Location: Mt Lake GC, Mt Lake
Weather: 67°, sunny
BOYS
Virtual Meet Projections: Saint James (44), Worthington (67), Fairmont (107)
Individuals to watch: Grant Strukel (Blue Earth, 16:18.1), Adam Koller (Worthington, 16:24.2), Seth Pierson (St James, 16:41.55), William Saari (Fairmont, 16:48.23)
The Skinny: With ten runners with PR's under 17:10 and six under 17 flat means this is a great test for the top racers amongst the quality of athlete they will face at section meets. Grant Strukel is the fastest returning athlete but it is always key to watch and see which athletes make big jumps over the summer and he'll face several runners who are experienced and ready make their move including Adam Koller (Worthington), Seth Pierson (St. James) and William Saari (Fairmont). State ranked St. James is the favorite in our projections with three in the top ten and five in the top 15. Worthington appears to have a split of over 2:30 that will need to close for them to challenge in the team race.
GIRLS
Virtual Meet Projections: Luverne (39.5), Murray County Central (86), Martin County West (96), Fairmont (100)
Individuals to watch: Morgan Gehl (Murray County, 17:48.0), Tenley Nelson (Luverne, 18:13.48), Regan Feit (19:03.0), Paola Acevedo (St James, 19:19), Laura Thompson (Fairmont, 19:24.49), Marissa Whitehead (Martin County West, 19:29.48)
The Skinny: The match up between top ranked Luverne and Murray County is a tantalizing preview of what looks like the top two teams in section 3A. Martin County also appears to be a state qualifying level squad as well. While it looks like Luverne is the projected winner, watching how the team races shake out will be one of the more interesting developments of the first full week of meet action. The state's fastest class A returner Morgan Gehl of Murray County-Fulda looks to be the class of the field but Luverne's crop of young athletes will be hungry to race against the preseason state meet favorite.