Submitted photo. Fairmont's Macy Hanson sprints down the stretch in a relay at the Hamline Elite meet.

FAIRMONT – Senior distance runner Macy Hanson is ready for her fifth and final Sentinel Relays appearance, beginning with the 1,600-meter race at 5:50 p.m. Friday.

In 2024, Hanson placed second in the girls 3,200-meter race, posting a time of 10:59.99. This time, Hanson will turn her attention to arguably her strongest event, the 1,600.

“I want to win for sure. I always want to PR, but we’ll see how it goes,” said Hanson.

Hanson is the current school record holder for the Fairmont Cardinals in both the 1,600 after running a 5:00.93 set in 2024 and the 3,200 with a time of 10:45.9 set earlier this season at the Buc Invite.

“We’ve had a lot of small meets, so it’s a good introduction to the big ones,” said Hanson. “It’s a good chance for everybody to compete, get PRs, and get excited about the postseason. Especially since it’s a home meet, it’s fun to have everybody, like all the fans and the

community there.”

The big stage doesn’t faze Hanson after making four state appearances for track and field on top of her storied cross-country career, which earned her a spot on the Minnesota State Golden Gopher squad, so there are no changes to how she has prepared for this meet.

“I just try to keep it the same. I just try to go and have fun with it, you know, and do the best I can,” said Hanson.

In addition to the 1,600, Hanson is also slated for the Class AA 4×400-meter relay, an event in which she has had great success. Some athletes may feel the added pressure at the first large meet of the season, but not Hanson; it’s all excitement.

“I actually think it’s more exciting,” said Hanson. “I think I like having everybody I know around. I think it’s fun.”

Hanson has four first-place finishes across all the events she competes in so far this season, and she is hunting for the fifth one heading into the relays. She is not focused on who she is up against but rather herself, making sure she is ready to go.

“I honestly haven’t even looked at it too much,” said Hanson. “There’s always a couple, you know, there are a lot of people here, so we’ll see who shows up and it’ll be fun.”

Hanson is confident in the Fairmont squad’s ability to take home the win Friday evening.

“We have a lot of depth on the team right now, so that’s really fun,” said Hanson. “A lot of people are doing good in all kinds of events, so I think that our team can do very well at this meet and hopefully true team as well.”