NORTHFIELD &045; Emily Bartusek will compete alone as an Albert Lea Tiger, but at least the surroundings will be familiar.

Bartusek advanced to the Class AA state track and field meet for the fifth year in a row Saturday, finishing second in the 400-meter dash in the Section 1AA finals at Carleton College in Northfield. A junior, she’s the lone Albert Lea athlete to reach state this spring.

The Albert Lea girls totaled 27 points in the meet, putting them ninth among 17 teams. Lakeville won with 160 points, followed in the top five by Rochester Century with 85, Owatonna 70.5, Eastview 64.5 and Rochester Mayo 46.

Bartusek narrowly missed the gold medal in the 400, where she was edged by 1/100th of a second. She placed fourth in the 200.

The Tigers were one place away from state in the 4×200 relay, where Bartusek, Amy Ravenhorst, Jasey Porter and Sasha Flores combined for a season-best time while finishing second.

&uot;Unfortunately, they only take the top relay instead of two,&uot; said coach Margo Wayne. &uot;But it was a great effort on that relay.&uot;

The Tigers’ other places were by Ravenhorst, who took fourth in the 400, and Stacy Busch, who was eighth in the shot put.

&uot;To have both Emily and Amy place in the top four of the 400 says a lot,&uot; said Wayne. &uot;Overall, the girls competed real well, and it was a fun day. We’re looking forward to the state meet next week with Emily.&uot;

The state meet is Friday and Saturday at the National Sports Center in Blaine. The Class AA preliminaries start at 10 a.m. Friday, and the girls’ Class AA 400 final is set for 1:40 p.m. Saturday.