The Forest Lake girls track team sets out this spring with aspirations of competing for True Team sections in hopes of sending the team altogether to the 2024 Class AAA state tournament.
A season ago, the Rangers took fourth in the Suburban East Conference and placed second in the Section 7AAA championships races behind Blaine, but ended up sending three individuals to the final stage, while also having its 4x relay team earn its bid in the process. The squad still has plenty of firepower leftover after keeping a majority of its upperclassmen. Key returnees for the 2024 campaign include 2023 junior state participant Norah Hushagen as a distance runner, senior Makayla Miles in the pole vault, sophomore Alexis Fahey who throws, along with junior sprinter/jumper Savana Sanchez.
“Those are some of our main keys to success this season,” said first-year head coach Jenna Parent. Parent detailed some of the expectations that she has for her girls following a productive outing the year prior.
“I met with the group of captains and we kind of went over some things that we wanted to try and get the team to achieve. We’d like to break into the top three at conference, while also winning true team sections – that’s important,” Parent said. “We would like to send the whole team to state, it’s always a cool thing to add and be a part of, because it gets really hyped and there’s a lot of energy that gets put into that specific meet. The scoring is totally different and it heavily relies on everyone as a whole.”
Parent also notes how the team is eager to place first at the Section 7AAA championship races this year after falling just short a season ago.
“It’d be nice to rewrite history there,” Parent said, who added, “We would like to go and send at least one individual to state per event group – which I think is totally doable.”
In terms of battling the midseason bug and staying on a consistent level throughout the season, Parent believes you must do everything with intention – and hopes for solid weather.
“Well, hopefully it doesn’t end up like ski season where we had weather play into things – it honestly already has,” Parent said, who’s also the head coach for the boys and girls Nordic ski team in the winter season.
“In track, it’s really crucial that you’re intentional with every movement that you make, whether that’s your warm up or a drill, or even in competition. It’s beyond crucial, so that you take the things you work on in practice and try to remember that while you’re competing – it helps you get into the positions you need to be in, regardless of your events. That’s something we talked about as a team. The effort that you put into everything will show up at the end of season when we want it to,” Parent said.
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