When heading into the unknown, one is often warned to look before they leap.

It took a pretty high degree of looking before Jefferson’s multi-sport athlete Lizzy Ziemski took a leap of faith.

The daughter of Daniel and Kathy Ziemski admitted she had an extremely difficult choice to make between continuing her pursuit of basketball or seeing how much farther she can take an increasingly promising track and field career. Ultimately, the desire to see how far track, in particular the high jump, can be taken, convinced her to sign on with the storied program at Edinboro University.

“I was torn between what I could do in basketball and track,” she said. “The way I finally looked at it was that I can still play basketball for the rest of my life. The high jump will only last for a while.”

Over the past two seasons, Ziemski has really taken off in track, finishing second in the high jump in the Division II state meet on the basis of more misses at the end of her junior year after finishing ninth in the event at state as a sophomore. She also qualified for the state meet last year in the long jump, finishing 15th.

What has made her performance, particularly in the high jump, impressive is the fact Ziemski has not exactly had the most ideal conditions under which to practice her craft in one of the most demanding technical events in the sport. Most of her practices in the event through last season had been on a crudely improvised pit set up in the Jefferson High School parking lot. Even Jefferson girls track coach and athletic director Steve Locy has admitted what Ziemski has accomplished in the high jump under those obvious restrictions has been nothing short of remarkable.

Now, with the school’s new state-of-the-art athletic facilities, including proper high jump and long jump pits and all-weather track in place, Ziemski should have the opportunity to see just how much farther she can progress in her favorite events. That is certainly an exciting prospect.

“I’m really looking forward to that,” she said.

The possibilities of what she can do, especially in the high jump, are even more intriguing at the collegiate level. No disrespect is meant, but Ziemski dreams of what can happen when she receives coaching from persons well versed in all the technical aspects of her event.

“That’s one of the other reasons I picked track,” she said. “I’m excited about the possibilities in track. Coach Locy and (assistant) Coach (Heather) Koren have worked with me a lot, but I’ve got to 5-5 pretty much on my own.

“I’m interested in seeing how high I can jump. I’m looking forward to having someone who can really help me with my jumping. They want me for high jumping and long jumping.”

It seems likely that Ziemski couldn’t have landed with a better coaching staff, at least in the NCAA Division II ranks, than Edinboro’s. Doug Watts, who is the head coach for the Fighting Scots’ women’s and men’s track and cross country teams, is in his 41st season at the school. His men’s teams have earned several Division II national championships.

His women’s teams have never claimed an NCAA team title, but they have won three East Regional titles in the past six years and are always a factor at the national meet. The Fighting Scot women have also won the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference 10 of the past 11 years.

“Coach Watts (a 1964 University of Akron graduate) is a phenomenon over there,” Ziemski said. “The Edinboro coaching staff shined out as opposed to the other choices I had. They’ve had so many good runners over the years.”

There is even some thought that the versatile Ziemski might fill a need at Edinboro as a heptathlete, women’s track’s seven-event version of the decathlon.

She has already competed for Jefferson in the 300-meter hurdles, reaching regional competition, and has run a leg of the Falcons’ fine 3200-meter relay, which means she is adept at the 800-meter run. That would mean she would really only need to learn to throw the javelin and shot put and produce decent performances in the 200-meter dash, along with adjusting to running the 100-meter high hurdles instead of the longer event.

“We even talked about me becoming a heptathlete,” Ziemski said. “Coach (Steve) Hill, the girls track coach at Edgewood, and even Coach (Jim) Sanchez, their boys track coach, talked about it.

“My coaches at Jefferson are excited about that, too. My coaches at Jefferson have put me in so many different events, which I think would help. I think that might be a good idea.”

Edinboro has also just built a new indoor track, which was another attraction for Ziemski. But she clearly wants to make sure she’s always getting a chance to work on her passion.

“If I don’t run anything, I won’t be disappointed,” she said. “As long as I get to jump, I’ll be fine.”

There were all kinds of options for Ziemski from a track standpoint, including ones even closer to home than Edinboro, which is just an hour away from her home.

“I got letters from all over the country from schools ranging from

Division I to Division III,” she said. “Lake Erie (in Painesville) offered me a full ride. I looked at Findlay, Tiffin and Ohio Northern. I even had interest from Cornell (of the Ivy League).

“I just like Edinboro. I like that it’s far enough away from home, but it’s also close enough that I wouldn’t have to fly to get home if there’s a family emergency. I wanted to get out of Jefferson, but not too far away.”

Family is an important thing for Ziemski, who is the youngest of four children. Oldest sister Jennifer, 31, also resides in Jefferson. Victoria, 23, recently completed her studies in criminal justice at the University of Toledo, focusing on special victims studies, and is now working on her masters degree with the goal of getting into the FBI. Rebekah, 20, lives in South Carolina.

But then the issue of where basketball, in which she has also excelled for coach Rod Holmes’ team for three years, stood. As a junior, she earned third-team Division II All-Ohio honors, was chosen the Star Beacon Ashtabula County Player of the Year and also shared honors as the Ashtabula County Basketball Foundation Player of the Year. As a sophomore, she was an honorable-mention All-Ohioan and was a first-team all-county selection. All that made her a highly sought commodity for college basketball programs.

“I had offers from Baldwin-Wallace, John Carroll and a lot of other Division III schools (all of which do not offer scholarships),” Ziemski said. “That’s another reason I picked track.

“I’m not even sure how much help I’ll get at Edinboro, but they stressed there will be a lot of financial aid.”

She has found those whose opinions she truly values supportive of her choice.

“That’s what I love about Coach Holmes,” Ziemski said. “He understands my situation. When I told him, he said, ‘As long as you succeed, I’m happy for you.’ He’s been very supportive. Really, all of my coaches and friends have been very supportive.

“I want to thank my friends and family for all their support. I want to thank Mr. Holmes and Mr. Locy, too. Their support for me has really meant a lot.”

Edinboro has other attractions for Ziemski. Many of her friends from Jefferson and elsewhere in Ashtabula County are students there. Former basketball and track teammate Kelcie Hellmer, who still shares the county record in the girls high jump at 5-7, which will be a target for Ziemski in the spring, is a member of the Fighting Scot basketball team.

Friend Johnny Powers is also at Edinboro as a student in the criminal justice program. Jim Henson, former Grand Valley High School head football coach, Ashtabula County Football Hall of Famer and father of Jefferson head coach Jimmy Henson, is a member of the mathematics faculty at Edinboro and is an assistant football coach.

“It’s the biggest decision I’ve ever had to make, but I feel good about it,” Ziemski said. “Kelcie is there, and a lot of other people I know are there. It’ll be like a little piece of home.

“Edinboro is the perfect size school for me. It’s not too small, but it’s not overwhelming, either.”

Like her sister Victoria and Powers, Ziemski, who carries a 3.7 grade-point average to rank among the top students in the senior class at Jefferson, is considering a career somewhere in the criminal justice system.

“I’m looking to major in criminal justice and minor in psychology,” she said. “Edinboro has a real strong program in those areas. I don’t know what I want to do for sure yet. I’ve always liked the CSI and Law and Order programs on television.”

Having made her college choice is a great relief to Ziemski.

“The stress is dissolved now,” she said. “I told myself I wanted to make my decision before November was over. Now I just have to fill out a lot of the paperwork.

“It was definitely a big influence to get it done so I can focus on having a great season in basketball and track.”

It may have set in motion a great leap forward for Ziemski.