NORTHFIELD &045; Some obviously knowledgeable observers were standing near the finish line during the Section 1AA track and field meet discussing the prospects in the girls’ 400-meter dash.

They seemed convinced Emily Bartusek’s best years were behind her, that she would not repeat as section champion.

She proved them wrong.

Bartusek again claimed the gold in the 400 and a silver in the 200, advancing to state in both events during Saturday’s section meet at Carleton College in Northfield.

It will be the fourth consecutive appearance in the state meet for Bartusek, who’s still only a sophomore. She’ll be joined by another state veteran, Beth Kolling, who placed second in the 100.

They led Albert Lea to a surprisingly strong fifth-place finish among 16 schools. Lakeville won with 175 points, followed in the top five by Eastview with 87, Rochester Century 80, New Prague 46.5 and Albert Lea 45.

&uot;The girls really put together a strong section meet,&uot; said coach Margo Wayne. &uot;We’re very proud of them.&uot;

Bartusek just missed making it to state in the triple jump, placing third, but she set a new school record with a distance of 35 feet, 1 inch.

The Tigers had one other individual placewinner Saturday in Steph Overgaard, who earned a medal by taking sixth in the 100 hurdles.

Amy Ravenhorst, Jasey Porter, Overgaard and Kolling placed fifth in the 4×200 relay.

Ravenhorst, Porter, Kolling and Bartusek were sixth in the 4×400.

In finals conducted Thursday, Kolling finished sixth in the triple jump.

Bartusek and Kolling will compete in the state meet Friday and Saturday at the National Sports Center in Blaine. The Class AA preliminaries are at 10 a.m. Friday. The running finals start at 10 a.m. Saturday.