DULUTH — A brief moment of shock quickly shifted to elation for Two Harbors sophomore sprinter Delaney Nelson upon hearing her 100-meter dash time announced during the Section 7A Track and Field Championships on Thursday at Malosky Stadium. Nelson set the bar sky-high for this season after winning her first section title in the 100 as a freshman last year with a time of 12.69 seconds.
Nelson hoped to replicate the performance, or possibly even take it a step further this time around. “I was really hoping to run around what I ran last year—like if I would’ve hit 12.6 today, I would’ve been very happy,” she said after the race.
Turns out, Nelson had an even better showing in store, as she set a new Section 7A record in the 100 with a PR time of 12.50 to earn her second-straight section title. Nelson qualified for the state meet in three events overall, including the long jump with a mark of 16-05.
50, along with the 4x100 and 4x400 relays. ADVERTISEMENT Next week’s trip to the Class A state meet will be Nelson’s third dating back to her eighth-grade year in 2022. Last year she qualified in the 100, 200 and the 4x200 relay.
“My first time (it was) really scary because it’s really different (than) the meets here — very strict and a lot more people, better competition,” she said. “It’s crazy competition down there. Last year I was a little less nervous.
I was in multiple things so that kind of took the stress away.” Being in the presence of her teammat.