Men's
100m/200m
Last year's final in the 100-meter dash was extremely fast, and this year's shouldn't be any different. The MSHSL A 100m final will look to feature 4 of the top 6 athletes from last year's final. Marlon Wiley of Jordan High School, if in top form, could become one of the most decorated athletes of the sprints crew. Last year, as a rookie sophomore, he won the 100m dash and finished 3rd in the 200m dash. In addition, Jack Burt of Marshall School in Duluth looks to make a strong return. He finished 3rd in the 100m and 4th in the 200m finals at the state meet. In both races, he was roughly only 0.1 seconds behind Marlon Wiley. Also, Derrick Cannon finished 4th in the 100m dash and 6th in the 200m dash. If all three of these men are in the final of either of these events, it could be a very fun showdown. Jevonte Victor of Eden Valley-Watkins High and Payton Schott of Dover-Eyota High School look to be in the mix in the 100m as well. Worth noting, Logan Marconcini of BOLD High School had a huge PR at the Yellow Medicine East Meet last year, and after missing out on the State Championships, he's sure to be hungry for more.
400m
Senior Jack Burt of Marshall School seems to be the story of the men's sprints. Last year, he took second in the 400m dash at the State Finals, and he returns this year with the fastest time of 49.82. This year, he has already won the USATF Indoor Championships with a time of 52.82, and has also run 51.89 this year. As a senior, this is Jack Burt's last chance at a state title, and boy does it look good. Reid Pierzinski of Pequot Lakes, who is also a great hurdler and jumper, ran a 50.01 at the Brainerd Tri on May 2nd, in his first 400 in what seems to be two years. Although he is doubtful to run the 400m dash as he will be representing Pequot Lakes in the Triple Jump and both 110m Hurdles and 300m Hurdles, and probably a relay or two, if he steps up to the line and has a good day, he could walk away as the state champion. Seniors Wyatt Quiring of Fairmont High School and Colton Taylor from Wabasso are the only other returners from last year's final in this event, so expect many new names at the top of the list.
Hurdles
Reid Pierzinski of Pequot Lakes High School (you'll see his name frequently this year) leads the field by a large margin of almost a full 0.5 seconds over fellow senior Alex Benson of Nova Classical Academy. However, looking at the state meet results from last year, he won by 0.4 seconds, and the next fastest returner was almost a full second back. Again, with only three returners from last year's state final, expect many new names. Alex Benson has the next fastest PR coming into season with a 15.01. Looking at his past PR's beforehand, he seemed to make a huge jump in time, so consistency may be the name of the game for him. Logan Tesch who took 6th at the state meet last year seemed to not have his best day. He has a PR of 15.17 last year, quite a bit faster than his time at state. Look for Max Giza of Staples-Motley and Jared Miller of LeSueur-Henderson High to make a statement on a large scale.
Pierzinski is also back in the 300 hurdles, and ready to take the state title once again. With two times of 38.60 in the prelims and 38.66 in the finals, Reid screams consistency on the state level. Max Giza of Staples-Motley High School is also a very versatile athlete - he took third in the pole vault at last year's state meet. Coming in with a PR of 39.27 from last year, he should be nipping at Reid's heels. At last year's state meet, he had a tremendous prelim, but fell short of his goals in the final. Let's see if that changes this year. Drew Lewison of Grand Meadow High School and Jade Reicks of Saint Peter High School will be battling as they come in with PR's within 0.2 seconds of each other, both at the state meet from last year. They both know how to step up at the state meet, and this year should be no different. If you were to make a final from last year's fastest time, look for Logan Josephson of Redwood Valley, Cade Neubert of Sauk Centre, Camden Arndt of Morris Area, Landon Schlangen of Eden Valley-Watkins, and Michael Fitzpatrick of Crosby-Ironton to round out the final. There is a 3 second difference between the current PRs of these 9 men.