The Northfield High School girls track and field team had seven athletes reach the podium at last year’s Section 1AAA championship, and all seven of those Raiders will be featured on the team’s roster in 2024.
In addition to that core of talented returners, Northfield is also looking forward to its move to AA classification this spring. The change in MSHSL status means that the Raiders will be now competing at the section level against teams such as Winona, Faribault and Red Wing instead of making the Section 1AAA run through larger schools from Lakeville, Farmington, Owatonna and Rochester.
“With our move to 1AA this season we are looking to send even more girls to state from this talented squad,” said NHS head coach Janet Smith, who begins her third season with the team in 2024. “Amber Mahal qualified in the high jump for state last year at AAA and we had three other individuals whose scores or times would have got them to state had we been in AA, so if we can match those throws, jumps and race times we have the potential to send more individuals to state this year.”
This year’s Northfield roster features 77 athletes, which includes 27 returning letter winners, 12 seniors, 18 juniors, 18 sophomores and 24 freshman.
Junior Addison Enfield, who placed third in the 1600 meters at the section meet last year and will serve as a team captain this season, added “I think moving down a Section this year will be really good for our team. I think we will have more state appearances.”
Another junior captain Emily Beaham, who competes in the hurdles, said about the move to Class AA, “We didn’t not get a lot of people to state last year and I think it will add a new level of motivation for the whole team with that goal being a little more achievable.”
Enfield will be part of a strong contingent of distance runners for the Raiders this spring. Northfield placed fourth at the 2023 Class AA state cross country meet and many of those athletes will be looking for success on the track in 2024.
Freshman Peyton Quaas placed fifth at the section meet as an eighth grader in 2023 and senior Josie Hauck is another top returner after placing seventh in the 800 meters at the section meet. A newcomer to watch this season will be eighth grader Makayah Petricka, who has been a varsity runner on the girls cross country team the past two falls.
“Our distance girls are deep. The varsity cross country athletes who competed last fall went to state and took fourth (AA), so all of our distance athletes who are going to be in the 4x800, mile, 3200 and open 800 are going to have a great season because they have a lot of mileage under their legs,” Smith said.
Another area of strength for Northfield will be the field events led by Mahal, who went 5-2 and placed first in the high jump at the Section meet to qualify for the state meet in 2023. Pole vaulters Erika Nesseth (third place) and Ani Gottfried (ninth place) both reach the podium at the section meet, while Alaina French and Inga Johnson are back after placing in the section in the shot put. To complete list, Hailey Parish also placed at the section meet last spring in the triple jump. Another name to consider in the pole vault and sprints is senior team captain Whitney Gray, who is back this season after sitting out her junior year with an injury.
“We are deep in the throws and the pole vault and we should score well in the field events,” Smith said. “We have a lot of young sprinters and some of our top sprinters were eighth and ninth graders and now they’re going to be ninth and 10th graders, so they are getting that experience and already know how to do relay exchanges and get out of the blocks, and we are going to hone those skills even more. We are young but more experienced than last year and excited for this new season.”
Senior captain Isabel Fleming brings speed and leadership to Northfield’s sprinters group while others to watch in the sprints include ninth grader Sydney Livingston, sophomore Ruthie Lippert, sophomore Tegan Madow, junior Kate Huber and ninth grader Elsa Peterson.
In the hurdles, Beaham will be a top point producer for Northfield and Judith Preens Aupetit is a foreign exchange student from Germany, who competes in the heptathlon with her club back home and will be a factor in the hurdles, mid-distance and field events.
“We have over 70 girls this year on the team and we have a lot of good sprinters and they are looking strong,” Fleming said. “There is a different sense of determination this year and I am looking forward to see how we all progress.”
Northfield’s group of captains are looking forward to their positions as leaders on the team this season and helping build team spirit and grow the program.
“As a captain, I want to help drive people to reach their best and to be there as a person for someone to go to for anything,” Enfield said. “I had a big issue with race anxiety my first year and a lot of the captains helped me with that, so I feel being a peer and working alongside our teammates is a big part of being a captain.”
Beaham provided her insight into her role as a team captain this season, “Track is a different sport, you have to help people learn the ropes, especially for meets. I think being there for our younger teammates is important.”
Gray concluded, “Being a captain is encouraging people to do their best and cheer on other people. For this season, I am excited to get back into pole vaulting and see what everyone else can do.”
Aside from the success of the team at meets, Northfield’s program has continued an upward trajectory in recent seasons as Smith has seen the team’s number grow from 62, when she took over three years ago to today’s current roster of 77.
“We are growing the program,” Smith said. “It’s a great sport because all the kids from other sports throughout the school come together to make one big team of people who bring lots of different talents and that is what is fun about track. It makes them faster and stronger for their other sport seasons too.”
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