ST. MICHAEL — She’s glad to be back.

Dover-Eyota’s Anndi Frie took last season off from track and field in order to concentrate on her favorite sport, volleyball.

Volleyball remains No. 1, but after the high jumping season Frie has put together, track and field is gaining fast.

Thursday, on the first day of the Class 1A state meet at St. Michael-Albertville, Frie — just a freshman — wasn’t at her very best. But she was close.

Frie, who began this season clearing 5-feet, upped that all the way to 5-6 a couple of weeks ago. Frie went for 5-6 again Thursday but this time just missed on three attempts.

She did clear 5-4, though, which earned the young standout a tie for third place in the state. St. Croix Lutheran’s Maya Otto and New Life Academy of Woodbury’s Jada Mitchell both went 5-6, with Otto named the winner due to fewer misses.

“I’m really happy with third place; today was a lot of fun,” Frie said. “Being at state, it was kind of overwhelming at first, but I like pressure and high competition, so it was good. My goal was to place, so finishing third, I feel good.”

Dover-Eyota coach Tim Andring was thrilled with the way his prized freshman competed.

“She had to be clean early to place where she wanted, and she did that,” Andring said. “She had some good attempts at 5-6 but just not quite enough to pull it out.”

After taking one year off from track and field, it’s safe to say that will be the only time in her high school career that Frie will do that.

She knows now how special she can be in this sport. And she loved everything about being back out there with the team, day after day.

“I’m definitely glad that I came back out,” Frie said. “It’s fun being around friends at practices, and meets are so much fun. I love the high jump and seeing myself improve.”

La Crescent-Hokah’s Madi Jeppesen landed seventh in the high jump with a 5-2 leap.

Triton’s Staub shines again

The state meet certainly agrees with Brady Staub.

A year ago, the Triton senior settled in in a hurry and landed a second-place finish in the discus. On Thursday, it was more of the same.

Staub came through with his best three throws ever in the shot put, as he broke his own school record on all three throws. He finished third overall with a mark of 57-feet-10 1/2.

Triton coach Kim Swanson had a strong hunch about her senior.

“Brady thrives on the atmosphere at state,” Swanson said. “He feels good at the state meet. So many of the guys there know each other and they are all rooting for each other. They have a really neat camaraderie.”

Staub simply loves to compete.

“It is the competition that drives me,” he said. “You get good competition and a great environment where it is fun to compete with the guys, and things go well.”

They certainly do for Staub.

“I came in confident today,” Staub said. “I was feeling it.”

Staub wasn’t the only thrower from Section 1 to have a great day throwing. Plainview-Elgin-Millville’s Carson Hynes placed sixth (54-9 1/2) and Rushford-Peterson/Houston’s Chace Drazkowski seventh (54-4 3/4).

Cotter goes 1-2-3

There was some serious disappointment last week for Winona Cotter’s Erik Semling when he lost his balance and fell off the track in the 1,600 at the Section 1, Class 1A meet. His times in that race this season would have made him a favorite at the state meet.

Instead, he finished well back in the pack and didn’t qualify for state.

That left the sophomore with one thing to fall back on. He was going to state in the 3,200, a race he won a year ago.

A year later, he has done it again. It was a Winona Cotter rush to the finish line as the Ramblers finished 1-2-3 in the race, Semling winning it in 9:23.04. Kellen Groth was second (9:23.49) and Ryan Littlefield third (9:24.50).

It was the same thing in the state cross country meet, with those three taking the top three places.

“We’ve got committed, hard workers,” said one of Cotter’s distance coaches, Brian Semling, Erik’s father. “They put in the work through the year and it shows through the season and especially at the end of the season.”

As for Erik Semling, getting back on top felt great.

“It feels good to win obviously,” he said. “And I feel great about my teammates; going 1-2-3 was our goal after what we’d done in cross country.”

Erik Semling’s 9:23.04 wasn’t close to his best time this season, but he was able to live with that, calling it a tactical race.

Other top finishers

La Crescent-Hokah’s Juniper Kabat finished third in the girls 3,200 with an 11:08.37 time. Rushford-Peterson/Houston’s Caitlin Bauer was fifth (11:17.92) and Winona Cotter’s Emma Hatanpa seventh (11:33.18).

Rushford-Peterson/Houston’s Aubryana Boldt was seventh in the long jump, going 17-4 1/2. She’ll compete in the triple jump and 100 hurdles on Friday. She’s the defending state champion in the former.

Cannon Falls’ Madi Jeppesen was seventh in the high jump (5-2).

BOYS

First place, Rochester-area finishers

3,200 — 1. Erik Semling (Winona Cotter) 9:23.04; 2. Kellen Groth (Winona Cotter) 9:23.49; 3. Ryan Littlefield (Winona Cotter) 9:24.50; 11. Zemecha McManus (Lyle/Austin Pacelli) 10:01.02.

Shot put — 1. Jackson Staab (Lakeview) 61-4 3/4; 3. Brady Staub (Triton) 57-10 1/2; 6. Carson Hynes (Plainview-Elgin-Millville) 54-9 1/2; 7. Chace Drazkowski (Rushford-Peterson/Houston) 54-4 3/4; 12. Brody Niemeyer (Lanesboro/FC/MC) 51-5.

Pole vault — 1. Levi Freyberg (LCWM-Nicollet) 15-0; 9. Zephyr Paulsen (Winona Cotter) 13-0; 10. (tie) Zach Whalen (Lourdes) 12-6;

Dylan Menge (Cannon Falls) 12-6; Parker Krage (Lanesboro/FC/MC) 12-6; (no height) Myles Jones (Plainview-Elgin-Millville).

Triple jump — 1. William Gilbert (Liberty Classical) 45-9 1/4; 14. Sawyer Teske (Winona Cotter) 40-1 1/4.

GIRLS

3,200 — 1. Margaret Duffy (St. John’s Prep) 10:49.48 3. Juniper Kabat (La Crescent-Hokah) 11:08.37; 5. Caitlin Bauer (Rushford-Peterson/Houston) 11:17.92; 7. Emma Hatanpa (Winona Cotter) 11:33.18; 10. Hadley Doman (Hayfield) 11:48.90; 11. Hope Docan-Morgan (La Crescent-Hokah) 11:55.06.

Long jump — 1. Mckaylen Lewis (Math & Science Academy) 19-1 3/4; 7. Aubryana Boldt (Rushford-Peterson/Houston) 17-4 1/2; 17. Charlotte Ferrie (Lanesboro/FC/MC) 15-6 3/4.

High jump — 1. Mayah Otto (St. Croix Lutheran) 5-6; 3. Anndi Frie (Dover-Eyota) 5-4; 7. Madi Jeppesen (Cannon Falls) 5-2; 11. Megan Baumgartner (Winona Cotter) 5-2.

Discus — 1. Emily Marquis (West Marshall) 134-1; 17. Anna Rott (Plainview-Elgin-Millville) 114-9; 20. Brooklyn Mitchell (La Crescent-Hokah) 110-2;

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