By Kerri Bilben
Sophia Blanck was invited to race in the Hamline Elite meet last Friday on the campus of Hamlin University in St. Paul. The Hamline Elite meet is an “invite only” meet based solely on athlete’s performances at the beginning of each season. Races 400m and under only invite the top 9 athletes in the state due to Hamline track having 9 lanes. 800-3200m races can invite up to 12 racers, depending on where the natural time break falls.
Sophia went into Friday’s race as the 10th fastest 800m runner in the state, regardless of school size, with her scorching time of 2:19 that she ran at her first meet down in Rosemount. Only a small handful of other Section 7 athletes qualified this year, including Esko, Rock Ridge, GNK, and Cloquet.
Despite falling ill during the early part of the week, Sophia ran a great race. The temperature was in the low 40s at race time (8:00 pm) with little wind. She came across the line after the first 400m right in the tight pack. In the third 200m, often the “make or break” part of the race for 800m runners, she found herself digging deep to stay with the pack. This was a phenomenal race to be a part of as the first five runners across the finish line were all within one second of each other. Sohpia trusted her training and the advice of Head Coach, Rick Frericks, and gave it all she had left, finishing the race in 10th place at 2:22.84. This is her 2nd fastest time overall in only her 2nd 800m race of this season. She currently has the fastest 800m time for all A girls in the state and ranks 12th regardless of school size.
Sophia and the WKHS Mariner Track team have two more meets leading up to the Polar League Conference meet on Wednesday, May 17. They will then compete in the Section 7A North Sub-Sections on Thursday, May 25 at Mesabi East.
