Wayzata is one of eight girls teams to return a roster of six athletes to Nike Cross Nationals, where they finished sixth last fall. The Trojans do lose their No. 1 runner in Anna French, a three-time veteran of the championship event, but the storied program is known for reloading. Junior Annika Lerdall and senior Michaela Keller-Miller finished 2-3 at NXN 2014, running identical times of 18:53 for 28th and 29th scoring positions. Keller-Miller returns with the faster 5k time of 18:07.8, but Lerdall finished just behind French at the Minnesota State Championship to place 8th with a time of 14:18.4 for 4k, the more commonly contested cross country distance in Minnesota.
What else is different about the Land of 10,000 Lakes?
In the winter months, many athletes look to the snow for their cross training. Keller-Miller returns as the leader for the state title winning Nordic Ski team. She finished runner-up last year at the state meet, recording a 10k Ski time of 35:04.
The Trojans are more dominant in the fall than the spring, though they did boast three girls at 11:20 for 3200m. One of those is Melissa Drenkhan, a rising senior who ran in the No. 7 spot last fall. Look for her to step up in a leadership role with Keller-Miller and Lerdall, with fellow 11:20 runner Jaycie Thomsen close behind. Brooke Young ran in just a few smaller meets last year as a freshman, but she had a nice rookie track campaign with new personal bests of 11:40.03 for 3200m and 5:24.11 for 1600m. With a solid first summer of high school training, she could be the change maker on the squad.
Of Note: The Trojans are the only team in the NXN era to dethrone nine-time national champions Fayetteville-Manlius. That win came two years ago in 2013 under the guidance of Dave Emmans, who enters his 24th year as head coach this fall.
Top Returnees from 2014 XC Season:
| 1) Michaela Keller-miller | 18:07.80 | 63 | ||
| 2) Kaylen Bach | 18:12.20 | 78 | ||
| 3) Annika Lerdall | 18:12.70 | 80 | ||
| 4) Jaycie Thompson | 18:49.40 | 258 | ||
| 5) Samantha Lettenberger | 19:01.50 | 340 | ||
| Average Time: 18:28.72 Total Time: 1:32:23.60 1-5 Split: 53.70 | ||||
| 6) Melissa Drenkhahn | 19:12.10 | 424 | ||
| 7) Gina Kalker | 19:44.10 | 709 |
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Top Returning 3200m Times from 2015 Outdoor Season:
| 1) Melissa Drenkhahn | 11:20.24 | 140 | ||
| 2) Annika Lerdall | 11:20.46 | 141 | ||
| 3) Jaycie Thomsen | 11:20.54 | 142 | ||
| 4) Michaela Keller-miller | 11:26.85 | 173 | ||
| 5) Brooke Young | 11:40.03 | 247 | ||
| Average Time: 11:25.62 Total Time: 57:08.12 1-5 Split: 19.79 | ||||
| 6) Samantha Lettenberger | 11:45.12 | 272 | ||
| 7) Elizabeth Sullivan | 11:45.26 | 276 | ||
Top Returning 1600m Times from 2015 Outdoor Season:
| 1) Michaela Keller-miller | 5:14.47 | 149 | ||
| 2) Jaycie Thomsen | 5:15.80 | 166 | ||
| 3) Melissa Drenkhahn | 5:18.63 | 208 | ||
| 4) Brooke Young | 5:24.11 | 288 | ||
| 5) Ellie Emerick | 5:25.01 | 303 | ||
| Average Time: 5:19.60 Total Time: 26:38.02 1-5 Split: 10.54 | ||||
| 6) Emily Short | 5:33.42 | 443 | ||
In the 10 day span between Sunday, August 16 and Monday, August 24, MileSplit will release the Pre-Season National XC Team Rankings for Boys and Girls. The No. 1 team will be released on Tuesday, August 25 along with the Pre-Season Saucony Flo50 Team Rankings, which includes the Top 25 teams for each gender. Selections are made by the MileSplit national team, including insight and input from state web masters, and based on 2014 final rankings, placement at 2014 NXN, number and quality of returning runners, improvement during track season and tradition of excellence.