Huls breaks family tradition, chooses oval over diamond

COLD SPRING – Erin Huls was in elementary school when her athletic talent caught her uncle's eye.

While Erin and her brother William were growing up, their uncle Steve Huls would often stop by their house and play sports.

Steve recalled a particular day when Erin was around 12 or 13 and the two of them were running around the house. He found it a bit challenging to catch his niece and realized then that Erin had an ability to move much quicker than most kids her age.

"I was chasing her around her house, and I remember thinking 'she is so fast,' " Steve said.

It would have been a natural fit for the Rocori senior to use that speed by running down fly balls in the outfield or padding stolen base numbers for the softball team. After all, her family is synonymous with the sport of baseball.

Huls' father, Russ, was a standout player for St. Cloud State University, Steve was a 15th-round draft pick of the Minnesota Twins and climbed the minor league ladder to the AAA level, and grandpa Bill has been a fixture around the Cold Spring amateur scene for decades.

For a while it looked like Erin would follow suit.

Erin ran track in the spring while making a few varsity appearances as a seventh-grader and played softball during the summer.

However, as an eighth-grader Huls became a regular on the varsity track team and began to feel the pull to commit to the sport full time.

"It was a really hard decision, but after my first full year I knew I was going to stick with (track)," Huls said.

There was a bit of an adjustment period for the family to learn the ropes, but Huls' parents and grandparents show up in full force to support her.

"They never miss a meet," Huls said.

Finding her niche

Huls began to find her niche as a hurdler and qualified for the state meet as a freshman and sophomore. She took third both years.

As a junior, Huls again found herself in the state meet, only this time she was going hurdle for hurdle with Thief River Falls' Meleah Biermaier for first place.

With a strong finish, Huls edged Biermaier to win the championship with a time of 43.39.

"Going over the very last hurdle, it was the best feeling ever," Huls said.

Rocori head coach Jim Meyer credits Huls' work ethic and mentality for her success. He said she knows what she needs to do to prepare and has a desire to be the best.

"She never shies away from competition," Meyer said.

Future Gopher

After her freshman season, Huls began receiving recruiting information from the University of Minnesota.

As her list of accolades grew, so did interest from other schools. The University of North Dakota, North Dakota State University, Iowa State, Wisconsin, Brown and Michigan all inquired about her.

Whether she knew it or not, her uncle Steve might have tried to guide her to the maroon and gold.

He played baseball for the Gophers in the mid '90s and wanted Erin to make her own decision, but he said he did make sure to tell her all about the school while sitting around a bonfire the summer before she committed.

When the recruiting process took her to Wisconsin, it caused her uncle to issue a warning.

"I just said 'hey, if you end up going there, we can't talk for a while,' " Steve joked.

When it came time for Huls' visit to the U of M, she said she loved the campus and took a liking to the coaching staff — and the decision was made.

"The fact that (Steve) did go there and that's where I'm going is really cool," Huls said.

Senior season

Huls' focus this spring has been on improving her hurdle time with a goal to run the 300 in under 43 seconds. She also has her sights set on winning a second state championship and helping the Spartans qualify for the true team state meet.

"I really want to help my team get back to state and take first this year, that would end it perfectly," Huls said.