WC Wisconsin News

To say that Menomonie High senior cross country star Isabella Jacobsen has proven to be a quick study would be an understatement.

According to Jacobsen, she’s only been running seriously since she was a junior, though looking at her as she rounded the track during a recent 1,600-meter run at Menomonie you’d be hard-pressed to tell it.

LeaderTelegram.com reports that Jacobsen never surrendered the lead at the Big Rivers Conference meet and came within seconds of breaking the current conference record with her time of 5:03.6, just above the 5:00.42 record.

And Jacobsen still wasn’t finished, adding the 3,200-meter title to her list of accomplishments with a time of 10:57.47.

Next up for Jacobsen is the University of Wisconsin, where she is committed to run next year. Jacobson said she learned of the school’s interest in her last summer, when her coach told her that a friend of his on the staff wanted her contact information.

At first, Jacobsen remembers being taken aback just a bit.

“Then I ended up talking to her and I really liked it and I was falling in love with the team and the program,” she added.

Now that she’s gotten serious about running, Jacobsen said she can’t imagine life without it and is looking forward to seeing where her career can go even beyond Wisconsin.

In the Big Rivers meet, Jacobsen wasn’t the only Menomonie star to shine, with teammates Emma Mommsen and Alexis Anderson both taking first-place in the high jump and pole vault, respectively.

On the boys’ side, Jayden Williams won conference titles in all three jump events, registering marks that rank among the top 10 in the state in each event.