Girls:
800 Meters
Emma Bangert of Mounds View finished runner-up at State to current Minnesota Gopher, Sophie Schmitz last year in the 800 meters. Bangert has an impressive resume as she enters her senior year. She has qualified for three straight State meets in the 800 meters, and she won the 400 meters at State True Team last year (58.71), making it unwise for her opponents to leave anything to a sprint finish! But it is Danielle Bellino of Lakeville North who has the top returning time, an incredible 2:10.56 run in the prelims at State last year! She finished third in the final, and has over six years of running experience supporting her as she pushes for her first title.
Without a doubt, the deepest section in the state for distance running is Section 6AA, and that is certainly true in the 800 meters. Emily Kompelien, the future Brown Bear has an impressive PR of 2:12.20, but it is a mystery at this point just which events she will elect to compete in once championship time rolls around. Last season, the 800 meters was one of her primary events, however she was unable to make it out of Section 6AA to qualify for State. One of the girls who beat her was Caroline Sassan of Wayzata, who finished fourth as a freshman last year, and went on to have an outstanding cross country season! She could have something to say this year as she continues to prove. And of course, what would be an 800 meter competition without a runner from Minnetonka? Future Gopher Libby Halbmaier was an All-State cross-country runner, and she also qualified for Hamline in the two-mile last year, but it is the 800 meters she she shines the brightest, coming in with the third-fastest returning PR and the reigning Section 6AA champion in the event. In her final season, she will be looking to improve on her fifth-place finish at last year's State Meet.
Meanwhile, four more athlete will also be returning from last year's State Finals and all have run 2:15 or better in the event. Anoka's Taylor Krone, another future Gopher, has the fifth-fastest returning time in the state of 2:13.22, and has also starred on Anoka's All-State 4x800 and 4x400 relays the past two years. Hailing from Minnesota's more southern schools are Waseca's Lexi Herman (who was also very nearly a State-qualifying triple jumper), and Owatonna's Syd Kretlow, while future Georgia Bulldog Jayda Woods of Rocori will be gunning for her third straight All-State honor (and perhaps joined by her teammate Brynn Sauer?). And finally, not to be forgotten is Prior Lake's Kristyn Arends, a future Wisconsin Badger who really blossomed during summer competitions, ultimately taking second in her age group at the AAU Junior Olympics and third at the USATF Nationals!
1600 Meters/3200 Meters
As last cross country season showed, female distance running in Minnesota is nothing less than star-studded. There is unbelievable depth, and it is nearly impossible to know who will win on a given day. With such talent and consistency, the best we can do is cover as many of these incredible young women as possible, because all of them have a chance at the podium in both races!
Seven out of the top-ten finishers in the 1600 meters last year will be returning this year. Farmington freshman Anna Fenske won the 1600 meters as an 8th grader by in a dramatic finish over Edina's Emily Kompelien. In the ten State competitions she has run in during her young career, she has been a top-ten placer in every single one. She also placed third in the 3200 meters behind teammate Lauren Peterson, was the runner-up in cross-country last fall, and an All-American at Nike Nationals. And as one of the top-ranked runners in the nation, Fenske is in a strong position to repeat as champion. Meanwhile, Peterson enters 2018 as the defending champion in the 3200 meters, and is coming off her second consecutive individual qualification for Nike Cross Nationals to go with her eight All-State honors.
One of the best stories from last fall was undoubtedly Emily Covert of Minneapolis Washburn. While a distance star ever since seventh grade, she first began really turning heads after winning the Roy Griak Invite, and went on to earn a State Championship in cross country and All-Amerian honors at Foot Locker Nationals. Her only hiccup to an otherwise-flawless season was a battle with the flu during Nike Cross Nationals which knocked her back to 77th in that race. Nevertheless, Covert's vast experience could prove valuable as she set out for her second State title.
Emily Kompelien has the second fastest returning time in the 1600, and nearly had her first State Championship in the event last fall until a furious kick by Fenske took it from her grasp. With that fresh memory, Kompelien will definitely be on the hunt for her first State title.
Rounding out just a few of the potential State medalists is Minnetonka's Sophie Whicher, Wayzata's Emma Atkinson, Brianne Brewster out of Lakeville South, and the duo of 8th-grader Ali Weimer and junior Annalise Davis from Saint Michael Albertville. Of course, Whicher and Atkinson will naturally have a challenge even qualifying for State thanks to their stiff Section 6AA competition, while Brewster is going to face the same challenge thanks to sharing a section with Farmington's Fenske and Peterson.
We can only speculate as to the results come June, however, it can be stated with certainty that we are in for a treat watching these outstanding young runners. Perhaps the highlight of the year will be seeing the above mentioned girls compete with the Ping sisters and Tierney Wolfgram at Hamline. Rarely do we have the opportunity to see such a deep group of talent at the same time, yet 2018 promises to do just that!