Junior Makenna Madetzke helped the 10th-ranked Ankeny girls’ cross country team to a fourth-place finish in the Fort Dodge Invitational on Thursday. The Hawkettes finished with a total of 144 points.
Madetzke placed sixth in a time of 18 minutes 46 seconds, which set a personal record. Her previous PR of 18:55 came in the Kirk Schmaltz Invitational on Sept. 5 at Ames, where she earned a seventh-place finish.
Here is some inside info on Madetzke:
Congratulations on an outstanding race at Fort Dodge. Were you feeling especially good that day?
It always feels amazing to run a new lifetime best. As a team, we have been training really hard. It wasn’t anything especially good that day, but as the season winds down, I am starting to feel fresher and fresher.
How were the running conditions?
The course is one of my favorites, as it’s always well-marked and maintained. The weather was pretty good as well. The race started pretty hot in the 80s, but I didn’t notice it much.
You nearly caught your teammate, Drew Beason, at the finish line, and this is the closest you’ve ever been to the three-time state placewinner who just verbally committed to South Dakota. Has it been your goal to try to run with her or as close to her as possible?
Drew wasn’t feeling her best that day, but pushed through for the team. My goal this season has been to run and be able to stay with the top group. I’ve been working on being stronger mentally and physically during the middle of my race.
What did you think of your team’s performance?
I thought we did pretty well to place fourth. We continue to work hard and battle through obstacles and setbacks. I look forward to a meet where we are all healthy and performing at our best. Our up-and-coming varsity runners Bella (Sullivan), Ella (Schulz) and Vanessa (Wise) had season-bests and continue to improve.
The state meet will be held on the same course in a few weeks. If your team can make it to state, how beneficial do you think it was to see the course on Thursday?
Our team is very familiar with the Fort Dodge course as most of us have run it multiple times. It’s still very beneficial to see the course before the state meet as it allows us to better plan a racing strategy and come into the state meet with more confidence and less nerves.
Your team will compete in the CIML Conference meet on Wednesday at Southeast Polk, and eight of the teams from your league are ranked in the top 20 in Class 4A. What are your goals for the meet?
I personally put most of my individual goals at the district and state meets. But, our conference is extremely competitive and it will be great to see where I stand with some of the top girls in the state. It would be great for our team to be in the top four at conference as we try to build a cross country culture similar to the top programs in the state.
Your team competed at the Southeast Polk Invitational earlier this month, but you did not run in that race. Were you sitting out more for rest or for training purposes?
The coaching staff and I decided not to run me in that race for training purposes. With not running at the meet I could keep some of my higher mileage and more intense training a little longer into the season and not have to worry about a race.
You placed 49th in last year’s state meet, and you have been ranked in the top 30 for most of this season. Assuming that your team qualifies for state, do you think you could contend for a podium finish?
Right now as a team, we need to focus on staying strong and healthy. There is tremendous talent across the state this season with very fast times. At the state meet it can be anyone’s day, and I believe I have as much of a chance as any of the other runners in the state. Ultimately, I want to build and improve upon my experience last year. As a team, I hope we can improve on our (seventh-place) finish from last year.
Last spring, you played for the Ankeny girls’ soccer team while also competing in track. Did you find it difficult to juggle the two sports?
Being a multi-sport athlete is extremely challenging, especially when you add school and social activities on top of it. I always felt like I was missing out on something, especially when it came to team-bonding activities. But, by juggling the two sports, I learned a lot about prioritizing nutrition and recovery that I think have really helped me be successful.
Now that you have emerged as one of the state’s top runners, are you planning to run in college? Or are you still considering soccer?
I’d love to run in college. This cross country season is my first season not balancing club soccer. By focusing on running, I was able to have more consistent training and increase the intensity of my training this summer and fall. It is starting to show in my results.
What do you want to study in college?
I am currently undecided. I am interested in exploring options in health sciences.