North Fremont’s Andrea Anderson ready for a breakout sophomore season

EASTERN IDAHO – The cross country season is underway and North Fremont’s Andrea Anderson is proving she doesn’t believe in a sophomore jinx.

Anderson, who finished third at the 3A state cross country championships last year as a freshman, won her first race of the season last week competing at the Madison Dash.

She ran in the 9th-10th grade race and just missed breaking 20 minutes with a time of 20:02.1, which ranks third in the state 3A performance list.

While the time was off her PR of 18:20.0 set at last season’s state championships, it was better than teammate Eliza Bingham, who won the 11th-12th grade Madison Dash race, and better than the 6A and 5A runners that finished in five of the next seven spots.

Anderson’s time was better than Terry Jones Invitational winner Paetyn Polatis of Snake River, who is a state medalists in 4A.

It’s probably too early to compare times at the end August, especially on different courses, but it shows the potential Anderson has entering the new season as a sophomore.

Along with Bingham, who placed fifth at last year’s 3A state championships as a sophomore, the Huskies have a solid 1-2 punch entering the season after finishing fifth as a team at state last year behind east Idaho programs Malad, Ririe and Soda Springs.

“She puts in the work in the off-season and has a tremendous attitude,” coach Holly Johnston said of Anderson, who is the District 6 Athlete of the Week. “She will be a top competitor this season for sure.”