with the Baraboo High National Honor Society. "Josie is one of the hardest-working student-athletes that I have worked with in my 10 years of coaching track and field," said Annie Hinkhouse, head coach of Baraboo High. "She rarely takes a day off. Her career as an athlete has been tremendous and well deserved through her hard work and desire to excel."
